When the Ashland boys hockey team squared off against the North Shore team last season, the Storm sent the Oredockers packing with a 6-1 victory. They were determined to replicate that outcome as Ashland made the trip up to the North Shore to play at the Sonju Arena on December 10th.
Kade Norman opened up the scoring with an unassisted goal 10 minutes into the first period. The freshman has been impressing all season, including scoring four goals against Greenway just five days before. Senior Cole Anderson added an early goal in the second period on an even-strength play, with fellow senior Ayden Althaus credited with the assist.
It was only 30 seconds later that Nox Peterson, a sophomore, scored the third and final goal of the game. With no further scoring in the third period, the game ended 3-1 with North Shore on top. Dax Krech, the freshman goalie, saved 24 of 25 shots on goal—proving to be a standout performance for the team.
The following game didn’t go as well against Fort Francis (FF), Ontario, with senior Cole Anderson scoring the team’s only goal. Kade Norman provided the assist on the Friday, December 13th game, held at Rukavina Arena.
With four penalties in the third period, the Muskies capitalized by scoring three powerplay goals. They also managed to add two more even-strength goals, leading to an 8-1 victory with the Muskies swimming away with a large lead.
When I reached Sonju Arena on Saturday, I was able to catch the tail end of the Muskies and Storm game. It wasn’t as much of a blowout as the night before, but unfortunately, it resulted in a loss for the North Shore. The Storm tied up the game, putting the first goal in for the team halfway through the first period with Althaus scoring an unassisted goal. Fort Francis would score twice before the period ended.
Ethan Meeks, a senior, scored a powerplay goal in the second period, with Anderson and Althaus assisting. Fort Francis added two more goals before the period ended. Despite racking up 10 penalties, Ontario’s physical game prevented the Storm from capitalizing on other powerplay opportunities.
The team travels to Mora on the 20th for their next game with results to be reported at a later date.
