PJHL Roundup: Firebirds down first-place Applejacks as local teams combine for seven weekend games
- Nov 13, 2025
- 3 min read
By Lee Griffi
Don’t look now, but New Hamburg is creeping up the Provincial Junior Hockey League’s (PJHL) Doherty Division standings after a pair of weekend wins.
The Firebirds started the weekend with an 8-6 home-ice win over now second-place Wellesley. Owen Sculthorp scored twice and added a pair of helpers to lead the offence with Aydan Burns adding two goals. Ben Oliver and Keegan Metcalf added two assists apiece. New Hamburg led 4-1 after 20 minutes and 7-3 after two periods. Ian Speiran led the Applejacks with two goals, his 11th and 12th of the season, and added an assist. Lincoln Walsh and Tyler Chadwick had a pair of assists each.
Owen Bruder netted the overtime winner on Sunday in Paris as the Firebirds downed the Titans 5-4. New Hamburg trailed 3-1 at the six-minute mark of the second period, but goals by Oliver and Rhett Calder tied it up after 40 minutes. Jordan Jacobs gave the Firebirds a one-goal lead, but Paris forced the extra period, setting the stage for Bruder’s heroics.
New Hamburg did get off to a slow start this season, losing six of their first eight games before turning things around and winning six of the next seven. Captain Andrew Gear said he’s pleased with the turnaround.
“I think early on it came with trying to get to know each other and how we played. We’ve won four in a row, we’ve become more consistent and know what to expect from each other. We’re definitely moving in the right direction.”
Gear, an Elmira native, is in his fourth and final season with the team and said being a Firebird has been a perfect fit for him.
“Our coaching staff has been very understanding with school and the entire community, the executive, everyone else off the ice are always supportive. It’s a great atmosphere and we are so lucky to have so many people behind us.”
He added a big part of the team’s success is a positive locker room where teammates get along, something former captain Owen Fischer praised during his tenure with the team.
“That’s been one of our best attributes. We are family, we all care for one another and we can joke around. We like to have fun off the ice and hang out with each other outside the rink. That translates back out into the ice with our performance.”
The captain is in his final year of Kinesiology at Wilfred Laurier University and he is currently in the process of applying to teacher’s college, something more stressful than playing hockey.
“Hockey is something I have played my entire life. The game is the same for a lot of people. It’s an escape from work or school, your personal life or whatever you’re going through. For me, it’s something I look forward to each and every week and get away from the books for a few hours.”
Braves take four out of six points
It wasn’t exactly a balanced attack, but Tavistock downed Hespeler 6-2 on Friday with only two players finding the back of the net. Yann Raskin and Keaton Bartlett each had three-goal efforts to lead the attack. Raskin leads the team with 12 goals, but Bartlett scored his first markers of the season. Evan Palubeski, the team’s second-leading scorer behind Raskin, chipped in with three assists.
The Braves came up empty in Woodstock on Saturday as they were blanked 5-0 by the Navy Vets. Woodstock broke open a close game with four third-period goals and they now top the Doherty Division.
Tavistock completed a home-and-home series in Hespeler on Sunday with a 4-2 victory. Raskin, Ryan McKellar, Carter Arseneau and Palubeski scored for the Braves. Rookie goalie Andrew Torchia earned his second victory of the weekend and fourth of the season. The Baden native has a 3.01 goals against average and a .906 save percentage.
The Braves acquired defenceman Henry Kotyk from the Schomberg Cougars in exchange for a player development fee. The Newmarket native joins the Braves after a solid rookie season in Schomberg, tallying 20 points in 42 games.
Applejacks fall out of first after second loss
Wellesley lost 3-2 in Dorchester on Saturday. At the time, the Applejacks were in first while the Dolphins remained in the basement of the division. Speiran and Ben Morton scored in a losing effort.
Notes:
Just 10 points separate first from last in the Doherty, easily the tightest division in the PJHL
Woodstock’s Owen Ireton leads the division in scoring with 13 goals and 18 assists. Teammate Cooper Vickerman sits second with 30 points. Kobe Nadalin, another Navy Vet, is the Doherty’s top netminder with a 2.26 goals against average and a .943 save percentage.
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