U18 Warriors frustrated in latest results

The Stratford U18 AA Warriors faced the London Jr. Knights White on Feb. 4 at the Stratford Rotary Complex, hoping to gain ground for a higher seeding as the U18 ALLIANCE A/AA playoffs drew closer.

Stratford opened the scoring under 90 seconds into the game. London would tie the game with the goal late in the opening frame, and the game remained 1-1 after the first period.

4:22 into the second period, the visitors took the lead, but the Warriors responded with a late-period goal of their own with 69 seconds remaining in the middle frame to tie the game heading into the final frame.

But London took control of the game and the lead for good with the winner at 6:06 into the third period, followed by two more halfway through the period and with 7:07 remaining.

Carter Keating picked up the loss in net for the Warriors. Following the game, Warriors head coach Riley Mathieson appeared visibly frustrated with the outcome of the game.

“I thought we got off to a strong start, and we did what we needed to do in the first period to lead to success later in the game. I think that there were times when we got a little distracted and got in the way of ourselves with some self-inflicted mistakes,” Mathieson said.

“The third period was evidence of a bit of a snowball effect of that happening. I think that's a team we can be successful against. It just comes down to us doing all the little things, and night in the third period, you didn't see that, and that's why we saw the result that we did.”

Mathieson then emphasized improving fundamentals ahead of their next game in Woodstock.

“The game plan for the next one is to not get in the way of ourselves. We know what we need to do to be successful. We need to address the areas in the blue line. We need to win our one-on-one battles. You can take care of the defensive side of the puck. And we need to eliminate distractions,” Mathieson said.

“I think if we do that against Woodstock, we'll be successful, especially on the big ice over in Woodstock. We need to really look after our positioning and keep them on the outside. Other than that, we have all the tools we need to succeed. It's just a matter of us going out and doing it.”

The Warriors travelled to Woodstock to play against the Jr. Navy Vets on Feb. 7. Woodstock scored three goals in the first period, leading to a 5-2 defeat for the Warriors. Two days later, on Feb. 9, the Warriors went to Brantford to face the 99ers. The game was tied early in the third period, resulting in a 2-2 draw.

Stratford will travel to Cambridge to face the Jr. RedHawks on Feb. 15.