Short Staffed Blades Beaten 9-1 By 73’s
Photo courtesy of Blenheim Blades Facebook
SUBMITTED BY: BLENHEIM BLADES
www.blenheimblades.com
ESSEX – Going into Essex to play the defending champion Essex 73’s is always a challenge for any Provincial Junior Hockey League Stobbs Division team, and is much more so when you are missing five regulars who between them have scored 35 goals and added 42 assists this season.
That was the dilemma facing the first-place Blenheim Blades when they travelled to Essex Tuesday night minus Brayden Hopkins, Nick Delyzer, Nate Broek, Owen Bateman and Derek Hueni – an entire five-man unit of three forwards and two defenceman.
In their place were affiliate players defencemen Drew Vandehogan and Colton Shoemaker and forwards Tanner Shuian and Nick Tetreault.
The outcome was almost predictable as the 73’s beat the Blades 9-1 before 581 fans to run their record to 13-5-1, good for 27 points, one behind the Blades and the Amherstburg Admirals who are tied for first at 28 each.
In their only other trip to Essex this season the Blades shutout the 73’s 1-0. Essex won the lone game in Blenheim 4-2.
The loss for Blenheim was their fourth in a row setting their record at 13-8-2, while Amherstburg is 14-8-0, with the Lakeshore Canadiens, currently fourth, having a chance to join the crowd at the top when they travel to Wallaceburg to play the last-place Lakers Wednesday.
Next action for the Blades will be Thursday at the Blenheim arena when the Mooretown Flags come to town for a 7 p.m. game. Saturday the Blades will play the Lakers at 6:15 p.m. as part of the club’s annual ‘Alumni and Hall of Fame Night’. The will be alumni games at 3, 4 and 5 p.m. prior to the Blades contest.
Tuesday the 73’s took a 2-0 first period lead on goals by Adam Gaiarin and Brett Smith, and upped the lead to 6-0 after 40 minutes thanks to two goals by William Stradder and singles from Eric Shaw and Riley Meyerink.
Smith and Shaw added Essex’s seventh and eighth goals early in the third period before Drew Marlatt scored his seventh of the season at 8:08 to get the Blades on the board, with assists going to Zach Horvath and Kier Cumming.
Dalton Langlois wrapped up the scoring for the night netting the 73’s ninth goal just 48 seconds after Marlatt’s score.
Eric Stewardson started in net for the Blades and was pulled in favour of Adam Craven with the score 3-0.
Essex outshot the Blades 43-16 and took two of three minor penalties.
BLADES BITS: Thursday will be South Kent Minor Hockey Association Night with players attending the game against the Flags wearing their jerseys getting in for free…The annual “Skate With the Blades” will take place after the Sunday, Dec. 11 game against the Wheatley Sharks…The team will be holding another Quarter Auction Friday, Dec. 16 at the Blenheim Legion…Tickets are $5 and available in the lobby.