18/20 September 2009
Stoney Creek University Showcase 2009 • • • • • •
Aeros and Mississauga Battle to Final Shootout - Chiefs prevail
Junior Aeros and Mississauga Chiefs entertained with a thrilling Tournament Final which ended in Mississauga scoring a shootout victory over the Aeros with a score of 2-1. Congratulations to the Junior Chiefs for their victory and to the Junior Aeros for such a strong performance over the entire weekend of play. Sunday 20 September 2009 - Tournament Final
Toronto Junior Aeros 1 Mississauga Jr Chiefs 2 (SO) The Toronto Jr Aeros played their way to the championship game of the tournament Sunday. They played the Mississauga Chiefs who were indeed expected to be a challenge. The game started off as most would have expected. There was end to end action which became exciting when Sally Butler missed the net by mere inches near the 7 minute mark of the first period. Not long after Mississauga was called for hooking. During this powerplay the Aeros had many chances. Jenna McParland had 3 shots on net only to be thwarted by the Mississauga goaltender. The action heated up close to the end of the period when Nicole Paniccia stopped a breakaway with an amazing pad save! It looked like the Aeros may put one on the board during the last minute of the periodÉwhen in the Mississauga end, Erin Ambrose let a rocket go from the point which left a rebound for Kelly Babstock who was stoned by the Mississauga goalie. There was no score at the end of the first period. The second period was not as good a start for the Aeros. A penalty was called on the Aeros 3 minutes into the period. The Aeros worked hard at killing the penalty but at one point, Mississauga intercepted the puck and fired a shot on the ice past Panccia to move them ahead 1 to 0. The Aeros did not back down. They continued end to end battle. A turnover in front of the Aeros net gave Mississauga a clear shot only to be denied by the ever cool headed Paniccia. A scramble ensued in front of the Aeros net and again Paniccia held the Aeros in the game making a couple of amazing saves! Late in the period, the Aeros were called 2 minutes for crosschecking. With 1 minute 20 seconds left in the second period, they killed a good portion of the penalty. The break between second and third left them down 1 to 0. The third period started with the continuation of the penalty killÉ40 seconds left. Dayle Wilkinson gave a great feed to Jenna McParland sending her down the ice to pot a beautiful shorthanded goal with 5 seconds left in the penalty! The momentum seemed to now shift to the Aeros. The game was tied 1 to 1. The play ensued in the Mississauga end with the odd rush from Mississauga. They managed a 2 on 1 situation only to be turned away by an absolutely beautiful poke save by Paniccia. The action turned back to the Mississauga end when Carolyn Luczak fed a nice pass to Jenna McParland who tried to pick the top corner but narrowly missed. End to end action continued and with under 2 minutes left in the game, Mississauga fired a shot just over the net which kept the crowd in stitches. This however did not faze Paniccia as she saved another shot with 8 seconds left to force an overtime situation. The overtime was a 4 on 4 format for 10 minutes. Early into the overtime, the Aeros were assessed a penalty. During the penalty a scrum erupted in front of our net which did not distract Paniccia. The puck could not get past her. Again Jenna McParland headed down the ice to the Mississauga end shorthanded and took a shot that was saved. The penalty expired and again the momentum shifted to the Aeros, who turned the pressure on. With 4 minutes left, Aurora Kennedy was robbed by the Mississauga goaltender. Soon after, McParland took a beautiful shot that hit Adrianna Leon in the shin and deflected into the net. The Aeros celebration began with the bench clearing onto the iceÉthe players were ecstatic! Only to have the celebration negated by a joint decision of the referee and linesmen that the goal was kicked in. This meant the goal did not count and play would have to continue. Now the Aeros had to regroup. The score remained tied after the overtime period. This game would have to be decided by a shootout. The shootout consisted of 3 shooters per side. If there was not a winner it would be a single shooter at a time until sudden death. Mississauga player shot first but was stoned by Paniccia. Then the challenge was up for the youngest player on the Aeros as Erin Ambrose took the first shot. It was a very hard shot but came up high. The second shooter for Mississauga managed to squeak one by Paniccia. Now Aeros player Kelly Babstock had the pressure on her as she sped down the ice and tried to put the puck past the Mississauga goalie but came up short. The third shooter for Mississauga potted a goal resulting in a win for the Mississauga Chiefs. The final score was 2 to 1 for Mississauga Chiefs with shots on goal being in the Aeros favor 22 to 21. Congratulations to Erin Ambrose for being the MVP of the game from the Aeros. Even though the result of the game was not one that the Aeros and their fans wanted to see, it was a well fought game with the players giving it their all. Congratulations on a silver medal!! • • • • • • Sunday 20 September 2009 - Semi Final
