U14 A Boys take gold at Ajax-Pickering tournament

The Frayne’s Custom Cabinets U14 A Boys St. Marys Rock captured gold at the Spring Thaw tournament in Ajax-Pickering March 26-29. Pictured in the front row, from left to right, are Jake Ackert and Oliver Strickler. In the second row, from left, are assistant coach Jayden Rooney, Greyson Gillespie, Simon Bailey, Jackson Schoonerwoerd, Grayson Gorley, Cam Hughes, Ben Becker and Logan Broughton. In the third row, from left, are Elliott Wilhelm, assistant coach Ryan Francis, head coach Josh Becker, Beckham Skillings, Mason Soumalias, Rylan Dobinson, Lukas Francis, Liam Barker, trainer Brian Barker and assistant coach Joe Wilhelm.

By Spencer Seymour

The Frayne’s Custom Cabinets U14 A Boys St. Marys Rock won the gold medal at the March 26-29 Spring Thaw tournament in Ajax-Pickering.

Head coach Josh Becker was thrilled with his team’s performance, which he called “amazing” once they shook off some rust from the end of their season.

“We started slow, but I think that was because of the two-week layoff from playoffs being done and just not having that routine,” Becker said. “As soon as the second day hit, we started quick and things were going our way. It was all-around scoring again; that was the nice thing. It wasn’t just a couple of guys or one line rolling. We had multiple lines going, so that really helped us.”

According to Becker, the Rock began rounding into top form in their final round-robin game against the Belleville Junior Bulls, a 4-1 win for St. Marys.

“It’s just like any other game. If you win the small battles, the big things come,” Becker told the Independent. “Be the first on the puck every time. It doesn’t matter what end of the ice it was in. We took control of the game, and we just kept battling all game and getting to the net.”

In the team’s semi-final against the Brampton 45’s, they came away with a 4-1 win. Becker said the team’s ceaseless net-front presence led them to defeating Brampton.

“We put pressure on their goalie,” said Becker. “We were just relentless going to the net. We had two shorthanded goals and we used our speed. We boxed them out really well. Our goaltending was unbelievable, as it has been all year. He made the saves when he had to, and our guys just wanted it more.”

Logan Broughton opened the scoring midway through the first period with his second goal of the tournament. Becker credited Broughton for delivering some of his best hockey of the season.

“Logan (Broughton) battled every shift. He battled up and down the ice all weekend long, took hits, made plays and was rewarded with his two goals and his two assists. At one point, he came to the bench, I looked at him, and it reminded me of Paul Kariya and getting knocked out by Scott Stevens. He had the blood on his bubble from a bloody nose, and I said, ‘Are you alright?’ He goes, ‘I’m great, just give me a towel, I’ve got to go again.’ He had no fear of going back on the ice. He just couldn’t wait to get back out for his next shift.”

Lukas Francis extended the Rock’s lead to two goals later in the first, but Brampton cut the lead back to one 17 seconds later.

Greyson Gillespie added a pair of goals for St. Marys, scoring once in the second and third to give the Rock their 4-1 advantage.

The Rock met the North Durham Warriors in the gold-medal game, and after falling behind 3-1 with 10 minutes left in the third period, the Rock mounted an outstanding comeback to tie the game at three apiece and force overtime.

Francis scored the first goal of the game before scoring again to cut the 3-1 lead back to one, followed by Rylan Dobinson scoring the game-tying goal as part of the Rock’s third-period comeback.

In the extra frame, the team’s leading scorer, Francis, finished off a strong play with Gillespie to pot the game-winner and give the Rock the 4-3 win and the gold medals.

“We started the game off with another shorthanded goal, and had two power-play goals,” Becker said. “Our special teams in that game were working well, just doing their jobs, getting into position and moving pucks around. And then, on the overtime winner, we went down the ice, got a shot from Lukas (Francis), the goalie kicked out a big rebound and Greyson (Gillespie) came in over the blueline, put it back on net and Lukas was there to jam in the rebound.”

Becker called the reaction to the overtime winner being scored indescribable.

“It was amazing. There are no words for it. When we went down 3-1, we called a timeout and regrouped with the boys and got them settled in, and I just told them to go to work. That’s what they did, and they just wanted it that much more. I think they got that feeling at our Aurora tournament earlier this year, and they wanted it again.

“It was a solid team effort,” Becker continued. “They all wanted it. They dug in and they came together as a group. Nobody was down or hanging their heads. They were all boosting each other up. Once they got that goal to make it 3-2, there was no letting up. They just were relentless on the puck.”

In the eyes of the bench boss, the tournament win encapsulated the squad’s year-long progression, both in terms of their abilities and their bond as a team.

“It’s humbling,” said Becker. “It’s a great character builder for the boys, and it shows where we were from the start of the season to the end of the season. We finished with two gold medals, a silver and a semi-final loss early on in the season. When they want to play together as a group, they’re unstoppable.

“The growth of the kids and the camaraderie of the group are the biggest differences from the start of the year to now. We had nine new members of this team, so just the friendships that were built is the biggest thing. They get along so well, and that’s what I really love about this group. They’re just a bunch of young men who wanted to play so hard for each other.”