Ottawa, ON – It was a busy night across the EOJHL on Friday, featuring a dominant shutout from Ottawa West, a statement win by Arnprior to strengthen their division lead, a gritty upset from Embrun on home ice, and a tight defensive battle in Winchester where the Jr. Canadians came out on top.
Ottawa West 6, Perth 0
The Ottawa West Golden Knights put together another commanding performance, shutting out Perth 6–0 behind a 21-save outing from Dustin Riff.
Antonio Zito opened the scoring at 4:09 of the first, burying his sixth of the season from Brennan Miller. With just 27 seconds left in the frame, Thomas Dickey doubled the lead with his 22nd, scoring unassisted to give Ottawa West a 2–0 cushion.
In the second period, Ottawa West continued to press. Connor Weido made it 3–0 at 5:43 off a setup from Connor Cole and Justin Murdoch, and at 16:31, Dickey struck again on the power play—his second of the night and 23rd of the season—to put the Golden Knights firmly in control.
Dickey completed the hat trick in the third at 16:10, finishing a feed from William McCulligh and Cooper Moore. Dominik Lemieux added one more just 59 seconds later to round out the scoring.
Riff turned aside all 21 shots he faced, earning the shutout. Perth goaltender Jake Dignard battled through a heavy workload, making 46 saves in the loss.
Ottawa West improves to 15-2-2-0, while Perth drops to 5-11-1-1.
Arnprior 6, Athens 1
The Arnprior Packers used a dominant middle frame to power past the Athens Aeros 6–1, strengthening their lead atop the Richardson Division.
After a scoreless first period, the Packers exploded in the second. Just 46 seconds in, Carter Downs opened the scoring on the power play, burying his 12th from Jackson Taylor and Ian Kennedy. At 7:13, Ethan Smith doubled the lead on a setup from Downs and Brendan Lynch, and Smith struck again at 12:44 for his second of the night, finishing a pass from Kennedy and Cameron Sheppard to make it 3–0.
Athens responded 64 seconds later when Nate Thompson scored his first of the season from Alex Tornberg and Parker Kealey, but Arnprior regained full momentum.
In the third, Downs added his second of the game just 51 seconds in, extending the lead to 4–1. Jackson Taylor made it 5–1 on a power play at 11:48, and with 1:38 left, Andrew Carter scored his first of the season—also on the power play—to close out the win.
Tristan Hodgson was solid for Arnprior, stopping 26 of 27 shots. Athens goaltender Marshall Greig made 34 saves.
Arnprior improves to 12-5-0-0, now five points ahead of Renfrew with two games in hand. Athens falls to 5-13-4-0.
Embrun 2, Casselman 1
The Embrun Panthers earned one of their biggest wins of the season, knocking off the Casselman Vikings 2–1 thanks to a stellar performance from Sebastien Bourgeau and a strong second period.
After a scoreless first, Tomy Larivière finally broke the deadlock at 12:56 of the second, finishing a feed from Wyatt Leblanc and Frédéric Solesme. Embrun kept pushing and was rewarded again at 14:20—this time on the power play—when Xavier Boulanger buried his eighth of the season off a setup from Justin Raymond, giving the Panthers a 2–0 lead.
Casselman pushed back hard in the third, and with 2:41 remaining, Alexis Lafrance broke the shutout to cut the deficit to one. But Bourgeau closed the door the rest of the way, making 57 saves in a game-stealing performance.
Myles Boudreau made 21 saves for the Vikings in the loss.
Embrun improves to 4-9-3-4, while Casselman moves to 14-4-0-0.
Ottawa 2, Winchester 1 – at Winchester
In a tight defensive matchup, the Ottawa Jr. Canadians edged the Winchester Hawks 2–1 to stay atop the Martin Division standings.
Mathias Prud’homme-Foster opened the scoring at 14:37 of the first, finishing a setup from Simon Picard and Cayden Shields for his ninth of the season. That goal stood as the lone tally through two periods as both goaltenders shut things down.
Winchester broke through at 8:02 of the third when Kyler Leboutillier tied the game, converting a pass from Owen Pelletier. But Ottawa pushed back late, and with 4:53 remaining, Picard delivered the game-winner—his fifth of the year—after a feed from Prud’homme-Foster.
Darcy Murphy made 29 saves to secure the win, while Jimmy Boyd stopped 33 shots for the Hawks.
Ottawa improves to 18-2-0-0, holding a four-point lead on Ottawa West for first in the Martin Division. Winchester drops to 8-10-0-0.
