Lincs continue win streak amidst explosive trade deadline

Oliver Lacko celebrates scoring a goal to end a six-game goal drought during the St. Marys Lincolns’ 6-0 win over the Listowel Cyclones on Jan. 10.

By Spencer Seymour

If someone had asked the St. Marys Lincolns 48 hours before the Jan. 10, 7 p.m. Greater Ontario Hockey League (GOHL) trade deadline if they were looking to acquire a goaltender, the answer would have been absolutely not.

After all, they had a tandem of Brogan Colquhoun, who has a 2.07 goals-against average (GAA) and a 0.932 save percentage, and Vaughn Barr, who, after winning back-to-back games on Jan. 9 and 10, stopping a combined 52 of 53 shots, boasts a 2.16 goals-against average and a 0.923 save percentage.

That’s a pretty strong goaltending situation.

If someone had asked the team again 24 hours before the deadline, the answer would have been very different, and the team may have been asked for a fire extinguisher as everyone’s hair had caught fire by that point.

One day before the deadline, goaltender Brogan Colquhoun was diagnosed with an injury that looked to keep him out of action long term.

One day before the deadline, the Lincolns were suddenly in urgent need of a goaltender, ideally one with a track record of success.

Enter the GOHL’s reigning most valuable goaltender award winner, Colby Booth-Housego.

But if fans thought that’s where the drama ended, they would be sorely mistaken.

Not long after committing to Booth-Housego, the Lincolns received word that a second opinion had been rendered on the injury to Colquhoun, one that suggested Colquhoun could miss far less time than was suggested in the first evaluation.

The Lincolns had no time; they had to make a move. With the proverbial clock about to strike midnight, they committed to Booth-Housego under the knowledge that Colquhoun was going to miss significant time, only for Colquhoun and the team to then be blindsided with a second diagnosis opposite from the first.

That is how general manager Pat Powers ended the deadline with three goaltenders – Booth-Housego, Colquhoun and 16-year-old Vaughn Barr – and a swirling headache.

“It was a very chaotic situation when we felt Brogan (Colquhoun) was injured long-term,” Powers told the Independent following the trade deadline madness. “But, at the end of the day, we were able to add the best goaltender in the league last season back onto our roster. To have three elite goaltenders going into a playoff grind gives us lots of options and lots of insurance.”

There wasn’t anything Colquhoun or the team did wrong; the timing just worked out in a crazy way. It was also noted by the team that Colquhoun now has the time to fully heal and is focused on getting his body back to full health. Colquhoun was also credited by the team for being a “true pro,” and is understanding of the situation the original prognosis put him and the team in.

The team also said Booth-Housego will be “given the runway,” while adding the staff will make the most of the situation to make sure no one gets forgotten.

In addition to the John Faulkiner Award as the most valuable goalie last year, Booth-Housego combined with Nico Armellin to win the Twin Cities Trophy for the lowest team goals against average. Booth-Housego posted a 1.71 goals-against average and 0.937 save percentage in 28 games last season. No goaltender in the GOHL with at least 22 games played posted better numbers in either category.

“The guys in our dressing room know exactly what Colby (Booth-Houesgo) can bring as he is a very reliable, athletic and competitive goaltender and person, but adds a different element back into our dressing room as well,” said Powers. “Shooters in our league will also know the difficulty that the opposition has had over the years shooting on him, and that is another element that gives us an advantage in the competitive atmosphere.”

The Lincolns also completed another deal with the French River Rapids of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL) to acquire defenceman Pearse Huey. The six-foot-one, 183-pound, Los Angeles, Calif. native who turns 19 years old on Feb. 10 had seven assists in 23 games with French River. Powers said the acquisition of Huey strengthens the depth of the Lincolns’ blueline.

“To add Pearse to our lineup gives us another reliable defender with size and the ability to move efficiently up and down the ice,” Powers said. “With our defensive core, we want simple puck-movers who can get the pucks to our elite forward group while being strong defenders in all situations, and we feel Pearse makes us stronger in that situation.”

The Lincolns also dealt forward Atley Rogers to the Komoka Kings, and sent Will Wright to the Provincial Junior Hockey League’s (PJHL) Woodstock Navy Vets as part of their trade deadline activity.

The Lincolns pushed their win streak with a 9-1 win over the abysmal Sarnia Legionnaires, who, as of press time, remain last in the Western Conference with a record of 0-34-0-0 and not even a single point to their credit. Wright and Cam Kean scored their first goals as a Lincoln in the game, and all but three Lincolns got at least a point in the win. Chase MacQueen-Spence scored a goal and three assists while Lincoln Moore and Ryan Hodkinson each had one goal and two assists.

Assistant coach Michael Siddall noted, despite the quality of the opponent, the team still had a standard for their own play they wanted to maintain.

“That’s our second game back after the break, so it’s more or less just trying to get our game back in shape. Just because we’re playing a team at the bottom of the standings doesn’t automatically mean it’s going to be an easy game. It’s not necessarily about other teams; we’ve still got to work on us.”

One night later, the Lincolns faced much stiffer competition in the form of the highly structured Listowel Cyclones. However, the Lincolns continued to be mechanical in the consistently solid execution of their gameplan.

“Listowel is a team that’s well coached and they play the right way,” Siddall said. “We came out ready to play right from the start. The line with Ryan (Hodkinson), Blake (Elzinga) and Declan (Ready) started the game, and they’ve started the last couple of games. They’re giving us a real fight right off the bat. They’re setting the tone and we’re coming in waves after that.”

For the second straight game, Kean potted the first goal of the game on virtually an identical play as the game against Sarnia, with Kean pinching down from the blueline on his offside to pounce on a rebound. Siddall noted the 19-year-old from Northville, Mich., who has become known for his steady defensive play, has some underrated offensive instincts.

“Cam (Kean) is a highly talented kid,” said Siddall. “He is highly relied upon defensively, but he has a good shot and he reads the game really well. I feel like once he scored that goal against Sarnia, I think he felt comfortable taking a little bit more of an offensive approach to a couple of shifts, which is good. He’s an older guy, so he understands when to go and when not to go, and he had a few more opportunities to score against Listowel, so he could have had one or two more.”

Oliver Lacko, who associate coach Mike Herman compared stylistically to Montreal Canadiens two-way centreman Philip Danault, ended a six-game goal drought when he snapped a quick shot home to put the Lincolns ahead 2-0.

The Lincolns found the back of the net three times in the second frame from Hodkinson, Moore and Owen Voortman. Coming into the back-to-back against Sarnia and Listowel, Voortman also hadn’t scored in six games and had just one goal in his previous 11 outings.

“Owen (Voortman) is an elite shooter. He gets himself in a lot of really good spots and good scoring areas, and he wasn’t necessarily pulling the trigger as much a few weeks back before Christmas. Now, I think he’s putting himself in those good spots still and he’s starting to let them rip more, which is good. He’s a big guy and he’s strong on the puck, so when he’s in the corner, he’s winning his battles.”

Voortman added a second goal in the third period while Barr finished the night with 31 saves in a shutout bid. Siddall credited the young netminder for giving the Lincolns two solid back-to-back performances.

“Having a goalie competition puts pressure on the coaching staff, which is a good thing. You don’t want to have a goalie problem, and we for sure don’t have that. We’ve got three strong goalies now. Vaughn (Barr) is a young goalie and he hasn’t had many dips in his game the whole year. He battles hard and he’s athletic. He understands the situation he’s in and he delivered for us really well in these two games.”