The Clippers were once again stymied by the power of strong TNT play that out-gunned our efforts with more shots on net and strong defensive play turning away most chances to get close to the TNT netminder.
The Clippers were down early in the play, caught off guard by the Tornadoes tenacity. TNT put up 2 goals at 5:29 and 2:45 of the first period, the latter coming on an uncharacteristic TMM penalty called against our boys in black. This deflated the Clipper spirits, but the coaches rallied the troops to put some sizzle back into the play for the 2nd period.
The Clippers finally started to get some action at TNT's net, discovering that the trailer is critical as the goalie left open some rebound opportunities. Mick-er made good on one on the open side following Bryson's shot (goal to 10, assists to line-mates 3 and Owen, 88) for a nice power play goal. This brought the goal differential to 1 point to close the second.
But TNT found advantage in the 3rd, putting up two more goals, (10:53 and 6:37), a position the Clippers don't see too often. The Tornadoes were fast and first to the puck, and with many of our Clippers recovering from sick bay, we did not seem to have the gas to get there. As a bright spot remidner to us all of the power of our Champs when they are at their best, in the final minutes, Owen made a run for the middle ground, carrying the puck almost to the top of the slot. With two TNT defenders takign away his lane, Bryson picked up the loose puck left behing and made no mistake firing the rubber to the back of the mesh. (Goal scored at 3:33).
Final 4-2 for TNT.
We said it before, TNT may well be the toughest team in the loop. They are disciplined, and consistent. Finding the holes in their game while leaving none for their advantage will be the key to getting back 2 points against this centre. We'll make the trek to Cookstown one more time to see what we can do about that. Our final test in the regular season.
There's lots more pre-Christmas action coming our way, fans. So plan ahead and mark your calendars for Markham, Georgina, Richmond Hill, and Newmarket. Every point counts as we head toward playoffs and face gritty competition to make the OMHA playdowns. Only the top 4 teams play in the OMHA round offs, and the top of our loop is in a tight race.
GO CLIPPERS GO!!!!