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Blazers record two wins as League play resumes
Respecting the fact that thousands of Nova Scotians are still trying to get cleared out from this past weekend’s Avalanche of Snow across 65-70% of the province, the Nova Scotia Junior Hockey League kicked back into action with a game on Monday night and Tuesday night with the Sackville Blazers playing in both and in the process recording their 13th and 14th wins of the season. First we will take a look at Monday night’s game at home:
Sackville Blazers 4 Valley Maple Leafs 3
The Blazers battled the 7-18-1 Leafs to the bitter end before Stephen Purdy recorded his 6th goal of the season with 36 seconds left in regulation to defeat the Leafs 4-3. Conor Blackwood who is a relative newcomer to the Blazers recorded his 3rd win in five games stopping 45 of 48 shots as the Valley outshot the now 13-9-4 Blazers 48-46. Blackwood now has a 2.81 GAA and a .936 Save Percentage. The Leafs took a 1-0 lead 5:05 into the opening period on goal from Kayden Kuryluk before Jaden Hardie with his 8th of the season tied the game at 1-1 going into the second period. Lawson Cook’s 9th goal of the season was the only marker in the second period as he tallied with slightly more than two minutes to play. In the third Braedy MacKenzie tied it for the Leafs but Ryan MacIntyre put the Blazers ahead once again 3-2 before the Leafs leading point person Owen McDermid tied it for the Leafs again at 3-3 with only 2:02 left in regulation. McDermid now has 9 goals and 13 assists for 22 points on the season. It was then Purdy’s goal in the dying seconds which gave the Blazers the win. Jackson Murphy improved his save percentage to .902 stopping 42 of 46 shots for the visitors.
Sackville 2 Brookfield 0
The last time these two clubs met, the Elks surprised the Blazers in their home rink 3-1 but the Blazers still hoping to maybe catch the South Shore Lumberjacks for third place in the Fox Division blanked the Elks 2-0 in a make-up game from earlier this season. Ben Etsell was in nets for the Blazers and stopped all 39 shots he faced as the Blazers outshot the Elks 50-39. Jaden Hardie’s goal in the first period and Ethan Black’s marker in the second was all the Blazers needed for their 2-0 win. Etsell’s shutout was his first of the season and he improved his save pct. to .914. Black and Jaden Hardie both recorded an assist to go along with their goals while Justin Hardie had assists on both markers. The Blazers are now idle until they return home for a game Monday February 12 against the Valley Maple Leafs. The Elks with the loss fell to 7-15-2 for 16 points to remain one point ahead of the Valley Maple Leafs and out of the basement in the Fox Division.