Lakers shut out the Panthers and outlast the 99ers

Looking to bounce back from the rough loss to the London Jr. Knights the previous weekend, the Huron-Perth U16 AAA Lakers continued their final homestand of the ALLIANCE U16 regular season, facing the Sun County Panthers and the Brantford 99ers at the Stratford Rotary Complex.

On Feb. 6, the Lakers faced the Panthers. Evan Miller scored his 15th of the season, assisted by Luke Mclean and Christian Circelli, to open the scoring early in the first period. Midway through the opening frame, Mclean notched his eighth of the season, assisted by Circelli and Miller, to give the Lakers a 2-0 lead.

Ethan Bridges scored his 14th goal of the season with assists from Evan Fisher and Sullivan Kipfer to close the opening period, putting the Lakers ahead 3-0. In the second period, Declan McCotter added his 28th goal of the season on the power play, assisted by Bridges and Wyatt Finch, to extend the lead to 4-0. The score remained unchanged for the rest of the game, with netminder Tyler Wilkinson earning his first shutout with the team in a 4-0 win.

The Lakers faced their next big test against the Brantford 99ers on Feb. 8. In a game with significant playoff implications, the 99ers scored first in the first period, but the Lakers responded with four unanswered goals in the second from Blake Moore, Miller, Joseph Haskett and Callum Brooks to take a 4-1 lead. Bridges notched his 15th of the season to put the Lakers ahead 5-1 early in the third, and the Lakers held off the 99ers' late offensive push for the 5-3 win.

The Lakers conclude their regular season at home in the Rotary Complex against the Windsor Jr. Spitfires on Feb. 13 and against Brantford on Feb. 15.