Aces continue building for the season ahead

By: Michael Willoughby

Fresh off playing in preseason tournaments in Scarborough and Stoney Creek, the Stratford Humphrey Fleet Service U18 AA Aces played their home preseason slate at the William Allman Memorial Arena over the weekend of Sept. 19 and 20.

Aurelia Aho scored her first goal as a member of the U18 AA Aces in a 4-4 draw with the Mississauga Hurricanes on Sept. 19. On Sept. 20, the Aces hosted the North York Storm in their preseason home finale. The Aces couldn’t overcome a tough start, losing 3-1 to the Storm. Meghan Graham scored the lone goal for the Aces on a late power play in the third period.

After the game, Aces head coach Sean Cameron reflected on the team’s preseason development.

“Well, there were a lot of good things there. The last couple of weeks, we've had a really good stretch, and we've gotten really lucky because we've been able to play some top U.S. teams. In doing so, we're just taking everything as a stepping stone for us right now, getting us ready for the regular season,” Cameron said.

“All the credit to North York. They played a very good game there. They came out flying in the first period. We had a lot of compete in the third, and our goal in between the second and third was just to go out there and ensure that we got a goal end, and we did. I liked how we played in the third period, so lots of things to build off.”

Stratford's preseason continues with a doubleheader on Sept. 26, facing the Waterloo Ravens at Waterloo’s RIM Park in the late morning, followed by a game against the Mississauga Chiefs in the evening at Iceland Arena in Mississauga.