Blades fall to Canadiens 7-4

BELLE RIVER – The Blenheim Blades, after opening their PJHL Stobbs
Division 42 game regular season with eight straight victories, have
now played eight more games and things have not gone as well.
Game 16 was in Belle River Friday night, and the Blades lost 7-4 to
the Lakeshore Canadiens giving the team just three wins and five
losses in their last eight starts.
That said, the Blades remain tied for second with 22 points along
with the Canadiens, two up on the fourth-place Wheatley Sharks who
could join Blenheim and Lakeshore in second Saturday when they
host the Walpole Island Wild.
In other action Friday the eighth, and last-place Amherstburg
Admirals were trailing the seventh-place Dresden Kings 1-0 entering
the last minute of the game, but scored at 19:01 and at 19:59 to
defeat Dresden 2-1.
Things started off the right way for the Blades Friday when Breck
Rainey scored his second goal of the year at 2:16 of the first period,
with an assist going to Matt Hayter.
Lakeshore then took a 3-1 lead thanks to goals by Bryce Scarlett,
Conor Costello and Marco Sladoje to lead 3-1 after 20 minutes.
It only took 53 seconds of the second period for Blades captain
Craig Spence to get the Blades to within a goal of the Canadiens when
he scored his eighth of the season.
Blenheim rookie Andre Goulet then took a double minor for kneeing
at 8:47 that let to Lakeshore scoring powerplay goals at 9:00 and 9:50
to increase their lead 5-2.

Jake Vancoillie, who had started between the pipes for the Blades,
was at that point replaced by Owen Lemieux. Vancoillie had given up
five goals on 12 shots.
At 16:24 of the period the Blades leading goal scorer, and point
getter, Tate Bowden netted his 15th of the season to cut the
Lakeshore lead to 5-3. I
It was a powerplay goal assisted by Darby Lemieux and Brad
McAlpine.
The Canadiens came right less than a minute later to take a 6-3 lead
when Tyler Hamlin scored a shorthanded goal at 17:05.
Hamlin’s shorthanded marker was the third given up by Blenheim
in the last three games.
Spence Higginbottom netted the Canadiens third powerplay tally of
the night at 3:05 of the final 20 minutes, with Blenheim native Landon
Hoskins wrapping up the scoring when he got his second of the season
at 16:40, with an assist going to Joey Hayter.
BLADES BITS: The game was a wild affair penalty wise with the
Blades being assessed 20 penalties for 90 minutes, and Lakeshore 16
for 66 minutes…The final total was 156 with Blade forward Everitt
Swayze being assessed a one-game suspension to a fight with less
than 10 minutes to play…Not dressed for the Blades were Remi Steen
and Beau Moison…Both teams had 32 shots on goal…Next action for
Blenheim will be Sunday when they host the first-place Essex
’73s…The game will be the first of three straight at home with
Amherstburg being in town Thursday, and Mooretown next Sunday.
All three games are at 7 p.m.…Attendance was 578…This Sunday night
will be Blenheim Legion Branch 185 Remembrance Night with a on ice
ceremony prior to the start of the game.