It was a long haul to the end of 2008, but the Mount Forest Pee Wee Rams were busy with tournaments and regular season play throughout November.
The Mount Forest Pee Wee Rams were out shot by the Seaforth Stars during a mid November match up at the Stars' home ice.
An early attack on the Mount Forest end was diffused by John Bowden who pulled the puck off the forward's stick and then cleared a rebound off Rams' cager Bretton Peter. Cody Stewart then cleared the rubber from the zone, allowing Jack Francis to rush in on the host pipes. The Stars were quick to take note of Brett Doney, who used the boards to their full advantage when it came to body contact. The play was predominately in the Rams end, but with five minutes left on the clock, the squad was finally able to move it back into the Stars' end.
Nolan Officer, Nathan Reeves and Macauley Hall attacked the Stars' end and were a nightmare for the Seaforth defense and goalie. The Stars finally penetrated the Rams' defense to cash a marker passed from behind the net. Owen Milne executed some solid defense by smothering two serious offensive plays, ensuring the damaged remained 1-0.
The second period saw the Stars explode and count a second goal early in on. The Rams struggled to clear the puck and hosted the Stars in their end for a majority of the frame. Finally, benefitting from a Power Play, Officer broke through to put the Rams on the board with 24 seconds remaining. Stewart and Connor Kerr were credited with assists.
In the final chapter, Kerr was motivated enough with his earlier effort to repeat at the Stars' crease. He received a pass from Officer to tie the count 2-2. The Rams weren't allowed to relax, as the Stars regrouped quickly. Peter was a moving target in the third period, as the hosts co-ordinated repeated attacks on the Mount Forest pipes. In spite of outstanding efforts by Doney, Milne, Bowden and Francis, the Rams were unable to slow down the wave of attacks and left the visitors at the short end of the 5-2 final.
MF vs. Wingham
In the second game of the weekend, the Rams hosted the Wingham Ironmen.
John Bowden put the Rams on the score board with a thrilling flip of the puck that landed the rubber on the good side of the crease. Unfortunately, the euphoria was short lived as the Ironmen cashed their own marker 10 seconds after the following face off.
The host Rams wanted to set the tone and Maverick Holliday, Willson Fisher and Connor Kerr took full advantage of rushing opportunities. Goalie Dylan Laprade also sent a message by meeting Ironmen forwards brave enough to target his pipes. On defense, Brett Doney capitalized on the boards and linemate Connor Reeves demonstrated his hustle to win the puck.
Fans were thrilled early in the second period as Nolan Officer cashed a Kerr rebound to advance 2-1. Within two minutes Reeves received a pass from Doney and smashed it through traffic to pad the fragile lead. Bowden, now on defense, was key in guarding the crease and clearing garbage for Laprade. As the play became more agressive, Fisher was downed with an injury that put him on the sidelines for the balance of the contest. Officer was impressive as he fought off two Ironmen to claim the puck. Laprade was stung by a pushed puck at the pipe which only proved to motivate the Rams defense. Milne pulled the rubber out of corners and up to his forwards, while Reeves executed solid poke checking. Maverick Holliday and Nathan Reeves became a headache for the Ironmen cager, repeatedly working the crease. It seemed as though Bowden would repeat with a dramatic breakaway, but it was the Ironmen who use the pipe move again to tie the score at 3.
In the third, Officer started the Rams scoring again with a rush two minutes in. Stewart provided support at the Mount Forest crease by sweeping away rebounds, while Laprade dove out a Ironmen rushes. The match became increasingly physical and penalties plagued both teams. The Rams prevailed with a final goal, scored by Kerr and assisted by Holliday and Officer.
MF at Walkerton
The Rams traveled to Walkerton for an exhibition game that was well worth the price of admission for the fans.
Mount Forest dominated in the Capitals' end and John Bowden and Jack Francis got the scoring started with a pass and slap shot into to Macauley Hall who deflected it past the cager. The hosts retaliated at the following face off, chipping a rebound off of Bretton Peter. This inspired Owen Milne who undermined the Captials forwards repeatedly. Willson Fisher lit up the score board with a picture perfect wrist shot off of Stewart and Bowden. The period was noteworthy for outstanding passing and playmaking. Nathan Reeves was robbed of an excellent goal as the Rams continued to push late in the period.
Defense was tested early in the middle stanza, but Milne and Connor Reeves proved up to the task. When the Capitals finally did break through, Peter had his glove ready and foiled the attempts. Fisher and Nolan Officer had the fans on their feet, but the hosts would tie it up first. Connor Reeves was then credited with a goal off of the Capitals' goalie to once again claim the lead. Peter was there for his team as Walkerton mounted several attacks on the Rams end without success.
It was a keen squad that hit the ice for the third period. Fisher and Officer both attacked the Walkerton end and earned assists when Kerr cashed a rebound within the first moments of the time frame. This turned up the intensity of the play, which resulted in numerous penalties. Bowden and Stewart were a solid combo between rushing into the Walkerton end and clearing shots from the Mount Forest end. The fans were treated to a solo rush by Kerr, who then deposited the top drawer. The Capitals were not going to go quietly and scored two quick goals in a flurry of bodies at the Rams crease. The visitors responded by playing a solid defensive game, including assistance from Francis and Nathan Reeves. Connor Reeves owned the ice behind the Rams net and prevent the Capitals from setting up while Peter 's thrilling toe save ensured the Rams lead and allowed the squad to return to the hosts' end. With 42 seconds left, the Capitals pulled their goalie and rushed to the Rams zone but were frustrated by the tight defensive play and had to be satisfied with the 5-4 Rams victory.