VIDEO: Fast start propels Rock past Lumberjacks

Timmins Rock forward Ethan Pool reaches in to take the puck away from Hearst Lumberjacks defender Adam Shillinglaw during Thursday night’s NOJHL game at the Claude Larose Arena. The Rock, who will host the Greater Sudbury Cubs at the McIntyre Arena on Sunday, at 1 p.m. went on to double up the Lumberjacks 4-2 and reclaim top spot in the East Division standings. NORTHERN LIGHTS PHOTOGRAPHY/FOR NOJHL NETWORK

The Timmins Rock parlayed a fast start into a 4-2 victory over the Lumberjacks at the Claude Larose Arena Thursday night.


Thomas Perry
The Daily Press/Postmedia Network


HEARST — The Timmins Rock parlayed a fast start into a 4-2 victory over the Lumberjacks at the Claude Larose Arena Thursday night.

Rock coach and general manager Brandon Perry agreed it was the exact opposite of the first period of Sunday afternoon’s contest that resulted in a 4-2 loss to the visiting Powassan Voodoos.

“We had a really good start, came out, started on time, played hard from the first puck drop,” he said.

“The guys played fantastic.”

That quick start saw the Rock outshoot the Lumberjacks 17-3 during the opening 20 minutes of play and build a 2-0 advantage on the scoreboard.

A power-play marker off the stick of Liam Wells, his ninth goal of the season, gave the Rock the lead at the 8:50 mark and Brady Harroun added an unassisted tally, his 13th goal of the campaign just over five minutes later.

As a result of the Rock’s fast start, the Lumberjacks were left trying to play catch-up hockey the rest of the game.

“The biggest thing with Hearst is they are not only a good team, but they are resilient,” Perry said.

“The opening 20 was nice, but you have to stay on them and keep coming. As soon as you give them life, they are going to come roaring back.”

The Rock expanded their lead to 3-0 late in the middle frame, with Lucas Piekarczyk netting his ninth goal of the season.

With less just 47 seconds remaining in the period, the Lumberjacks finally got on the scoreboard, as former Rock forward Tyler Patterson netted a power-play marker, his ninth goal of the season.

Any momentum the home side may have gained from that tally was negated, however, when Rock Captain Nicolas Pigeon added a power-play marker, his sixth goal of the season, to put the Rock up 4-1.

Lumberjacks sniper Riley Klugerman scored his NOJHL-leading 14th goal of the season just shy of the midway mark in the frame, but that would be as close as the Lumberjacks would come to getting back on even terms, leaving the final score 4-2 in favour of the Rock.

“I thought our guys did a good job, even in the second period,” Perry said.

“I think by the end of the second period they only had 12 shots on net.

“That first 40 minutes out of our group was some pretty good hockey. We played well. We executed our systems, we were in good spots (on the ice) and we competed really hard.”

There were plenty of Rock players who caught the eye of their coach Thursday night, but none more so than the team’s 16-year-old goalie, Jacob Brown.

“It’s a pretty intimidating rink to come into and start, but he got the job done,” Perry said.

“He was fantastic, just solid all night. He is so calm in there and this was a big win for him.

“Then, throughout our lineup, I thought everybody played well.”

All three members of the Rock’s No. 1 line — Harroun, Pigeon and Piekarczyk — picked up a goal Thursday night.

“Your best players have to be your best players and I thought they were really good tonight,” Perry said.

They didn’t hit the scoresheet Thursday night, but the coach was also pleased with the line of Evan Grigor, Lucas Lowe and Thomas Beard.

“They were really good, as a line, and gave us good, hard, quality minutes,” Perry said.

For the most part, the coach was trying to employ the trio against the Lumberjacks top offensive lines.

“It’s hard on the road because they get last change,” Perry said.

“They are obviously looking to match and we are trying to move things around.

“It is really hard to hide guys. Sometimes you just have to trust them and get them out there, but they were fantastic.”

The Rock coach was pleased with his team’s special teams in Hearst, with the power play going 2-5 and the penalty kill finishing 1-2.

“It’s a special teams game, especially against Hearst,” Perry said.

“I think they have the best power play in the league and I thought our penalty kill did a really good job keeping them in check.

“That was a tough one (goal) to give up there at the end of the second period.

“There is always a fear when you give up a late goal, did we just give them some life, but our penalty kill was fantastic and our power play got the job done when they needed to get it done.

With the win, the Rock (12-5-2-1) moved back into first place in the NOJHL’s East Division standings, one point ahead of the Powassan Voodos (13-6-0-0) and the Lumberjacks (12-5-2-0) — although both of their rivals have a game in hand.

Brown stopped 23 of the 25 shots he faced to earn his fourth win of the season for the Rock.

Matteo Gennaro, who turned aside 28 of the 32 shots the Rock directed his way, was tagged with the loss.

NOJHL NOTES — The three stars of the game were Harroun, Pigeon and Lumberjacks forward Emile Pichette (one assist) … official attendance at the Claude Larose Arena was 507 … Rock forward Nicholas Moore who was assessed a five-minute match penalty for boarding and a game misconduct during Sunday’s 4-2 home-ice loss to the Powassan Voodoos has been handed an eight-game suspension by the NOJHL for attempting to Injure his opponent … There were a pair of trades involving East Division teams on Wednesday, with the Lumberjacks Nicholas Jermolenko (16, 2-4-6, 6) to the Elliot Lake Red Wings in exchange for a player development fee and the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners dealing forward Matthew Hill (17, 3-4-7, 2) to the French River Rapids in exchange for a player development fee … Thursday’s only other contest saw the Crunch get past the Gold Miners 5-3 in Kirkland Lake … The Rock will return to action on Sunday when they host the Greater Sudbury Cubs at the McIntyre Arena, at 1 p.m.

“Highlight of the Night” – NOJHL YouTube Channel