The Bradford Bulldogs Midget A team ended their run in the OMHA Playdowns with a disappointing 4-1 loss on home ice, on Thursday night.
After tying game 1 in their semi-final series against the Orillia Terriers, the Bulldogs lost two close ones in Orillia, then were back on home ice for a do-or-die Game 4.
It was an energized Orillia team that came to play, catching the Bulldogs off-guard. No matter how hard Bradford pressed, they couldn’t get past the Terriers’ guard, and as tensions mounted, so did penalties on both sides.
Orillia notched their first goal with 2:33 left on the clock in Period 1, deking out the Bradford goalie to take a 1-0 lead.
The Terriers made it 2-0 in the Second, with 8:49 remaining – and then scored again three minutes later, a shot that rolled off the Bradford goalie’s stick and into the net.
The Terriers took a strong 3-0 lead into the third. The only question was whether the Bulldogs could find the fire to battle back.
At first it seemed that they might – charging hard, swarming the Orillia net, taking hard shots. But the Terrier’s goalie was an impenetrable wall and, with 11:15 left on the clock, Orillia scored again to make it 4-0 for the Terriers.
Bradford finally made it onto the scoreboard seconds later – a shot by Kyle Staring from Stuart Heath - but that was the end of the Bulldogs’ rally.
Despite pressing hard, and pulling their goalie for the extra attacker, the game ended with a 4-1 win for the Terriers, who move on to the finals.
“The boys fought hard, but Orillia was a great team,” said Bulldogs’ team manager Jeff Mumford, as players from both sides got together on the ice for a final photo. It was the last game of the year for the Bradford Midgets – and for many of the players, their final minor hockey game.
“The coaches were super proud of the boys and their accomplishments this year,” said Mumford.
