Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos
The Soo U18 Greyhounds opened their 2024 – 2025 GNU18HL season by hosting the Timmins Majors on Saturday, September 28th at the John Rhodes Centre.
At 8:28 of the first period, Sudbury Wolves draft pick Danny MacDonald sank his first of the season finding the back of Timmins’ net over Alex Hall catcher to give the Majors a 1 – 0 lead. Gavin Killoran and Espen Escasa assisted on MacDonald’s first of the 2024 – 2025. With a scrum in front of the Majors’ net at 4:25 of the first, Anthony Spironello lifted the Soo’s second goal over a sprawling Hall to bring the Greyhounds lead to 2 – 0. Caleb Walker and Hunter Thorkilson registered the helpers on Spironello’s first of the season. Sinking his second of the contest, MacDonald picks up a rebound off of Alex Hall’s chest to sink the Soo’s second of the game to increase the lead to 3 – 0 with 9.1 seconds remaining in the opening period. Nathan Dupuis and Killaron notched the contributors on MacDonald’s goal. Finding the back of the net for his first of the 2024 – 2025 GNU18HL season, Petoskey, Michigan forward Stosh Schultz rifles a shot from the left faceoff circle to sink the Soo’s fourth of the game with 73 left in the second to send the Greyhounds into the second intermission up 4 – 0. Gavin Avery and Nathan Dupuis added the assists on Schultz’s goal.
With Timmins on a six on three with Hall on the bench for an extra attacker with the Greyhounds serving two minor penalties, Maverick Boucher picks up a rebound off of Soo netminder Nick Marson’s chest to fire the Major’s first of the contest 1:20 into the final period. Nolan Cardinal and Jakob Drobny drew the helpers on Boucher’s first of the season. Fourteen seconds after the Major’s opening goal of the game, Sutton Scheck skates into between the faceoff circles in front of Marson’s net to sink the goal under Marson’s catcher to pull Timmins within two. Evan Katic had the lone assist on Scheck’s power play goal. At 12:40 of the third and the Majors shorthanded, Edan Etheridge picks up a turnover at his own blueline, Etheridge and Boucher skate all alone into the Soo’s end for Boucher’s second of the game to close the gap to one for Timmins. At 13:42 and on a powerplay, MacDonald scores his third of the game to register his first hat trick of the season to bring the Greyhounds lead to 5 – 4 from in between the faceoff circles in front of Hall’s net, Dylan Rouselle notched the helper on MacDonald’s goal.
With 1:54 left in the third, Katic pulled the Majors’ within one on a power play with Hall on the bench for an extra attacker to bring the score tied 5 – 5. Jordan McLeod and Boucher added the assists on Katic’s first of the season. Only 11 seconds into overtime, Jakob Drobny finds the back of the Soo’s net through Nick Marson’s five hole to give Timmins a 6 – 5 win. Etheridge and Boucher notched the contributors on Drobny’s game winner.
In game two of the weekend in Sault Ste Marie on Sunday, September 29th, the Timmins Majors hit the ice coming off a 6 – 5 overtime win over the Soo U18 Greyhounds in GNU18HL action.
87 seconds into the first period, Gavin Killoran picks up a loose puck in front of the Majors’ crease through a scrum, Killroan sinks his first of the season through Timmins’ goaltender Jaret Fenton-Chypyha’s five hole to give the Soo a 1 – 0 lead. Danny MacDonald added the lone assist on Killoran’s goal. At 2:37 of the second period, Bodie Belair sends a pass across the front of the Majors’ crease to a wide open Hunter Thorkilson to lift the Soo’s second goal over Fenton-Chypyha’s blocker to give the Greyhounds a 2 – 0 lead. Jackson Thorton added the other helpers on Thorkilson’s first of the season. On a Soo power play to the right of Timmins’ net, Killoran picked up a rebound off of Fenton-Chypyha to find the back of the Majors’ net at 5:41 of the second to bring the Greyhounds’ lead to 3 – 0. MacDonald and Espen Escasa drew the contributors on Killoran’s second of the game.
41 seconds before the midway mark of the period, Martineau caught a pass to the right of Sebastien Brassard net to slide the Majors’ first goal of the game under the right skate of the Greyhound netminder to close the gap to two. Teegan Bertrand and Evan Katic had the assists on Martineau’s first of the season. Scoring their second power play of the game and with 20.3 second remaining in the period and Greyhound forward Caleb Walker behind the Timmins’ net, Walker wraps the Soo’s third into the back of Fenton-Chypyha’s net between the shoulder and post to give the Soo a 3 – 1 lead heading into the second intermission. Killoran and Escasa added the assists on Walker’s first of the season. Only 26 seconds left in the third, Scott Jodouin fires the Majors’ second goal of the game on a power play from the right faceoff circle to find the back of Brassard’s net over the left shoulder of the Greyhound netminder. Evan Katic and Reid Lessard registered the helpers on Jodouin first of the season. Just after the faceoff at centre ice and Fenton-Chypyha on the Timmins’ bench for the extra attacker, Espen Escasa sends a shot down the ice into an empty Majors’ net unassisted for his first of the season to give the Greyhounds a 4 – 2 win over the Majors.
The Greyhounds will be back in action on Sunday, September 29th when they meet the Majors in a 12:00 p.m puck drop at John Rhodes Centre.
