Gold Miners forward Ben Lyons shadows Timmins Rock blue-liner Matthew Kim during Sunday afternoon’s NOJHL contest at the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex in Kirkland Lake. The Rock knocked off the Gold Miners 3-1 to secure their 17th-staight win. It also marked the 55th consecutive time the Rock have beat the Gold Miners — a streak that began on Jan. 15, 2019. Photo by SUBMITTED /NOJHL Network
Sunday afternoon’s triumph was also the team’s 55th-straight victory against the Gold Miners — a streak that began on Jan. 15, 2019
Thomas Perry
The Daily Press/Postmedia Network
KIRKLAND LAKE — While not at their sharpest, the Timmins Rock exited the NOJHL’s Christmas break the same way they entered it — with a victory.
Sunday afternoon’s 3-1 triumph extended the Rock’s winning streak to 17 games. It was also the team’s 55th-straight victory against the Gold Miners — a streak that began on Jan. 15, 2019, with a 6-3 win at the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex.
In fact, the last time the Gold Miners came out on top of a game against the Rock was Nov. 29, 2018, when they scored a 4-3 home-ice victory at the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex.
None of the players on either team’s roster that night are still playing Junior ‘A’ hockey. After all, that was seven-and-a-half years ago.
Still, the Rock’s 3-1 victory at the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex Sunday afternoon was anything but a foregone conclusion.
“It wasn’t pretty, but we will take it,” Rock coach and general manager Brandon Perry said, summing up his team’s first game during the second half of the NOJHL’s 2025-26 campaign.
“It was just your typical first game back after a long layoff. I don’t think a lot of our guys skated, or did anything over the holidays. It was just a little salty on our part, execution and systems, but we got the job done and that’s all that matters.
“We will take the two points and move on.”
Interestingly, it will be the Gold Miners who will be the visiting team when the Rock make their return to the McIntyre Arena, on Friday, at 7:30 p.m.
And Perry notes the Rock will not be taking anything for granted, especially give the Gold Miners had won two-straight games and been undefeated in three prior to Sunday afternoon’s setback.
“They are a lot better, for sure, and they are fast, they are young and they are skilled,” he said. “They have a hungry group over there. You mix that in with us not playing great (Sunday). We didn’t play bad, but it just wasn’t our best.
“They have a nice team.”
The Rock jumped out to a 1-0 lead during the opening period of Sunday afternoon’s contest, with Thomas Beard scoring his 11th goal of the season.
Kaeden McArthur then added a power-play marker, his 23rd goal of the season, just nine seconds into the middle frame.
That tally would stand up to be the game-winning goal.
Leading the contest 2-0 heading into the third period, the Rock saw their lead cut in half when Matthew Neuman netted his fourth goal of the season 1:08 into the frame.
The Gold Miners pulled goalie Glen McInnes in favour of an extra attacker while on the power play in the game’s final minutes, but the move backfired.
Beard deposited his second goal of the game and 12th of the season into the vacated Kirkland Lake net for a shorthanded marker to close out the scoring.
“Thomas Beard was really good for us this afternoon,” Perry said. “He was all over the puck and strong on it. He had good jump and was good for us.
“K-Mac (McArthur) was great for us, as well. He has been great for us for a little while now.”
The Rock coach also liked what he saw from his special teams units in Sunday afternoon’s contest.
“Our penalty kill was good and (Rock goalie) Frédéric Cousineau was the best player in this game,” Perry said. “That’s one of the reasons our penalty kill was so good.”
Cousineau was named the NOJHL’s top goalie for December during the Christmas break, marking the second-straight month he has been so honoured.
“He is playing some great hockey and we are super lucky to have him,” Perry said.
The coach had some extra praise for a number of other Rock skaters, as well.
“I thought (forward) Victor Hourtouat played a great game for us,” Perry said. “We were a little short on our D today and they all pitched in and did their jobs.”
Ben Climenhaga, who has been battling a lower-body injury, was not expected to play, but when fellow blue-liner Zach Secord came down with an illness Sunday morning, he stepped into the lineup.
Cousineau stopped 16 of the 17 shots he faced to earn his 15th victory of the season and 12th-straight.
McInnes, who turned aside 39 of the 41 shots the Rock directed his way, was tagged with the loss.
NOJHL NOTES — The three stars of the game were Beard (two goals, Rock blue-liner Braedyn Cyr (one assist) and Gold Miners blue-liner Isaiah Allen (one assist) … The Rock went 1-3 on the power play and scored a shorthanded goal, while the Gold Miners were 0-5 with the man advantage … Official attendance at the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex was 260 … Sunday’s only other contest saw the Espanola Paper Kings top the Rapids 7-3 in French River … The Rock will return to action on Friday when they host the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners at the McIntyre Arena, at 7:30 p.m., before welcoming the Iroquois Falls Storm to the McIntyre Arena, on Sunday, at 1 p.m.
