The Oakville Blades started their three-game weekend with a 4-2 victory over Orangeville on Friday evening.
It took just 12:34 for the Blades to put the first goal in the back of the net. After Tyler Hildebrandt made a nice saucer pass to the right wing through the middle, Chris Brill-Morgan got the game started with a hard wrist shot that beat Jake Lawr’s glove, and went in to make it 1-0 for the Blades.
With 2:40 left in the first, the Flyers' Connor Smart tied it up on the penalty shot. Smart made a nice move for the goal, waiting long enough to just flick the puck over Brendan McGlynn’s right pad and in to tie the game up at one apiece.
At 1:28 in the second, the Blades took their lead back. This time, on the power play, Jack Jeffers sent the puck out to Drew Worrad in front, who sent the hard shot past Lawr and in for the 2-1 goal.
Less than a minute later, Ryan Foss was taken down on the breakaway giving the Blades a penalty shot. Unlike Smart’s chance, unfortunately, Foss couldn’t beat Lawr between the legs.
With 3:54 completed in the second, the Blades took the two-goal advantage. Sal Filice managed to get his first goal as a Blade just days after getting acquired from the Toronto Jr. Candiens. His shot bounced off a defender in front and on to the stick of Hildebrandt. Hildebrandt was able to easily tap in the goal into the empty opening to make it 3-1 Oakville.
With two Blades in the box and six minutes to go, the Flyers brought themselves within one thanks to a former Blade. Michael Mannara made it 3-2 with a shot from the point, beating McGlynn cleanly over the glove.
With just over 12 minutes left in the game, the Blades took the 4-2 lead. This time the Flyers had two men in the box when Christian Rajic took a shot that went off the post and to the left of the net. Ryan Foss was in a perfect spot to one-time the shot in, beating Lawr which gave the Blades the eventual game-winning goal.
With 4:02 left, the Flyers kept the game close. Just seven seconds into a Jack Jeffers penalty, Bailey Molella fired home a shot from Nick Stuckless right off the face-off to make it 4-3. Fortunately enough for the home team, the Flyers couldn’t tie the game up and Oakville was able to finish with the victory on Friday.
The win was a good sign for the Blades, who strengthen their lead over the St. Michael’s Buzzers in the South Division.
The Blades will have to wait until February 3rd to play at home again with a 7:30 PM meeting against the Toronto Jr. Canadiens. The Blades still have two more games left to play this weekend, though, with a 7:30 match-up with Milton, followed up by a 7:00 PM contest in Aurora on Sunday.