Junior Ontario Hockey

Looks like a convincing win for the Vipers tonight. Good for them to even the series at home. Has to be a confidence builder, especially when they out-scored, out-shot and played a more disciplined game relative to penalties. In London, meanwhile, no offensive punch from the Nats. 0-4 on the pp and ...

flyers and Port, I think you've pretty much nailed it. I've thought from the get-go that Sarnia would emerge on top from their series and nothing's changed my mind on that. London and Leamington is too close to call, but I have to give a slight edge to the Nats. They're up 2-1, heading home after a ...

Flyers or Nats will straighten this ca-ca out in the finals

Worrad coming back would be a big boost. Will be good to have Wooley back, too. He was a factor vs Chatham (2 goals) and adds a little extra grit to the back-end. Having a full bench is only going to help. Weds promises to be a great game.

This is the kind of game I expected in this series. Shot count was reasonable and close (24-30). Too many undisciplined penalties by both teams (7-8 each) which took some flow from the game. But otherwise both teams played well. A well-deserved win for the Flyers. Nats will bounce back in game 4.

We all know this series is a looong way from over. Setting aside the best outcome (i.e., shut out) the Nats have had in post-season, I was more impressed (in a bad way) at how poorly they played at times, particularly in the first when they were absolutely horrible. Obviously their PK did the job la...

All I'm going to say is what I said before: tonight would be different than Thursday night. The first period is the worst I've seen the Nats play all year. When your goalie is great, you can get away with it, apparently. The second was better and the buzzer beater broke their back. The Flyers now un...

No argument here. Leamington clearly has an excellent team. Tonight is another hugely important game. Nats will have to play 60 minutes and 200-ft hockey to stand a chance. Goes without saying that Tugwell needs to continue to be the outstanding "human" that he's been so far. I'll be very ...

Of course KT wants his turn in the O. And the deeper he carries this year's team into the post-season, the stronger his already strong resume will be -- rightly so with such a young team punching above its weight. He and the GM have a legit West Div championship contender on their hands THIS season,...

I was a disappointed in Thomson's comments, too, given that past London teams have been stacked with older players brought in on trades. In the West div, London has the advantage of being a large population centre in which the rights to local kids are automatically owned by the Nats -- players can't...

Oh, Porty, you are clever. London winning the series. And I predict they will play better on home ice, where they beat the Flyers last time they met. Guess we'll both find out tomorrow. But despite all the drama in Chatham that continues to torment you, tomorrow, it will still be the case that Londo...

Thanks for setting me straight on rink size, RG and flyers2011... I appreciate standing corrected on my facts and should have known better that both are identically O-sized. Clearly I was optically deluded... which I know Port feels I may also be on several matters of perception and opinion. That's ...

For the most part, Flyers controlled the play -- as they tend to do in their home barn. Their ice is enormous and they have the speed, skill and experience to know how to play it to their advantage. They only lost twice during reg season at home so letting the Nats steal the home-opener is a big dea...

Great goaltending and lucky bounces won it for the Nats tonight. Will be a different game in London on Saturday. 70 shots stopped and the peanut gallery is still whining about kicked posts... some people's kids just crack me up

I think Kelly Thomson's stock has just risen now that his young Nats have knocked off the Maroons. Next up: Leamington.

Sad way to end for those boys. Great players, each and every one. I had Chatham pegged to win the West...

Wardsville is wise.

Predictions are a mugs game, but I'll play. It will be Sarnia and London playing for the division title after they each go through 6 or 7 game series in the semis. Leamington better gird their loins... their real post-season is now about to get underway.

Maroons badly outplayed, which was surprising. That Patterson started was surprising, too. But he played well and kept them in it. Shots told the story tonight. Hats off to the Nats for a decisive win in a low-scoring game against the league's most offensive club.

Notwithstanding masturbating fans and the moron in a red jacket and ball cap who sits beside Chatham's owner bellowing like an ape every time a Maroon gets checked (seriously, buddy, you need to know that you look and sound like a fool...), I find Chatham fans merely enthusiastic. They've got a clas...

Agreed. Great game. Hats off to Ford on the shorty. Bessette the better goalie tonight. Whooley, despite his beauty slapper to tie the game, embarrassed himself and the team with his antics in the third. Out of character. Otherwise a great game. Saturday night, here we come.

In an effort to change the channel away from certain fans' incessant whining about the net going off its pegs (get over it, already... it's NOT the reason why Chatham is down 3 games to 1) what I saw happening in game 4 was the Maroons starting to juggle their lines and using their size to drive the...

:lol: Gutsy win by Chatham and the bounces went their way. They capitalized on two glaring defensive lapses by the Nationals. Notwithstanding those 2 fatal mistakes, London was the better team tonight. Bessette played well enough but in the end let four by him and proved to be only marginally better...

So far, so good, shady... I would agree they have shown a lot of class, especially given the level of frustration they must be feeling. Apart from the one fight and Ford spearing incident late in game 3, it's been what I would describe as a gritty series, but not (too) dirty. Just hope it stays that...

Chatham Daily News is reporting Bessette has finally received the nod to start in Game 4. Good for him and for his teammates, and good luck to both teams. Has the makings of another great game. Whatever the outcome, hopefully it will be largely free of controversy and whining about poor officiating,...

Just a good old fashioned upset. Maroons have been over-rated and the Nationals under-rated. Had Morgan been on the ice and Bessette in the net, well, may have been a very different story right now... or maybe not. We'll never know.

RG makes a good point. That's often what happens when a team starts to implode and lose confidence in itself, especially when it has many skilled players who **think** they can do it all by themselves -- but can't. Proof is in the pudding when you consider the fact that, Chatham's lone goal came fro...

Here are three other problems: London has better coaching, goal-tending and heart.

Bessette will start and play well. Maroons will come out hard and punish the Nats in the first. If Nats keep it close, they'll win the second period. Third period is anyone's guess. Tonight could be the first OT. If Nats prevail, the whining from certain Maroon fans on this forum will be high-pitche...

What will you guys whine about when the Nats win a third game? Blaming the refs for a loss is a lame excuse, and REAL hockey people know it. The Flyers offence played well last night, getting four goals (season average), three of which came from their top line. Problem is, the Nats scored five times...