Hello hockey fans!  Man does it feel good to say that again!  

I’m sure you’ve all missed me, just like I’ve missed you, but I’m excited for this new opportunity with 519 Sports Online. I will be bringing you updates on the Western Conference of the GOJHL.  Teams, if you’re doing anything special, Teddy Bear Toss, food drives, alumni nights, fundraisers, etc., let me know and I’ll include it here.

So let’s see where things sit in the West.

London is at the top of the Conference.  They’ve been chasing Leamington all season and have finally caught up and passed the Flyers for first place.  They just got Jaimen Allison back from last year, which will strengthen their backend and could give them what they need to stay on top.  St. Thomas, Sarnia and LaSalle aren’t that far behind, so look for them to be making a push to move up soon.

Chatham is sitting comfortably in the middle.  They are 8 points back of Sarnia, but 9 points ahead of Strathroy and Komoka.  As the trade deadline nears, I expect the Maroons to make some moves that could potentially move them up in the standings.

At the other end, we have Strathroy, Komoka and St. Marys separated by just 1 point.  These 3 teams have struggled this year.  Komoka has been losing players for the last few weeks.  Their active roster is 20, but they’ve been playing games with just 13 skaters and 2 goalies lately.  It’s shades of when they first moved from Petrolia to Lambton Shores, but they’re still in the majority of the games they’re playing.

St. Marys and Strathroy have been getting inconsistent play from their roster.  Both teams  play a fantastic game and give hope things are turning around, then play a few subpar games.  The bright spot on both teams is goaltending.  In St. Marys, they have Tristan Lewis and Strathroy has Zack Weir.  Both are in their third GOJHL season, and second with their respective teams.  Despite their records and stats, both goalies are capable of doing the job, they just need more support from the guys in front of them.

Conference Leaders

Points – 51, Kevin Hu (St. Thomas)
Goals – 24, Kevin Hu (St. Thomas)
Assists – 27, Kevin Hu (St. Thomas) and Manny Silverio (LaSalle)
GAA – 2.15, David Ovsjannikov (London)
Save % - 0.918 – Zach Springer (London)

Special Events

The Sarnia Legionnaires were featured on Hockey Night in Canada’s Coach’s Corner on Remembrance Day.  On December 20, 2015, Rogers Hometown Hockey made a stop in Sarnia.  At that time, Ron MacLean was given two Legionnaires sweaters, for him and Don Cherry.  On their Remembrance Day broadcast, MacLean presented Cherry with his sweater.  

Rogers Hometown Hockey stopped in St. Thomas on November 18.  During the stop, it was announced that the St. Thomas Timken Community Centre, where the Stars play, would be getting a new name.  St. Thomas City Council has decided to change the name of the complex to the Joe Thornton Community Centre.  

On November 24, St. Marys honoured Brett Petrie by inducting him onto their Wall of Fame.  He is only the sixth player in Lincolns history to receive this honour.  Petrie holds the record in the West for most career games played at 268.  He started with the Lincolns in the 2003/04 season as a 14 year old and finished in 2009/10 as a London National.  Brett is the older brother of referee Chad Petrie.

105.7 MyFM in Strathroy is holding their annual Coats for Kids Campaign which will end on Saturday, December 9 when the Rockets take on Chatham.  

Strathroy’s Teddy Bear Toss will be December 16 against St. Thomas, followed by a Skate with the Rockets on December 17 from 5-7pm.

Well that’s it for this week fans.  I’ll see you again next week to recap what’s happened.  Until then, make sure you get out to the rink to watch some great GOJHL hockey!  

As always, if you want to see anything specific included in these recaps, let me know.  You can find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or by email.  

Stacy
@RocketGirl16