Ottawa, ON – The Divisional Semi-Finals continued Wednesday night with two key matchups in the EOJHL postseason. Arnprior took firm control of its Richardson Division series with another victory over Renfrew, while Richmond and Smiths Falls delivered a dramatic overtime battle that evened their series at one game apiece.
Arnprior 6, Renfrew 3
Arnprior seized a commanding 2–0 series lead with a strong road performance, defeating Renfrew 6–3 in Game 2 of the Richardson Division Semi-Final.
The Packers opened the scoring early when Ethan Smith struck at 3:56 of the first period off assists from Devin McCarthy and Neil Iserhoff. Renfrew responded with two late first-period goals to take the lead. Parker Evans tied the game on the power play after finishing a pass from Daxton Markwick, and Blake Egan followed minutes later — also assisted by Markwick — to give the Timberwolves a 2–1 advantage heading into the break.
Arnprior quickly swung momentum back in the second. Neil Iserhoff tied the game just over two minutes in, finishing a setup from Smith and Carter Downs. Renfrew briefly regained life when Ian Burnett scored on the power play at 7:44, but that would be the final goal for the Timberwolves.
The Packers took control from there. Rowan Casey restored the lead midway through the second off a feed from Jackson Taylor, and Downs extended the advantage later in the period with McCarthy and Smith picking up assists.
Arnprior added insurance in the third when Grayson Lyons scored at 14:37 before Ben Hiel sealed the win with an empty-net goal.
Cole King stopped 31 shots to earn the victory as Arnprior moves ahead 2–0 in the best-of-seven series.
Richmond 3, Smiths Falls 2 (OT)
Richmond evened its Richardson Division Semi-Final series with Smiths Falls thanks to an overtime winner and a spectacular goaltending performance from Sam Nolan.
Smiths Falls struck early when Andrew Hopley opened the scoring less than two minutes into the game, finishing a play from Gabriel Waito and Zach Laporte.
Richmond answered late in the first period when Tyson MacCoubrey tied the game, converting a setup from Kevin Zhu and Cooper Moore.
The Royals grabbed their first lead early in the second while shorthanded. Moore capitalized on a chance created by MacCoubrey just 48 seconds into the period to make it 2–1.
Smiths Falls responded in the third as Nathan Hovila tied the game off an Andrew Hopley assist, forcing overtime.
In the extra frame, Jake Madore delivered the game-winner at 2:07, finishing a play from Schylar Schapelhouman to send the Richmond crowd home happy.
Nolan was the star of the night, making 54 saves on 56 shots in a standout performance to secure the victory.
With the win, the series is now tied 1–1.
