Photos: Sudbury Light Event Photography
SUDBURY, Ont. – Ben Harris’ first Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League goal, coming in the latter stages of the second period, proved to be the game-winner as the Greater Sudbury Cubs went on to defeat the Soo Eagles 5-3 Sunday evening at the Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex.
Greater Sudbury began things offensively, seven and a half minutes into the match-up, as Carter Geoffroy took a cross-ice feed from Quinn Collins and lifted a rising shot from the right point that found its way through a maze and beat Eagles’ netminder Gabe Rosek.
An extended power play helped the Cubs go up a pair at 10:45 when Billy Biedermann redirected a Pierson Sobush shot while parked in front of the net.
A free-flowing middle stanza saw the clubs erupt for five tallies in a span of eight and a half minutes that resulted in Greater Sudbury taking a 4-3 lead into the second intermission.
The visitors began the offensive outburst on a delayed penalty as Chase Taillaire dove across the top of the crease and banged in an attempt that came from the right side.
Answering again quickly, the Soo struck again moments later with Michael Szlag picking up his first in the league as he scooped up a rebound off a turnover and put one in short side on Cubs’ starter Jake Marois.
Not done there, the guests went in front at 11:06 as Jack Mortson scored for a third straight game.
Back and forth they went with Sudbury answering back twice to go back on top, compliments of Atley Gringorten and Harris.
That game-winner came at 16:51 as Harris outworked a defender and came in on Rosek and fired a shot that was stopped, but he managed to bank in the rebound off the netminder’s pad and in.
Moving to the late going of the third, the Soo pulled their goalkeeper in favour of an extra attacker, but the Cubs’ Kyler Campbell rounded out the night’s scoring on a breakaway, by putting one into the empty net.
Cameron Shanks boosted the winner’s cause by dishing out two assists.
Shots on net saw Greater Sudbury hold the edge by a 48-32 margin with Marois recording the victory while Rosek suffered the narrow defeat.
