SEESAW BATTLE ENDS WITH RED OFF TO U17 CAMP FINAL

LEE BOYADJIAN

CALGARY, Alta. – Serron Noel (Nepean, Ont./Ottawa, HEO) and Ryan Merkley (Mississauga, Ont./Toronto Jr. Canadiens, GTHL) scored 57 seconds apart early in the third period to turn a one-goal deficit into a one-goal lead, and Red bested Blue 5-4 at Canada’s national under-17 development camp on Sunday night.

With the win, Red finishes in top spot in its group and will play Black in the championship game of the camp on Monday afternoon (12:15 p.m. MT).

Down 4-3 entering the final period, Noel squared the game 90 seconds in, flying down the left wing before tucking a shot around Red goaltender Nathan Torchia (Baden, Ont./Waterloo, MHAO), and Merkley pinched in off the blue-line for eventual game-winner moments later.

“I just got a nice pass from [Xavier] Bernard and I just kind of saw the lane and I had a guy beat,” Merkley said after the game. “I just kind of shot it along the ice and it went in.”

Allan McShane (Barrie, Ont./Toronto Marlboros/GTHL) scored twice and added an assist to lead the offence for Blue, but wasn’t able to find the equalizer late in the third period.

Benoît-Olivier Groulx (Gatineau, Que./Gatineau, LHMAAAQ) opened the scoring on a Red power play midway through the first period, gathering in the rebound of a Noah Dobson (Summerside, P.E.I./EC Red Bull Salzburg, AUT) shot and beating Blue goaltender Alexis Gravel (Asbestos, Que./Mississauga Senators, GTHL).

But Red wasn’t able to enjoy the lead for long. On the next shift, McShane won a battle in the corner and fed Samuel Stevens (Montreal, Que./Shattuck-St.Mary’s, USHS) who spun, shook off a defender, and went to the blocker side of Torchia to tie the game.

Red took the lead just over a minute later, with Owen Gilhula (Stratford, Ont./Huron Perth, MHAO) scoring on a breakaway, but it couldn’t hold onto the lead. Andrew Coxhead (Bedford, N.S./Dartmouth, NSMMHL) jumped on a turnover and fed a wide-open McShane for his first of the night.

“We had a good transition game today so that’s how we got most of our goals and our speed coming out of the zone was huge,” McShane said, when asked of his offensive success.

The second period played much the same as the first, with teams exchanging goals. Luka Burzan (Surrey, B.C./Valley West, BCMML) scored 1:12 into the second, giving Red its third lead of the game. But Chad Denault (Iroquois Falls, Ont./Sudbury, ONMMAAA) answered back for Blue at 4:35.

McShane netted his second midway through the middle frame, flying down the wing and sending a wrist shot high glove-side on Torchia to give Blue its first lead of the night.

“The guys battled hard and we deserved every inch of the ice we got tonight so it was definitely great,” McShane said. “It was a good taste of what Canadian hockey is like.”

Blue will finish its camp in the third-place game Monday, taking on Gold (10:45 a.m. MT).