Legion 87’s pounded 13-2 by Sault Ste. Marie

Posted By BRAD SHERRATT, NORTHERN NEWS

Posted 27 days ago

-The long road trip to Sault Ste, Marie this past weekend proved to be also very pain for the Kirkland Lake Legion 87’s.

After dropping the first game of the set to North Stars on Saturday night, the 87’s took to the ice Sunday afternoon and were pounded by a score of 31-2.

The game was over virtually from the beginning as the Stars scored six times in the first period and then three more times in the second to take a 9-0 lead heading into the final 20 minutes of the contest.

The 87’s finally got on the board in the third with goals from Eric Alarie and Brandon Booth. Booth also collected an assist on Alarie’s goal while Cam Moffat picked up an assist on Booth’s marker.

The game also proved to be extremely rough as Legion alone drew 102 minutes in penalties.

Among the infractions were fighting majors to Jordan Turbide, Tyler Carroll and Jason Paul as well as a charging major to Alarie.

The 87’s have little to rest now as they are set to play two games this weekend. The club travels to Timmins on Friday for a game against the Majors and then Saturday they host the New Liskeard Cubs.

87’s take to the road for two games this weekend

Posted By BRAD SHERRATT, NORTHERN NEWS

Posted 4 days ago

The Kirkland Lake Legion 87’s are on the road this weekend, looking to bounce back from last week’s 9-3 loss to the New Liskeard Cubs.

On Saturday evening the club will be in Sudbury for a contest against the always powerful Nickel Capital Wolves. The Wolves currently sit second in the GNML standings with an 8-3-1 mark.

They then will make a stop Sunday in North Bay for an afternoon game against the North Bay Trappers; the team Legion has its only win over.

Just prior to the game against New Liskeard the flu bug infiltrated the team with a number of players to play in that contest.

Speaking just before Tuesday night’s practice, Assistant Coach Ian Borden said that while some players are still getting over the affects of the illness, he is hopeful the team will dress a full line up.

During the practice Borden along with fellow Assistant Coach Jessie Howg ran the team through a number of passing drills.

According to Borden the coaching staff is looking for the players to be concentrating on the passing especially from the defensive end and into the neutral zone.

The staff is also looking for the club to play a full 60 minutes of hockey.

One of the biggest downfalls this season has been the club’s inability to put together a full game, with third period collapses being far too common.

In their loss to the Cubs the team was only down 4-3 heading into the final frame and there was no indication that what transpired in the third period of that contest, would have occurred.

The coaching staff is puzzled by this trend and are looking to do what they can to help the players play solid throughout the entire game.

The team will also be looking at playing on two very different ice surfaces this weekend.

In Sudbury the Wolves play at the Countryside arena which has an extremely large sheet of ice while the Trappers continue to play in the confines of the West Ferris Community Centre.

As for the goaltending situation, according to Borden the team will continue with the rotation they have done all year.

That means in all likelihood that Cam MacKinnon will get the start against Sudbury while Ryan Beaudoin will start against the Trappers.

Saturday’s matchup will take place at 7:20 p. m. with Sunday afternoon’s contest slated for 1:20 p. m.

The 87’s will continue their long road stretch on November 6th when they are in New Liskeard to take on the Cubs.

Then on Sunday November 8th they head to Kapuskasing to play the Flyers.

They then will be travelling to Timmins On Friday, November 13th for a 7:30 p. m. game against the Majors.

87’s prepare for Cubs

Posted By BRAD SHERRATT, NORTHERN NEWS

Posted 11 days ago

KIRKLAND LAKE – Heading into tonight’s GNML contest with the New Liskeard Cubs, the Kirkland Lake Legion 87’s will be looking to draw on a number of positives that came out of last week’s Bell Sensplex Tournament.

The team not only had a winning record but they played the type and style of game that the coaching staff has been looking for.

“It was an excellent weekend and we were really happy with the effort of all the players,” said Assistant Coach Ian Borden.

“Our goaltending was outstanding and they (the team) really followed the systems we put in place. They really played like a team and it really showed on the ice.”

“We really followed out break out. Our defensive zone coverage, our neutral zone fore check was (all) good. Everything clicked in place.”

“We were looking to bring something positive out of the weekend and we brought a lot more. We just want to take it over to Friday night (tonight) when we play the Cubs.”

One of the key factors for the club during the tourney was the fact they had a full squad.

To this point in their season the team has only played twice with all 19 players dressed and Borden emphasized discipline will be paramount for the rest of the season.

“We’ve had very few games where we’ve actually had a full line up. We have got to keep these guys in the line up and we will have everyone in the lineup against the Cubs.”

Another positive that came out of the tournament was the team had a balanced scoring attack and also had points produced from their defensive core. And again this will be important heading into the rest of the schedule according to Borden.

“It helps. If we can count on the lines contributing its great. If we can roll three guys and get guys in the play its going to help. We can’t just rely on three or four players to do all the scoring for us.”

During the tournament the team experienced a number of ebbs and flows. In the win against Mississauga the team was up 2-0 but then lost the lead. In the tie against Clarington they were down after the first frame. Borden stated these are signs the team is not giving up.

“Its huge. We’re not giving up. The guys aren’t hanging their heads. The are not down when they get down in a game. If you can compete against Clarington you can compete against anybody.”

From the perspective of the players they too know that many positives came out of the tourney and feel they can take those good things and use them during tonight’s game and the rest of the season.

“We had a real good defensive game and we moved the puck well as a team and I hope we can keep it up all season, said Assistant Captain Tyler Carroll.

“We have a lot of talented guys on these team and if we can keep them together we are going to have success this year,” he added.

“(The Cubs) are definitely a good team but if we stick to our system, play good down low and use our size as our advantage, cycling the puck low I think we can have a good game against them.”

Tonight contest is scheduled for the usual 8 p. m. puck drop at the New Liskeard Recreation Centre.