Hunters face elimination
Connor Gorman’s three goals in two games against the Elora Hawks have not been enough to put Kahnawake in the win column in the Ontario Junior B Lacrosse League (OJBLL) finals, as they face elimination on Saturday at home. Courtesy Kahnawake Junior B Hunters
The Kahnawake Junior B Hunters find themselves in the exact same position as they were in last year’s Ontario Junior B Lacrosse League (OJBLL) playoffs: down 2-0 in the finals against Elora, hoping to avoid a sweep in front of their fans at the Kahnawake Sports Complex.
This time, the Hunters are hoping that this is the end of history repeating itself.
For all intents and purposes, the Hunters have only had one period where they were markedly worse than the Hawks: the second period of game two, when the Hunters allowed eight even-strength goals en route to a 12-6 loss on the road.
It was the Hunters who opened the scoring in that game, when Owen Rice scored his 19th of the playoffs at 13:43 of the first period.
Conor Gorman’s 13th of the playoffs extended the lead three minutes later, and while Elora made it 2-1 at 5:44, goalie Kasey Lahache stopped the 17 other shots he faced in the first period.
In the second, the Hunters again struck first, with Kaymen Diabo’s 13th of the playoffs making it 3-1 two minutes in.
The Hunters would not score again until Bryce Stout’s third of the postseason made it 9-4 with a minute left in the period, after Elora’s eight unanswered on 21 shots.
Deeland Martin made it 9-5 with 11 seconds left in the second, looking to give the Hunters life - but Elora closed the period with a goal at literally the last second.
They added three more in the third, two on the power play, to seal game one.
Game two was a much better game for the Hunters on the defensive end and in goal, allowing the Hawks to shoot 44 times, compared to 40 shots by the Hunters - and nine fewer than they allowed in game one.
The Hunters found themselves down 2-1 after the first period, and less than 90 seconds into the second, that gap had doubled to 4-1, first from a power play goal less than a minute in, followed by an even-strength goal 30 seconds later.
The Hunters, though, fought back, scoring four times – Diabo’s 14th and 15th, Rice’s 21st, and Martin’s 16th, finishing the period down one again, 6-5.
Although they got close to tying the game several times in the third, the Hunters never did; three third period goals, by Hawi Francis (14), Brett Bucktooth Jr. (5), and Connor Gorman (15), were matched by Elora scoring three of their own, making the final score 9-8.
Statistically speaking, the Hunters are already doing better on the scoresheet than they did in last year’s finals, when they allowed 10 or more goals in all three games, losing those games by an average of seven goals, rounded down.
Those Hunters barely made the playoffs, being the ultimate underdog before finally running out of gas against a team that finished with a perfect playoff record.
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Neither of those things are true this time, with the Hunters finishing second in the East and Elora being taken to the limit by the Orangeville Northmen in the West finals.
To make sure history won’t repeat itself, the Hunters will need three perfect games in a row to take the five-game set - the ultra-rare reverse sweep.
Game three is Saturday at 7 p.m. If necessary, game four will be the next day, Sunday, at 2 p.m. and game five will be in Elora at 8 p.m. on August 12.
