The Minor Peewee Cougars were sitting in second place in their respective loop heading into the week of league play. Only one point back of the Whitby Wildcats who were in town for a rematch which would settle league supremacy once and for all.  The Cougars needed the win to take the top spot while a win for Whitby would give them much needed breathing room heading into the December rush.

Unfortunately for the Cougars the Wildcats came ready and primed to play.  They came out firing from the get go as they opened the score with just 11 seconds removed from the drop of the puck. This has happened to the Cougars before and they had always regrouped and recovered to make a game of the contest. However on this night the Wildcats were too much as they out shot Cobourg 22 to 15 on route to an impressive 4-2 victory.

Cobourg didn't score their first goal until the second period while they were down 2 goals to Whitby.  Wyatt Pattison passed to Jack DiMarco who in turn took the initial shot on net.  After a chaotic scramble in front of the net, Mariah Wilson managed to bang home the rebound to bring Cobourg within one.  There was not much time to celebrate for the Cougars as Whitby answered back just 8 seconds later to head into the third period stretch up 3-1.

After Whitby opened up the game with one more goal, Josh Maguire answered back for Cobourg.  Owen Whately found the puck in the corner where he dodged several Wildcats before finding Maguire wide open for the pass. Maguire wasted little time finding the back of the net with a perfect back hander that left the goal tender guessing.

Playing net for the Cougars was veteran Branson Schell who kept the came closer than it actually was. 

On Saturday Cobourg's road trip this week took them east to battle the Quinte West Golden Hawks.  Quinte West needed the win to get closer to the upstart Cougars in the standing while the Cobourg squad needed the win to rebound from the loss early in the week to the first place Wildcats.

The feeling out process was evident with these clubs as neither team could find a way to score early as the first period ended scoreless.  Rookie Anthony Melchionna opened the scoring early in the second with assists going to  Trevor McNeely and Owen Whately.  Whately found McNeely in front of the net where McNeely took a precise shot on net.  With two rebound attempts in his favour Melchionna scored to give Cobourg the first lead of the game. The Hawks fired back in their own fashion with two quick goals to finish off the second period.

The third period belonged to the Jr Cougars as they unleashed their arsenal with four goals in the last 11 minutes to bring home the road win 6-2.    Bryan McCormick tied the game with an important goal set up by Josh Maguire.  Maguire caused the turnover in the Quinte zone where McCormick found the pass and took the shot for the goal.  Just nine seconds later Melchionna scored his second goal of the game to give the Cougars the lead they would never relinquish. Trevor McNeely won the draw and directed the puck to winger Owen Whately.  Whately in turn found Melchionna streaking down the wing where he buried the shot between the pads of the Quinte goal tender to give Cobourg a two goal lead.

Josh Maguire gave the Cougars a comfortable three goal lead near the mid way mark of the third period.  Rookie Shayne Ruddy secured the loose puck and promptly found Maguire for the pass.  Maguire than let go a slap shot as he crossed the blue line which found the top corner of the net for his second point of the game.

To cap the game off Melchionna roofed a cross crease pass from Owen Whately for his third goal of the game.  Jack DiMarco started the play by creating the turnover in the Quinte Zone and directing the pass over to team mate Owen Whately.  Whately wasted very little time finding Melchionna who in turn nailed the hat trick.

Novice

Cobourg Sommerville's novice Cougars won a pair of games in Ontario Minor Hockey Association Lakeshore League play last week.

Nicholas Ainsworth scored twice and Tanner Sheppard added a single marker as Cobourg blanked Oshawa 3-0 to improve their record to 16-0-1.

In other action, Brendan Rylott scored four goals and had three assists and Sheppard had five goals and an assist as the Cougars defeated Clarington 14-1. Mac Lowry, Nicholas Ainsworth, Kyle Snyder, Corey Saman and Kristian Pottle had the other Cobourg goals. Devin Maudsley chipped in offensively with four assists.

Cobourg will host Peterborough this Thursday, November 22. Game time is 6:45 p.m. at the Memorial Arena.

Minor Atom

It was a light week for the Cobourg Diemo minor atom Cougars last week, with only one game (the club's home tournament had been scheduled for the weekend but did not run); however, it was a big game as the Belleville Bulls came to Cobourg.

Both Cobourg and Belleville sit atop the Ontario Minor Hockey Association Lakeshore League with undefeated records. The last meeting ended in a 4-4 tie, so the teams are very competitive with each other. Missing two regulars, Ethan Diminie and Greg Thomas, from the lineup, the Cougars needed a good effort to come out on top.

