U16 Lakers finish regular season on a high note

With the London Jr. Knights securing first place in the U16 AAA ALLIANCE rankings, the Huron-Perth U16 AAA Lakers looked to finish the final week of the regular season on the right note as they hosted the Windsor Jr. Spitfires and the Brantford 99ers at the Stratford Rotary Complex.

Head coach Jason Brooks says the focus is to finish the regular season in better shape in time for the playoff run.

“We’re just trying to play better and get ready for the playoffs. You know, working on doing the little things a little bit better. I mean, we had a good weekend last weekend, which was encouraging, but, you know, we can continue to get better,” Brooks said.

“Because we know in playoffs, every shift, every play matters, and we want to make sure we're at our best going into the playoffs. So that's what these two games are all about. It's just continuing to work on what we do, and as I say, just get better with it.”

Declan McCotter and Rylan Da Costa are among the several to have played in both ALLIANCE U16 and, as amateur players, in Junior B this season. McCotter made his Junior B debut on Jan. 23 with the St. Marys Lincolns, and Da Costa made two appearances earlier in the season with the Chatham Maroons, securing a win in his first career appearance on Dec. 19.

McCotter and Da Costa reflected on their time with the Junior B clubs and explained how they can translate their experiences to helping the Lakers in the postseason.

“I mean, obviously, going up there (in Junior B), the game's a lot different. It's faster, and bringing it down to here, getting to see the game a lot slower, kind of, but work on simple stuff and hopefully win,” Da Costa said.

“It was a good experience. All the guys were really nice and treated me well. The game was fun against Waterloo. It helps by preparing me to play against bigger, better players, making quicker decisions, and stuff like that,” McCotter said.

On Feb. 13, the Lakers hosted the Windsor Jr. Spitfires. The Spitfires took a 1-0 lead early in the first period, but the Lakers flexed their offensive muscle in the second period, scoring two goals from Joseph Haskett to take a 2-1 lead heading into the final frame.

Evan Miller and Ethan Bridges rounded out the Lakers' scoring in the third period as the Lakers soared past the Spitfires 4-1. Tyler Wilkinson earned the win in net for the Lakers.

After the game, Brooks was content with the victory despite the miscues early on.

“You know, I'm happy with the win. I mean, it wasn't our best game today. I thought our first period was off. We were poor at making decisions with the puck and tended to overhandle it. And then I thought, in the second, we played hard, we made simple plays, we won battles, moved our feet, and then created a lot of chances and got a couple of goals,” Brooks said.

“Then the third, we went backwards a little bit again. But then couple nice plays, couple goals, and all of a sudden it's 4-1, and walk away with the victory.”

The Lakers wrapped up their regular season play against the Brantford 99ers on Feb. 15.

After a scoreless first period, the Lakers opened the scoring in the second period, courtesy of Miller, assisted by McCotter and Wyatt Finch on the power play at 2:18 into the middle frame. Brantford responded with a pair of goals before Miller’s second of the game late in the period, tying the game at two apiece heading into the third period.

Early in the third period, the 99ers scored twice to take the lead, but goals from Colton Van Geffen and Luke McLean in 25 seconds put the home side level with the 99ers. Christian Circelli broke the deadlock and scored the eventual game-winner with 4:31 left.

Da Costa picked up the win in net for the Lakers.

The Lakers finished their regular season with a record of 25-2-3, good for second place behind the London Jr. Knights. Their playoff opener is scheduled for Mar. 1, with the opponent to be determined on Feb. 17.