London Jr Devilettes 1 Toronto Junior Aeros 4 The Aeros came up against their first PWHL team of the season in their second game on Sunday, when they played the London Devilettes in the tournament semi-finals. The Aeros applied some early pressure but the high speed close checking play by both teams resulted in no score after twelve minutes. Things opened up in the second period when two penalties resulted in some 4 on 4 play. Two great chances by Hagg (24), one thwarted by the London goalie and the other rejected by the crossbar, got the crowd going. Half way through the period the scoring opened when Luczak (26) shot the puck from the point into a couple of Aeros screening the London goaltender. Leon (8) was able to get her stick on the puck, which deflected through the goalie’s legs and into the back of the net. Also drawing an assist was Ambrose (94). As the period progressed, the Aeros continued to apply pressure and were able to match the speedy London forecheckers with a composed set of defenders who were well supported by an aggressive backcheck. With a few minutes left in the period Aeros goaltender Paniccia (37) was put to the test when a London forward broke through to the net on a semi-breakaway. The London forward made a great lateral move but was stoned cold by Paniccia who slid across the crease to turn the puck away and keep her team in the lead. The Aeros came out with a bang in the third period. On the first shift, the Aeros gained possession of the puck off the draw and moved it deep into the London zone. Babstock (2) picked up the puck in the corner and moved it to Saulnier (22), who powered her way in front of the net and slid the puck past the sprawling London goaltender to put the Aeros up by two. The Aeros widened the lead minutes later with a solo effort by Wilkinson (4) who carried the puck through the neutral zone and across the offensive blue line before cutting to the middle and firing a shot past the London goalie. Despite being down by three, London continued to press hard. Late in the period, a devilette was sent to the box and the Aeros went on the power play. Seconds into the power play, Butler (10) received the puck off of an offensive zone draw and put it back to Ambrose (94) who in turn fired the puck on goal where an anticipating Winkel (3) pounced on the rebound and scooped the puck into the back of the net. The game ended with London mustering only five shots on net, which was largely due to the Aerosí solid defensive core. • • • • • • Sunday 20 September 2009 - Quarter Final
Toronto Junior Aeros 5 Team Illinois 0 The Aeros came out strong Sunday morning for their first medal round game against a fast Team Illinois. Aeros goalie Piper (30) showed her stuff early on when she slid across the crease and made a pad save on an Illinois forward. Not long after Piper’s big save, Hagg (24) opened up the scoring with a shot from deep in the offensive corner that found its way into the back of the net after a miscue by the Illinois defence. Minutes later, a textbook breakout and headman pass by Armstrong (13) to Daly (27) led to a 2 on 1 at the offensive blue line. Daly carried the puck over the line and made a heads-up pass to a streaking McParland (19) who brought the puck to her backhand and roofed it past the Illinois goalie. The second period scoring opened with another goal by Hagg (24) who, after receiving a pass from Babstock (2) in the high slot, fired a shot along the ice past the Illinois goalie. Also in on the goal was Kennedy (9). As the period wore on, both teams continued to battle hard and create chances but Piper (30) continued her steady play to keep Illinois off the scoreboard. Both teams carried on with a solid effort in the third period. The Aeros gained some more breathing room when McParland (19) spotted Doyle (7) just inside the blue line and dished it over. Doyle wasted no time firing a bullet past the Illinois goaltender. The final Aero goal came from McParland (19) who finished off a hard working play by Babstock (2), who fought off Illinois attackers to bring the puck into the offensive zone. Aslo getting an assist was Daly (27). • • • • • • Saturday 19 September 2009 - Qualifying Round
Toronto Junior Aeros 4 Chicago Mission 1 Aeros complete their mission
The Aeros began the playdown portion of the tournament facing the Chicago Mission team that had eliminated them in the Stoney Creek tournament the previous year. The pace of play was noticeably faster in this game compared to the three round robin games. Both teams displayed quick puck movement and finished their checks solidly. Generally the referee let the teams decide the match calling only seven minor penalties in a close fought affair. Toronto opened the scoring two and a half minutes into the action with a Jill Saulnier deflection of a Dayle Wilkinson shot. Four minutes later, Jenna McParland completed a tic-tac-toe passing play from her linemates Kalley Armstrong and Jenn Daly, wristing the puck over the goalie's glove into the top corner for the 2 -0 lead. Nicole Paniccia made some terrific saves to keep the Aeros in front despite being outshot during the period. Mission and the Aeros maintained a fast paced, yet close checking game throughout the second period with a few good scoring chances and some good goaltending at both ends of the rink. With less than half a minute to play a Mission player evaded an Aeros defender and fired a quick backhand into the top corner to bring the score to 2-1 at the end of the second frame. The Aeros rose to the challenge in the third period to complete their mission to avenge the prior year's loss. Jenna McParland striped the puck off of a Mission player, muscled her way to the front of the net, outwitted the sprawling goalie and wristed the puck into a small space in the top of the net to extend the lead. With very good team defense, the Aeros controlled most of the third period out-shooting and out-chancing the opposition. Then with three minutes remaining, Kalley Armstrong fed the puck to Jenna McParland who made no mistake in notching her hat trick goal to seal the 4-1 victory. Nicole Paniccia earned her second victory to send the team onto Sunday's quarterfinal round action. 
