Nathan Enwright goes by the bench after scoring his first GOJHL goal in the St. Marys Lincolns’ 7-1 win over the Sarnia Legionnaires on Sept. 12. Photo by Turner Roth
By Spencer Seymour
Anyone who watched either of the St. Marys Lincolns’ first two games of the regular season and knew nothing about the roster composition would come away thinking they just watched a veteran squad that had been largely the same for several years.
There was no inkling this was a largely new-to-each other roster with just six skaters dressed who were either 19 or 20 years old.
What was preached and expected by everyone was that this was a talented but young team that would likely show many reasons for optimism, but also have moments where fans saw their inexperience and the holes in their execution of the team’s systems.
Patience. Growing pains. Time. That was the expectation of what to expect, and what was needed.
Instead, the Lincolns delivered back-to-back games in which they not only won, but looked like a team that had been playing together for months, if not years, rather than just the handful of weeks they’ve actually had together.
Head coach Jeff Bradley told the Independent the coaching staff saw precisely what they were hoping to see from the youthful roster.
“With our teams in the past, we had more of a feel for what we had, and we knew how hard they were going to compete,” said Bradley. “Whereas this year, coming in, it was a bit more of a question mark in terms of do you have that base of competing and the desire for the game, and I think in both of our first two games and the limited practice time we’ve had, we’re seeing that from this group. We wanted our guys to compete hard and we definitely saw that from a lot of our guys. We’re working from a really nice starting point.”
The Lincolns opened their season on home ice with a 7-1 thrashing over the Sarnia Legionnaires. St. Marys outshot the Legionnaires 60-25, including a first period in which the Lincs had 27 shots while Sarnia managed just five.
Owen Voortman opened the scoring just 28 seconds into the contest, assisted by linemates Chase MacQueen-Spence and Lincoln Moore. Just under 15 minutes later, Nathan Enwright jammed home a loose puck in a goal-mouth scramble for his first Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League (GOJHL) goal.
Enwright described the strong play by his line, which also included Chase McDougall and Declan Ready, leading to his gritty goal.
“It was just a really good shift by our line,” Enwright said. “We got it in deep and hemmed them in their zone. Declan (Ready) made a nice pass out front and I buried it. Fortunately, I was parked in the crease and waiting for something to happen. That’s where guys make their money, bringing their shovels to the front of the net.”
MacQueen-Spence, Moore and Voortman all scored in the second, after Sarnia’s first and only goal of the night by William Harding. Moore potted his second of the game in the third and Thomas Paleczny rocketed home his first of his GOJHL career. MacQueen-Spence and Moore ended the night with four points, while Voortman had three and McDougall and Ready each earned two assists.
Brogan Colquhoun makes one of his 33 saves during the St. Marys Lincolns’ 3-1 victory over the Caledonia Corvairs on Sept. 13. Photo by Turner Roth
Making his debut in between the pipes was 19-year-old Brogan Colquhoun, who made 24 saves in the victory and credited his teammates and the fans for helping him deliver a strong performance.
“It was really exciting,” said Colquhoun. “The boys played great in front of me. They made it pretty easy for me. I love the fans and I felt really good playing in that atmosphere. It helped me play to the best of my abilities. I was just trying to live in the moment and appreciate the fanbase we have. It was electrifying.”
The bigger test of the weekend was waiting for the Lincs 24 hours later when they travelled to Caledonia to take on the Corvairs, which is expected to be a strong team in the Eastern Conference.
Yet once again, the Lincolns controlled much of the game and secured a 3-1 win over the Corvairs.
“It was a big test for us,” said Bradley. “Caledonia is a team that is very open about what they want to accomplish this year. They consider themselves a championship-contender-calibre team, and for us to go into their arena and their home opener and have the type of performance we did, it says a lot of really good things about our team and where we’re at.”
The superstar trio of MacQueen-Spence, Moore and Voortman led the way offensively with that line netting all three of the Lincolns’ goals. Moore had two goals and an assist while Voortman scored one and assisted on both of Moore’s tallies. MacQueen-Spence nabbed helpers on all three.
Colquhoun picked up his second consecutive win, making 33 saves, only getting beat by a play off the end wall that came out the opposite side and was banged home by Brayden Hobson.
According to the bench boss, though they were held off the scoresheet, the line of Blake Elzinga, Jack Clarke and David Heath was one of the team’s most consistently impressive.
“I thought the line of Jack, Blake and David was great for us in both games. They haven’t put up the numbers yet, but you can tell it’s right there. They generated a lot of chances over these first two games and we just have the feeling that when they get one, they will get a bunch.
“They just have a mix of everything,” Bradley continued. “David has that youth and excitement as a 16-year-old, and obviously, he’s very highly skilled. Jack has a really good edge to him. He’s got the tools offensively and is working hard to be good defensively. And Blake has that veteran presence. He’s familiar with what we’ve done over the last couple of years and what we expect. It’s a really good mix and we’re really happy with what they’ve done through two games.”
With the team delivering such structured, well-rounded performances, Bradley noted the coaching staff doesn’t have to deviate from their plan as they prepare for the second week of regular-season action.
“It just lets you progress on your plan without any wrenches being put in. We want to get these guys to a certain point, and when things pop up where you’re not very good at this or we need to work more on that, it can mess up your plan a little bit. But having the work ethic and the understanding from the players that we’ve gotten, we’re able to look ahead to this week and continue progressing and pushing forward the way we planned, and we don’t have to change it.”
