Ottawa, ON – Tuesday night in the EOJHL delivered plenty of drama, highlighted by a rivalry clash in the nation’s capital that needed a shootout to decide it, while Renfrew put together a strong third-period surge on home ice to pull away from Richmond and earn two important points.
Ottawa 5, Ottawa West 4 (SO)
Ottawa jumped out quickly in the Battle of Ottawa, opening the scoring just over four minutes in when Sam Glover finished a play set up by Sydney Loreto and Ryan Daze. The Jr. Canadians kept rolling on the power play later in the period, as Loreto doubled the lead at 15:07 off feeds from Justin Savage and Danik Marion.
With under two minutes remaining in the first, Ottawa struck again when Jacob Perreault buried a chance created by Logan Power and Riley Bloom, giving the home side a 3–0 advantage after one.
Ottawa West answered early in the second period, as Jason Ward got the Golden Knights on the board at 1:44, finishing a pass from Gabriel Tremblay and Dominik Lemieux. The visitors carried that momentum into the third, cutting the deficit to one when William McCulligh scored at 5:43 off assists from Thomas Dickey and Justin Murdoch.
Ottawa West tied the game moments later on the power play, with Dickey wiring home a shot at 8:52, assisted by Antonio Zito. Ottawa responded midway through the period when Danik Marion restored the lead at 13:53, converting a setup from Thomas Robillard and Glover.
The Golden Knights refused to go away, as Dickey struck again at 19:17, finishing a feed from McCulligh and Murdoch to force overtime. After a scoreless extra frame, Ottawa claimed the win in the shootout, converting three times to secure the rivalry victory.
Jackson Curran made 23 saves on 27 shots for Ottawa, while Dustin Riff stopped 29 of 33 in goal for Ottawa West. Ottawa improves to 24-7-0-0, while Ottawa West moves to 22-4-3-0.
Renfrew 5, Richmond 2
Renfrew opened the scoring midway through the first period when Jacob Lalande finished a play from Colton Vereyken and Liam Haggerty at 8:17. Richmond answered late in the frame, as Parker Stretch tied the game at 17:10 with help from Ramsey Stretch and Bryce Hetherington.
The Royals took their only lead of the night in the second period, when Nevyn Trenholm scored at 13:42 off a pass from Cooper Moore, making it 2–1 Richmond heading into the third.
Renfrew flipped the game in the final frame. On the power play at 9:56, Daxton Markwick tied the contest, finishing a setup from Parker Evans and Ricky Wilson. Just over two minutes later, Wilson gave Renfrew the lead, scoring at 12:05 from Preston Charron and Cole McLelland.
The Timberwolves pulled away late, first with Dan Enright scoring his first of the season at 15:41 off a pass from Logan Fleury, and then Wilson sealed the win with his second of the night at 17:35, assisted by McLelland and William Herrick.
Dylan Elliott earned the victory with 27 saves on 29 shots, while Richard Unger made 28 saves in the loss for Richmond. Renfrew improves to 14-15-1-1, while Richmond drops to 13-16-0-2.