After the first period ended scoreless, as the teams tested each other out, Brody Waller opened the scoring for Cobourg midway through the second, during a scramble in front of the net. The assist went to Dawson Murphy.

Belleville, however, responded with a goal of their own less than a minute later to even the score on a shot from the slot. The rest of the contest solved nothing and the game ended in a 1-1 tie. The Cougars (9-0-2) know they can play a lot better hockey and have yet to really put forth a great effort against the Bulls.

Cobourg will host Whitby this Friday, November 23, at 6:30 p.m. at the Memorial Arena. The Cougars also have road games against Clarington and Pickering.

Major Atom

The Cobourg major atom Cougars lost their only Ontario Minor Hockey Association Lakeshore League game of the week, but they are giving others a chance to win a Nintendo Wii.

The atoms are in a four-way tie for first place in the Lakeshore standings with 19 points, as is Whitby who defeated the Cougars 8-2 last week.

Tonight, November 20, the Cougars will host Kingston Township (9-3-1). Game time is 6:30 p.m. at the Memorial Arena.

Cobourg has split games in the first first meetings in Kingston this season. The team is holding a fundraising raffle.

Tickets are $3 each or 4 for $10 and are for sale before every Tuesday night home game or through any team member. The top prize is a Nintendo Wii Game System, second prize is two Toronto Raptors Platinum Tickets, and third prize is a hockey jersey autographed by Paul Henderson. The draw will take place December 18.

Major Peewee

Three goals in each of the first and third periods enabled the Cobourg Auto Collision major peewee Cougars to defeat Belleville 6-1 in an Ontario Minor Hockey Association Lakeshore League game.

Six different scorers provided the offence for Cobourg. Cameron Leeds, Quinn Cooper, Mitchell Gibson, Benjamin Plue, Riley Line and Alexander Knapper tallied the goals. Micaela Smith chipped in with a pair of assists, as did Leeds, Cooper and Gibson while Plue had a single helper.

Cobourg also competed in a Silver Stick qualifier in Pembroke this past weekend and were defeated 2-1 by Quinte West in the tournament's semifinal round. The Cougars had earned round-robin victories over Napanee, 4-1, and Rideau-St. Lawrence, 4-0, but lost to Kanata 4-1. Quinte West went on to win the qualifier.

This Friday, November 23, the Cougars will host Peterborough. Game time is 7:45 p.m.

Minor Midget

Jesse Sheppard had three goals and Thomas Lang scored twice as the Cobourg Behan Construction minor midget Cougars defeated Ajax 7-2 in Ontario Minor Hockey Association Lakeshore League action last week. Goaltender Nick Hunter earned the victory in net while Kyle McAllister and Levi George had the other Cobourg goals. George also chipped in offensively with three assists while Brad Deck, Brent Mullin, Dylan Bell, Michael Jude, Jimmy Lafontaine, Keith Smith and Sheppard had one apiece.

Cobourg also earned a convincing 15-3 victory over Clarington last week. Chase Peterson earned the goaltending win.

Major Midget

Cobourg Scotiabank major midget Cougars earned a 6-3 Ontario Minor Hockey Association Lakeshore League victory over visiting Kingston Township last week.

Josh Adams scored twice in the win while Cory Fry, Travis Gibson, Zack Hutchings and Jeff Mastinsek had one apiece. Goaltender Kyle Venema earned the victory in net.

The Polymer Extrusion/Jr. A Cougar Minor Peewees took their show on the road this week with a game in Whitby on Monday and a game in Pickering on Saturday. 

The game on Monday against the Whitby Wildcat was a preamble for their next home game against their western foes.  The Cougars have historically had problems with the Wildcats but have managed some success against them this year.  They defeated the Wildcats in the Thanksgiving tournament in Peterborough yet fell to them earlier in the season in league play.  Whitby started things off early as they managed to find a way to get it past goal tender Branson Schell.   With a goal coming just 37 seconds into the game and being on the road, the Cougars could have fell apart yet they maintained their composure and scored a few seconds later. Just 23 seconds after the Whitby goal, the Cougars managed to keep the puck in the Whitby zone. Defenseman Blake Robillard sent a shot towards the Whitby goal where Josh Maguire was positioned for a picture perfect tip in to tie the game.

