Ottawa, ON – Friday night in the EOJHL featured tight finishes, special-teams swings, and strong goaltending across all four matchups. Embrun edged Perth with a late third-period winner, Renfrew shut out Athens at home, Ottawa West climbed into a share of first place after a shootout victory in Glengarry, and Casselman outlasted Winchester in a high-event road win.
Embrun 3 Perth 2
Embrun struck twice on the power play early, then sealed the win with a third-period marker to defeat Perth 3–2 on the road. Justin Raymond opened the scoring with his first of the season in the final minute of the first, and just 56 seconds into the second, Rémi Gendron doubled the Panthers’ lead. The Blue Wings responded with two quick goals—Kden Womack’s first of the season followed by a power-play goal from Colby Hunter—to tie the game 2–2. Embrun broke the deadlock in the third when Yanick Blanchard buried his 14th of the year. Embrun improves to 6-9-3-4, while Perth falls to 5-13-1-1.
Renfrew 4 Athens 0
Renfrew posted a complete defensive effort, shutting out the Athens Aeros 4–0 at home. After a scoreless first period, Caleb Scott broke the ice midway through the second, followed shortly by Blake Egan’s first of the season to make it 2–0. Daxton Markwick added his 10th just seconds before the intermission, and Connor Hanniman sealed the game with a late empty-netter. Dylan Elliott was flawless in goal, stopping all 30 shots he faced for the shutout. Renfrew climbs to 10-11-1-0 while Athens drops to 6-14-4-0.
Ottawa West 3 Glengarry 2 (SO)
Ottawa West picked up a crucial road win, defeating Glengarry 3–2 in a shootout to move into a tie for first overall. Brady Bell opened the scoring for the Brigade, but Thomas Dickey responded less than a minute later with his 27th of the season. After Glengarry regained the lead early in the third, Dickey struck again—his 28th—to knot the game 2–2. Overtime solved nothing, and in the shootout, Connor Cole delivered the lone goal through five rounds, securing the extra point. Carter Overhoff made 27 saves for the win, while Maxime Mayer turned aside 37 of 39 for Glengarry in a strong effort. Ottawa West improves to 18-2-2-0; Glengarry moves to 11-8-2-1.
Casselman 5 Winchester 4
Casselman continued its strong run with a 5–4 victory in Winchester, a game that featured a successful penalty shot and plenty of momentum swings. Winchester struck first through Isaac Bradley, but Jeremy Bessette quickly tied it before the teams traded goals again early in the second. Casselman then surged ahead with back-to-back goals, including a penalty-shot conversion by affiliate player Isaak Giguere at 16:52. Alexis Lafrance extended the lead in the third, and though the Hawks battled back with goals from Daniel McDowell and Kayden Lopez, the Vikings held firm down the stretch. Émile Pagé made 23 saves for the win, while Jimmy Boyd stopped 41 shots for Winchester. Casselman rises to 16-4-0-0; Winchester falls to 9-11-0-0.
