Ryan Hodkinson celebrates his second goal of the game with linemates Declan Ready and Blake Elzinga skating towards him during the Lincolns’ 9-1 victory over the Cambridge Redhawks. The trio was described as the best line of the night for either team in a game where the Lincs ended Cambridge’s undefeated streak. (Photos by Turner Roth)
By Spencer Seymour
If someone had said the St. Marys Lincolns would end a team’s undefeated streak one game away from tying an all-time record, and that it would only be the second-biggest story of that game, no one would have believed them.
But on Nov. 28, for Ryan Hodkinson, the St. Marys Lincolns and their fans, magic became reality when, in their first home game since the tragic passing of Hodkinson’s father, John, who was honoured in a pregame ceremony, the St. Marys native took a starring role in leading the Lincolns to a 9-1 thrashing over the Cambridge Redhawks, becoming the one in the Redhawks’ now-24-1 record in one of the most beautiful games ever played at the Pyramid Recreation Centre.
Hodkinson scored two goals and two assists, including the game’s first goal just over nine and a half minutes into the first period. The 19-year-old forward talked about the significance of the storybook evening following the game, calling it a “special moment.”
“It obviously means a lot to me and for all of our family,” Hodkinson told the Independent. “A lot of family travelled down for this weekend, so being able to have them all in the stands and share that opening goal with them was pretty special. Words can’t really describe how special that is, with (my dad) watching down and this being the first game at home since (the passing).”
Hodkinson described the moment of scoring the first goal of the contest as being one of pure emotion.
“I blacked out (when the first goal went in),” said Hodkinson. “Obviously, they’re a good team on the other side there, and just being able to get the first one, we knew how big it was and being able to score that at home and in the first period was pretty big.”
Head coach Jeff Bradley credited Hodkinson with maintaining his high calibre of play despite the emotional pain he and his family are experiencing.
“He played great, but we get that from Ryan (Hodkinson) all the time,” said Bradley. “It’s just more special when it’s hyper-focused on him and his family. Our job as an organization and as friends of Ryan is to help him through a tough time as much as we can. We’re never going to be able to do a good enough job; he’s gone through something terrible that nobody his age should have to go through. But we want to make sure he gets the recognition because nobody deserves it more.
“He needs support right now, and he’s getting it from everybody. He gets it from his teammates, his coaches and his community with the celebration of life on Saturday. It seemed like the whole town was there, and they’re such big fans of his. To see his family and meet his grandparents (on Saturday), they’re just very kind people who you can tell are very well-respected and loved in this community.”
In a post-game interview with 519 Sports Online, Lincs’ captain Chase MacQueen-Spence described the emotions of watching Hodkinson’s magical game.
“What an unbelievable night for (the Hodkinson family),” said MacQueen-Spence. “I got shivers when Ryan (Hodkinson) scored that first goal. That was unreal. It’s crazy to think about. All of us wanted to rally around Ryan and do this for him, and I’m happy we got it done.”
MacQueen-Spence also scored in the opening frame, giving St. Marys a 2-0 lead after one, the first of three points the captain recorded.
In the second, Hodkinson’s linemate, Declan Ready, ripped home his fourth of the season after an incredible set-up pass by Hodkinson. Ready added two assists to his point total in the game, and Blake Elzinga picked up an assist in the game. Bradley credited all three members of the line for turning in stellar performances.
“That line with Ryan (Hodkinson), Declan (Ready) and Blake (Elzinga) was great,” Bradley said. “Obviously, Ryan did what he did and it meant a lot to us. Declan was just outstanding and I thought that was Blake’s best game he’s ever played as a Lincoln. When Blake puts it together for 60 minutes like that, he’s quite dominant. They were the best line on the ice for either team.”
Bradley also praised two of the team’s most experienced defenders for being generals every time they took the ice.
“Jacob (Montesi) and Camden (Kean) were unbelievable on the back end. They are two veteran defencemen, and they both did everything really well. They were physical and smart with the puck. Every time they had the puck, they controlled the game.”
Bradley also explained how, after a few minutes of some cautious play by the Lincolns, the team dominated the high-flying Redhawks for the rest of the game.
“In the first five to 10 minutes, we understood it was a big game, and it was a little bit of a feeling-out process. I thought we were sitting back a little bit, just trying not to make any mistakes, but I thought as soon as we got that first goal and then the second one shortly after, I think we started to realize this is just another team. We play really good teams every night, so we had nothing to be nervous about and nothing to fear, and if we stuck to our gameplan, we knew we could get the job done.
“It reminded me a lot of London a couple of years ago, where every time they get the puck, they’re just sending guys up ice and that plays right into our hands,” Bradley continued. “We play with three back all the time, so they’re just passing it into our coverage, and that didn’t give us any trouble. And then, in the offensive zone, our forecheck is our bread and butter when we execute it, and when we’re doing that, we pressure so well that the other team has a tough time being efficient with the puck.”
Jack Clarke scored late in the game, adding the fifth even-strength goal of the night to the Lincolns’ totals, an area the team has struggled with for much of the season. The Lincolns’ powerplay also went a perfect four-for-four with a late-game goal by Oliver Lacko, as well as one by Devun Colebrook and a pair by Ethan Weir, both of whom snapped scoring droughts in the process.
Bradley noted the five-on-five scoring and the production from a player with the pedigree of Weir were both things the team had been looking for.
“If you look at the makeup of our team, we’ve got the lowest goals against per game in our conference. We’ve got the top powerplay right now. We’ve got the top penalty kill. But our five-on-five scoring is not good at all, so whether it’s Ethan (Weir), Lincoln (Moore), or Owen (Voortman), we need them to start scoring some goals, and if they do, we will really have a lot going for us. They are definitely playing well, they are big parts of us not getting scored on and they’re doing well on the powerplay, but we just need to find more five-on-five scoring, and those guys are big parts of that, so hopefully this game woke us up a little bit.”
Ryan Hodkinson backhands home the first goal of the game on Nov. 28 in the St. Marys Lincolns’ 9-1 win over the Cambridge Redhawks. In a storybook-type night, Hodkinson scored two goals and four points in the Lincs’ first home game since the tragic passing of his father, John. (Photos by Turner Roth)
