Record setting season ends for Blades

The 2023-24 PJHL Stobbs Division season was a great one for the
Blenheim Blades as the team set single season records for wins, with
28, and points with 58, while finishing third behind the Lakeshore
Canadiens and Essex ’73s.
Then they ousted the sixth-place Amherstburg Admirals in five
games in their best-of-seven quarter-final series to move on to a best-
seven semi-final set against the ’73s, that ended Sunday night at the
Blenheim arena when the Blades dropped Game 4 4-1, and were
swept by the ’73s in four games.
Essex will now meet Lakeshore in a best-of-seven final that will
start likely Tuesday in Belle River.
In Sunday’s game Essex scored in each period with the Blades
getting only a second period powerplay tally from Landon Hoskins,
which was his first goal of the playoffs.
Everitt Swayze and Andrew Goulet assisted on the play.
Liam Hall, in the first period, Seth Martineau in the second, and
Jayden Seguin and Nate Dowling in the third had the Essex goals.
Essex had five minor penalties called against them and the Blades
three.
Jake Vancoillie was in net for the second game in a row and stopped
42 of 46 shots sent nis way by Essex shooters. In his two games
Vancoillie faced 99 shots, while his teammates managed just 36.
Owen Lemieux was the Blades netminder in the first two games.
The Blades were outshot 177 to 85 in the series.
BLADES BITS: This season Blades captain Craig Spence led the PJHL
Stobbs Division in scoring for defencemen, and was second overall in

points with 25 goals and 49 assists for 74 points…Prior to the start of
the game he was presented with his Stobbs Division Defenceman of
the Year Award by Chatham-Kent Ward 2 Councilor, and huge Blades
supporter, Anthony Ceccacci…The game was the last Junior one in the
careers of Spence, Zach Van Boxtel, Tate Bowden and Darby Lemieux,
who could not play because of a season-ending injury in Game 5 of
the Amherstburg series…Also not dressed for the Blades were Alec
Webster, Will McCracken, Ayden McKinlay and Ethan Chittle…In their
nine playoff games the Blades went 16 for 54 on the powerplay while
Amherstburg and Essex were eight for 48…Martineau was named the
game’s first star, Hall the second and Vancoillie the third…Attendance
was 735…The Blenheim News Tribune and Blenheim Publishers were
the ice time sponsors.