Bruins face tough schedule to end season
Roger Varley
A visit to the arena tomorrow (Friday) night by the Schomberg Cougars marks the start of a tough end-of-season schedule for the Uxbridge Bruins. Between now and Feb. 16, the Bruins will face Schomberg three times, the Clarington Eagles twice and the Georgina Ice and Port Perry LumberJacks once each. They finish off against the Little Britain Merchants and the Caledon Golden Hawks.
The Bruins are tied at two games each against the third-place Cougars, but have an 0-5 record against league-leading Clarington, a 1-5 record against second-place Georgina and have lost all six match-ups against the LumberJacks.
Last Friday, the Bruins gave the Ice a run for their money, losing 6-5 in overtime. Played in Keswick, the game saw Georgina take a 3-1 lead in the first, with Uxbridge's goal by Evan Gilbert scored while a man short. The Bruins dominated the second period, outscoring the Ice 4-1, including three power-play goals. Georgina managed to tie the game with less than two minutes remaining in the third and then took the game in overtime.
Gilbert scored two goals while Tanner Ryan and Jack Kemp each had a goal and two assists. Georgina outshot the Bruins 39-21.
Two days later, the Bruins exacted revenge on the hapless Golden Hawks in Caledon with a 7-1 victory. Caledon scored first halfway through the first period, but the Bruins came back with two of their own, added four more in the second and the final goal in the last period. It was a good night for Ryan Shier, who recorded three goals and an assist.
As of the weekend, Uxbridge was tied with Port Perry for fourth place in the seven-team Orr division with 33 points each, Both teams have a game in hand over Schomberg, who are just seven points ahead.
Bear pause: The Bruins have designated tomorrow night as Cam Stewart Memorial Night at the arena and will be honouring their late president with a ceremony prior to the start of the game. Stewart, who spent more than 25 years working with the Bruins, passed away last year at the age of 78.