Heating Up
The Kingston Voyageurs appear to have found a new gear as they drive towards a top-four finish in the Ontario Junior Hockey League's North-East Conference standings.
Their 3-1 win over the No. 3 Cobourg Cougars on Monday night in Cobourg was the Vees' fourth consecutive victory and moved them into a tie for fourth place with the Stouffville Spirit, each with 60 points. Kingston, however, holds a bit of an edge in the race for home-ice advantage in the first round as it has six games left in the regular season, compared to just four for the Spirit.
And it's been quite a run that has jettisoned the Voyageurs (27-15-2-4) from the conference's No. 6 seed into a top-four contender in a span of just seven days. Kingston's four wins have included triumphs over three teams that are playing well above .500 — the Whitby Fury, Toronto Jr. Canadiens and Cobourg.
That fact hasn't been lost on Voyageurs head coach Colin Birkas.
"There's not a lot to complain about when you outscore your opponents 20-2 in four games," he said. "The guys are buying in and executing."
The solid effort Monday saw the Vees score once in each period and goaltender Matt Penta make 31 saves in a near-shutout performance.
The Vees' Matt Hoover scored 39 seconds into the game before Liam Grande made it a 1-1 game only 2:32 later. Adam Brady's power-play goal midway through the second period proved to be the game-winner and Alex Stothart added an empty-netter with 1:11 left in the third to ensure victory. Brady's goal was his 40th in 40 games, and his 70th point.
Kingston host the Pickering Panthers on Thursday night at 7 p.m. at the Invista Centre.
