U18 Warriors losing streak continues as they prep for Ajax Winterlude

The U18 Stratford Warriors looked to end their regular-season losing skid when they faced the St. Thomas Jr. Stars on Dec. 6 at the Stratford Rotary Complex.

Stratford got on the board just over four minutes into the first period. Late in the opening frame and early in the second period, the Warriors received eight minutes of powerplay time and had a golden opportunity to extend their lead. Despite their best efforts, the Warriors were unable to break through, but they still led 1-0 at the end of 40 minutes.

The inability to score on earlier power plays proved costly for the Warriors, as St. Thomas scored the equalizer at the 7:34 mark of the third. The game ended in a 1-1 draw, extending the Warriors' draught to 10 straight games (0-8-2 in that span).

Warriors head coach Riley Mathieson shared his thoughts on the draw against St. Thomas.

“I thought we played a pretty good game. I know it's a little frustrating for our group, where we keep working away at things. We're having a hard time getting the win right now, but I think, all things considered, that was an improvement. We worked a lot during the week there to get ready for the weekend. In practice, we worked hard on our forecheck, on our positioning in the offensive and defensive zone,” Mathieson said.

“We worked a lot on breaking out and exiting, and I thought that we started to see some results tonight. Unfortunately, they didn't always end up in the back of the net, but all in all, as a coach, and if I could speak for the other coaches, we're happy with the effort and the transformation that we saw over the last week there. We did an excellent job, I think, getting prepared for the weekend, and showed tonight."

The Warriors played in London on Dec. 7 against the London Jr. Knights. After a scoreless opening 20 minutes, London scored a pair of goals at the halfway mark and with 5:46 to play in the second period. The score remained 2-0 until London scored with 8:40 left in the game, and London won 3-0. The Warriors extended their losing streak to 11 regular-season games with the loss.

Later in the week, Stratford will participate in the Ajax U18 Winterlude tournament from Dec. 11 to Dec. 14.

The Warriors will play in the Frenchman's Bay group during the round-robin play. On Dec. 12, they play the Clarington Toros in the matinée and play the Aurora Tigers in the evening slot. Then on Dec. 13, the Warriors conclude their round robin play with games against the Milton Jr. Menace in the late-afternoon tilt and the Ajax Pickering Raiders in the evening. If placed in the top four in the group, the Warriors could play in the division semis and eventually, the division championship on Dec. 14.

Mathieson evaluates the team's expectations for the forthcoming tournament.

“We're looking for two things in the Ajax tournament. I think one of the most important ones is team bonding. We haven't had a lot of time off the ice, away from the rink, yet this year, I think that's going to be significant for a group. It might not see some results pay off right away, but I think the more time we spend together, the more it will pay off. It's a new group, a lot of guys here that haven't played with each other, and I think that you get some of that mixed in, and over time, it's gonna lead to some just some good things,” Mathieson said.

“As far as results go, next weekend, we're looking to look and be competitive. We're in the double-A side of things, and there are some teams over there that are strong. There are some teams over there, I think we can be successful with.”