The Cougars took their first lead of the game later in the first period when Jack DiMarco scored his first of two goals for the game.  The line up of Mariah Wilson, Wyatt Pattison and DiMarco provided continuous pressure in the Wildcat zone.  DiMarco found the puck and found his way to the back of the goal where he found Pattison for the attempt.  The puck continued to rattle around in the Whitby goal mouth for several seconds when DiMarco finally found the opening for the score. The Cougars continued playing well for the balance of the second period but lost focus with just seconds remaining.  The Wildcats took advantage of a Cougar turnover and they tied the game with just 31 seconds left to take the momentum into the third.

With the momentum in their hands, the Wildcats came out firing in the third with a goal to retake the lead for the first time since the first minute of the first period.  The feisty Cougars answered back just 9 seconds later from the face off.  Jack DiMarco won the draw and found Mariah Wilson on the pass play.  Wilson in turn found Wyatt Pattison  who circled around the Whitby net and sent a precision pass across the goal crease to Jack DiMarco who one timed it for the score.

The game ended in a 3-3 tie with both teams continuing to play hard but neither could score to finish off the other.  The Wildcats outshot the Cougars 22 to 14.

The second road game of the week in Pickering started out slow offensively as neither team could score in the opening period sending the teams tied to open the second.  Josh Maguire turned it up a notch for Cobourg as he began to unload on the Panther defense with his first of four goals.  Cameron Murphy started things off on the play with tough play in the Panther zone.  Murphy sent the puck around the boards where he found Maguire behind the net.  Maguire then circled the net and wristed one above the blocker of the Pickering goal tender for the first lead in the game.

Maguire continued to dominate later in the period when he took a puck at the Cobourg blue line and began his quest to the other goal.  With defenders on his back and in his way, Maguire split the defense and roofed his second goal of the game over a sprawled goal tender for a two goal lead.

Owen Whately got back on the score sheet with Cobourg's third goal with help from line mate Trevor McNeely.  McNeely secured the puck in the defensive zone and found the streaking Whately with a pin point pass.  Whately in full stride continued with a rush on the Pickering net where he culminated the play with a blistering wrist shot finding the back of the net.

Pickering did manage to score in the second period to cut the lead to two goals but Josh Maguire wasn't quite finished yet.  Early in the third with a man in the box for the Cougars, Maguire won the face off in the Panther zone and stick handled his way to the slot.  With defenders at hand, Maguire managed to back hand a rocket to the top of the Panther goal leaving everyone in attendance in awe.

Pickering answered back to bring the game within two goals once again, but Blake Robillard took center stage.  With a face off in the Panther zone, Cameron Murphy blocked a clearing attempt and found Robillard at the blue line wide open.  Robillard cradled the pass and then launched a wrist shot which found its way to the top corner of the Pickering net. 

Maguire continued his offensive clinic when he teamed up with Robillard for Cobourg's sixth and final goal of the night.  Robillard found Maguire at center ice with a precise pass which sent Maguire on route to the Pickering goal.  Cobourg was short handed again as Maguire weaved his way through the Pickering defense finishing off his four goal performance with a wrist shot over the goaltender's glove.  Maguire managed four goals with two being short handed on route to an impressive 6-2 victory where the Cougars out shot the Panthers 26 to 13.  Playing in net for Cobourg holding the Panther offense in check was Michael Rolph.

The Polymer Extrusion/Jr. A Cougar Minor Peewees had a light week this week with only one home game but they delivered another win on their already successful season.  The Cougars traditionally have come out flat following a tournament and they have had some of their worst games after winning a championship.  This past week's game against the Peterborough Nationals was considered a good win but not the best this team has to offer.

The Cougars continue to get output from many of their players scattering their offense amongst eight different players on route to a 4-1 victory.  The Cougars out shot the visitors but ran into a hot goaltender that made the game seem closer than it really was.

Cameron Murphy started things off for the home town Cougars with his first of two goals in the game.  Shayne Ruddy held the puck in the offensive zone and delivered the puck into the corner for Bryan McCormick.  McCormick continues to make his presence felt as he found Murphy wide open in front of the net for the first Cobourg  goal.

Scoring Cobourg's second goal was Mariah Wilson with helpers going to Jack DiMarco and Wyatt Pattison.  DiMarco controlled the puck behind the National goalie and attempted an unsuccessful wrap around move which Pattison relayed over to Wilson for the score.

