Wednesday, December 13, 2006 · Page 18 HOCKEY HIGHLIGHTS Jr. Kings edge out Essex in OT thriller BY KEVIN E. NEELS The Dresden Jr. Kings have done it to the Essex 73's once again. Dresden came to Essex last Tuesday and left victorious for the second time this season, although a late game rally by the home club gave them a scare. This game was extremely quiet for the first 40 minutes of play before the offense was let loose, and the defense packed up and went home. The visitors held a 1-0 edge after period one as a weak wrist shot eluded a screened Ryan Barnett in the Essex net. The teams swapped power play goals in period two with Jeremy Venables scoring for Essex. The Kings took a twogoal edge early in period three but just over a minute later Captain Rob Shepley gained it back. Dresden regained the two-goal cushion once more, but less than a minute later Dan Croft scored for Essex. Midway through period three the tic tac toe continued with the visitors scoring once more. It looked like it was going to stay this way as time ticked away. With just over two minutes remaining in period three Coach Jamie McDermott called a timeout. Whatever was said seemed to spark the locals. At 19:01 Rob Shepley cashed in his second of the night to make it 5-4. At this point the Jr. Kings decided to call a timeout to try and settle things down. It failed to work this time out as Jeremy Venables slid the puck into an open Dresden cage with just 11 seconds left to tie this one up. Essex held a wide edge in the extra period thanks largely to the penalty Dresden took, but could not cash in. Dresden ended the game on a spin around backhander that beat Barnett on the short side with 45 seconds left giving them a 6-5 victory. "Their goalie played well, and they do a good job of clearing the front of the net of loose pucks," said Chris Warren. "We had a ton of chances tonight, but failed to capitalize on many of them." Chad Slade added, "Being down for once was probably good for us. It shows we have the ability to come back. I felt we were off our game a bit tonight, but I guess we are allowed to have a night off." The quiet schedule continues next week with just one game. The Wheatley Southpoint Sharks visit Essex for the first time this season next Tuesday at 7:30 pm. Bantam AE Facca Construction On Thursday, Dec. 7, the Essex Ravens played against the LaSalle Sabres at the LaSalle Centennial Arena. The teams were equally matched for an exciting start to the game. With 30 shots on goal this game we were sure we could get one past the Sabres goalie. With a few scuffles, the other team managed to score three quick goals toward the end the first period. of Undaunted, three minutes into the second period, the Ravens' Alec Shuttleworth with the assistance of Matt McGuire and Awstin Pettit put the puck in the net. Our boys were heating up. Matt Conley tipped it to Brad Smith and, before you could Bantam A Essex Source for Sports The Bantams traveled to Leamington Saturday night after a long spell with no hockey. An early penalty allowed Southpoint to jump out to a quick lead. The Bantam's woke up and a quick goal from Tony Spidalieri rallied the team with Blain Little and Ty Queen scoring to put the team up 3 -1 at the end of the first. The second brought more of the same as Colin Delaet, Alex Thomson, Chad Hedrick and Tony Spidalieri scored. Strong goaltending from Wes Strain kept Southpoint off the scoreboard and the second period ended 7 -1. Great passing lead to the goals as Toni Spidalieri had three assists, Collin Delaet and Ryan Morris had two, Blain Little, Lyle Little, Tyler Raymont and Jesse Amyotte all had one. In the third the Ravens seemed to leave something in the dressing room as Southpoint rallied with five straight goals to challenge our team. The boys were able to hold them off and won the game 7 6. Sunday the Bantams were at home to face Toni Amherstburg. Spidalieri scored early assisted by Collin Delaet to get off to a quick lead. Amherstburg started to move late in the first with a goal to end the period in a 1 1 tie. The second period was all Amherstburg as they scored three straight goals. Alex Thompson's late unassisted goal in the second brought some hope as the period ended 4 - 2. In the third the Toni Spidalieri scored that quick goal the Ravens needed, assisted by Blain Little, and Evan Howson played hard to hold off the Stars but they scored next and finished the game with an empty netter to win 6 3. Good luck next weekend boys!! Complete Auto Machine Shop Service For Over 25 Years Performance Machine Inc. 30 th Anniversary · Agricultural · Performance · Heavy · Antique · Automotive · Marine WE EMPLOY Duty 35 Victoria Avenue, Essex 776-6761 www.siefker.com Industrial Rad Repair Engines TECHNICIANS let us show you their credentials catch your breath, Skylar Janisse dunked it in with ease. The Sabres came back, but couldn't stop Matthew McGuire from finishing off the period with one more for the Ravens with help from Skylar Janisse and Shane Fryer. In the end of the third period, Andrew Wellwood made a nice goal, with the assist going to Brad Smith and Austin Bailey. Final score 8-4 Sabres, with kudos going to Ravens goalie Ryan Dixon for stopping 20 shots on goal. Good clean game boys. A lot of our momentum was lost by numerous random blows of the buzzer right in the middle of key plays, followed by a lot of clock confusion. These feeble Jedi mind tricks won't be a factor when the Ravens meet the Sabres again after the Christmas holidays in January with the home ice advantage. On Saturday, Dec. 9, the Ravens played their third game against the Chatham Maroons, this time at the St. Clair College Thames Campus. The boys sure love the `big' ice and so do the parents! They dominated throughout the game making 20 odd shots on goal, while the other team kept the ice clear by keeping guys in the penalty box. The boys kept the pressure on Chatham from the get-go, but despite some awesome passes and a really exciting first period, the buzzer went with nobody on the board yet. After a good warm-up, the Ravens were ready to take care of business, but surprisingly the Maroons came in and pushed past some awesome defense work to score two rather quick goals on the Ravens goalie Ryan Dixon at the end of the second period. Not to fear though, the Ravens were determined to get on the board in the third period, and at 12:53 Awstin Pettit made a sweet pass to Alec Shuttleworth who didn't hesitate and in she went. Keeping up the momentum, at 10:14 Skylar Janisse followed suit, with Alex Merryfield and Alec Shuttleworth lining up the play. Despite some amazing breakaways and a good fight we were still pleased to come away with a tie score 2 all. Thanks to the coaching staff Nick Williamson, Larry Bourget, Brad Meloche and Curtis Warren...you guys rock! Okay boys knuckle down...the Christmas tourney at Essex is right around the corner.