Saturday 19 September 2009 - Round Robin Game 3
Ridley College Tigers 0 Toronto Junior Aeros 7 Aeros tame the Tigers
In the third game of the Stoney Creek Tournament the Toronto Aeros maintained their momentum, this time with a win over the Ridley College Tigers. The opposition maintained a close checking style throughout the game and were able to keep the game within reach against the faster and stronger Aeros for the first two periods of the game. The score after the second stanza stood at 3 -0 for the Aeros on goals by Adriana Lean, Kelly Babstock and Ali Winkel with assists from Sally Butler, Aurora Kennedy, Jill Saulnier and Carolyn Luczak. The Aeros maintained the pressure in the third period and scored four more times for the 7-0 win. Sally Butler blocked a shot on a 5 on 3 penalty kill, raced down the ice and beat the goaltender wristing the puck off the roof of the net for a highlight reel goal early in the period. Also scoring for the Aeros were Kelly Babstock with her second of the game, Jenna McParland and Jenn Daly. Two assists were awarded to Kalley Armstrong with singles going to Aurora Kennedy, Megan Hagg, Dayle Wilkinson and Jenna McParland. Brianna Piper recorded her second shutout victory of the tourney. The offensive balance of the Aeros team was evidenced by the fact that all of the forwards and defense had recorded at least one point in the first three games of the tourney. With their third win the team secured first place in their pool to conclude the round-robin segment of the event. • • • • • • Friday 18 September 2009 - Round Robin Game 2
Toronto Junior Aeros 4 Belle Tire 1 Aeros roll over Belle Tire
In the Friday afternoon game of the Tournament the Aeros got off to a faster start than their opening match. The team scored two goals in the first four and a half minutes to take the lead for good in a 4-1 victory. Jenna McParland opened the scoring wristing the puck high into the net after receiving a pass from Kalley Armstrong. Less than two minutes later Kelly Babstock added to the lead completing a play from Adriana Leon that was started by Shannon Stoneburgh. The lone goal of the second period was scored on a slap shot to the top corner of the net by Shannon Doyle after receiving a pass from Jill Saulnier. The Belle Tire team maintained their hard skating and quick forechecking but the Aeros defense kept them to the perimeter throughout the period. The opposition goalie stood tall to thwart further scoring attempts by the Aeros to keep the score close after two periods. Belle Tire were able to break through and score a goal with six minutes remaining in the game. But the Aeros answered quickly with a second goal of the game by Kelly Babstock off of a deflection of a Carolyn Luczak point shot. Belle Tire outshot the Aeros in the third period but could only tally one goal as Nicole Paniccia recorded her first victory. • • • • • • Friday 18 September 2009 - Round Robin Game 1
Toronto Junior Aeros 8 Buffalo Bisons 0 Aeros get off to a quick start
The Toronto Jr. Aeros began their season at the Stoney Creek Sabres Showcase Tournament with a convincing 8-0 victory over the Buffalo Bisons. The Aeros team took some time to find their timing and passing in their first contest of the season. They controlled the play but were unable to generate a solid scoring chance early in the game. At the half way point of the first period Kelly Babstock opened the scoring with assists from her two linemates, Jill Saulnier and Megan Hagg. Four minutes later Adriana Leon potted the second goal on a play started by Erin Ambrose passing to Sally Butler in the corner whose cross-crease pass found the stick of Leon for the tap-in. The Aeros controlled the play throughout the second frame, not allowing Buffalo to register a shot on goal, and counted four more tallies, to lead 6-0 after two periods. Scoring for the Aeros were Jenna McParland with two, Erin Ambrose with a rocket from the point, and Jill Saulnier, picking up two assists each were Erin Ambrose and Kalley Armstrong with single points awarded to Aurora Kennedy and Megan Hagg during the period. In the third period, the Aeros worked some wonderful plays and were rewarded with some very good scoring chances, resulting in a few shots off the posts and two more goals. Kelly Babstock scored her second goal of the game again with assist to both of her linemates, Saulnier and Hagg. The scoring was rounded out by Dayle Wilkinson on assists from Armstrong and Ali Winkel. In total eleven different players contributed to the offense. Brianna Piper recorded her first shutout in the victory. | 