Pattison and DiMarco got together again for Cobourg's third goal with help from Blake Robillard.  Robillard continues to be the force on defense but can take it back the other way to set up the Cougar offense.  Robillard took the puck on a rush from his defensive zone where he found Jack DiMarco with a pinpoint pass.  DiMarco rifled a puck to the top corner which just caught the cross bar where Pattison was poised for the rebound.

With a break in the league schedule, the Minor Atom Cougars headed to Fort Erie this past weekend.  The team played absolutely inspired hockey, amassing a 5-0 record overall and bringing home the tournament title in thrilling fashion.

In the opener on Friday, the Cougars came out strong, defeating Vaughan 7-0 in an afternoon game.  Greg Thomas and John Campbell each scored a pair.  In the second game early Saturday morning, again the Cougars dominated, putting 8 past the Port Credit goalie, while the Cobourg netminders allowed not a single goal.  Greg Thomas earned the hat trick, while Chalmers McKeen scored twice.

In the third game, we faced the hometown Fort Erie Meteors, who were also undefeated in pool play.  Needing a win to advance, the Cougars played a grinding style in a very physical contest, eventually prevailing 2-1.  Both goals were scored by Matthew Smith, who played a very strong game.  The win was not all good however, as both Greg Thomas and Matthew Cavanaugh were lost for the tournament due to injuries in this game.

On Sunday morning, the Cougars were really in tough, facing the Toronto Royals with only two full lines of skaters.  Dawson Murphy put the team up with an early goal, but the Royals came back hard, scoring 3 goals to lead 3-1 into the third.  Things looked bleak, losing the game and down to 9 players due to a suspension and the previously mentioned injuries; however, the Cougars showed some growl with devastating blue line hits by Gavin Stevenson and goals by Wyley Veinot and Noah Hlapcic to tie the game at 3.  Dawson Murphy then scored the winner on a spin around shot from the high slot.  We were one game away from the title!

The Minor Peewee Cougars made it two straight tournaments in a row and now set their sites on their next in Lake Placid New York.  The Cougars dismantled their opponents in their home tournament to take home gold and the coveted title of Champions.

There were five teams in total battling for the title with Cobourg  being one of three teams from the local Lakeshore loop which included Quinte West and Ajax.  The two other teams were from Innisfil and Nepean and both were new teams the Cougars had ever faced in tournament play.

The Cougars began their quest against their arch rivals from the east .. The Quinte Golden Hawks.  The Cougars had just lost a heartbreaker to the Hawks in league play and were destined not to let that happen on home ice.  The Cougars unleashed quickly and often as they soundly beat Quinte 3-0.  Goals coming from Josh Maguire, Jack DiMarco and Bryan McCormick.  Assists going to Cameron Murphy, Blake Robillard, Shayne Ruddy, Ali Razaiy and Josh Maguire. 

Their second game was against the Nepean Raiders.  The Raiders were a big physical team which tried to set the mode of play early only to have the Cougars crush their efforts.  The Cougars physical play and pin point passing was too much for the Raiders as the Cougars won easily 5-2.  Scoring for the Cougars were Josh Maguire with two goals and one assist, Anthony Melchionna with two goals and Wyatt Pattison getting a single.  The Cougars balanced attack continues to be prevalent as Shayne Ruddy, Blake Robillard, Trevor McNeely, Carter Stevenson and Ali Razaiy all picked up assists in the game.

On Saturday, the Cougars faced off against the Innisfil Winterhawks.  The Winterhawks put a scare into the Cougars efforts with an early goal in the game.  The Cougars were not rattled at all and continued their style of play that had been successful all year long.  The Cougars managed four goals from four different players on route to a tight 4-2 victory.  Scoring for Cobourg was Owen Whately and Josh Maguire with a goal and an assist, Jack DiMarco and  Anthony Melchionna  with one goal a piece.  Trevor McNeely, Carter Stevenson and Shayne Ruddy continued their point streak with assists in the game.

The final match for the Cougars in round robin play was with the Ajax Knights.  The Cougars again fell behind early but rebounded to take their fourth straight game 3-1.  Josh Maguire continued his scoring streak with two goals and an assist and Cameron Murhpy scored one goal and one assist.  Other point getters for the Jr Cougars were Jack DiMarco and Ali Razaiy each picking up an assist. The Cougars were now undefeated in the tournament play and were patiently waiting the outcome of another game to see who they battled in the finals.