The Junior C Otters, your community-based team, hosted their annual Code Blue event in support of the Huntsville Hospital on Friday, November 18. The Otters players served a spaghetti dinner at the Active Living Centre followed by an entertaining game against the Penetang Kings at the Canada Summit Centre.
(From left) Michael Kruger, Jesse Houlton, Cody Jones, Kyle Burns, Jared Stevens, Jack Armstrong and Mitchell Jones serve up delicious spaghetti for a cause (Photo: Huntsville Jr C Otters)
All of the night’s proceeds from the dinner and the game will support the Huntsville Hospital Foundation and their vision to create a hospital stay more comfortable: birthing beds, new patient beds, a bariatric operating table, new stretchers for the emergency department and even new visitor chairs are all on the list.
The game had the stands filled with cheering spectators for the Otters, who sported the Huntsville Hospital Code Blue jersey sponsored by Fountain Tire.
As the puck dropped, the Otters displayed exceptional passes across the centre line to the forwards who attempted to shoot but the Kings answered with a solid defense. The fans were cheering as the puck came shooting down to the Otters goalie #54 Connor Christanson as he made a great save when Otters #19 Nathan Delarosbil had an altercation with the Kings #24 which resulted in both receiving a penalty just five minutes in.
As both penalties ended, Otters #24 Jack Armstrong made his way past the defense and shot and scored unassisted adding the first goal of the evening for the Otters at 12:49. Shortly after the first goal, the Kings #24 earned himself another penalty for interference with the goalie followed by another Kings #17 interference penalty at 9:02. With three minutes remaining, the Kings score to get on the scoreboard but the Otters shot back a minute later with a breakaway from centre ice as #19 Nathan Delarosbil led the puck into their end and scored unassisted.
Otters #19 Nathan Delarosbil on the breakaway to an unassisted goal
The gloves came flying off for this fight
The last minute of play for the first period was the longest last minute of play as a fight broke loose with 33 seconds left between Kings #10 and Otters #7. Gloves came off, helmets and shirts were next as the refs finally stepped in and excused each player from the ice for game misconduct. With only 15 seconds left the Otters managed to receive two more penalties ending the period with twelve shots on net for the Penetangs and 10 shots on net for the Otters.
Entering the second period, the score remained 2-1 with two Otters players in the penalty box. This allowed the Kings to use full pressure to keep the puck in the Otters end for almost two minutes but nothing got by their impressive defense and their remarkable goalie. The Otters took ownership of the puck and attempted a goal but had words with the Kings goalie instead. With the Kings goalie on high alert, the Otters were able to set a play in motion for #9 Josh Zantingh to score 3-1, with an assist by #28 Curtis Ballantyne at 17:05. The next seven minutes saw good, clean hockey battling to keep the puck in play. At 10:02, a goal was scored by #24 Jack Armstrong assisted by #9 Josh Zantingh adding to the Otters lead 4-1 which forced the Penetang Kings to call a timeout to bring in their other goalie.
The final six minutes of the second period brought on more penalties for the Kings and a few scuffles between the players in the goalie’s crease. At 3.6 seconds, the Kings pulled their goalie in hopes to at least double their score before the third period. The total shots on net by the end of the second period was now tied at 23 shots for both the Otters and the Kings.
Otters #9 Josh Zantingh
Entering the final period, the Otters were leading by three and the fans were enjoying seeing their community team ahead. The fans cheering kept the momentum going for the Otters as they scored again 5-1, by #9 Josh Zantingh, assisted by #28 Curtis Ballantyne.
The Kings were not handing over the win to the Otters as they fought back to take charge of the puck and get past the Otters defense and goalie adding three goals in a row within two minutes to the score board bring the score to 5-4. Fans were on the edge of their seats seeing a lapse in the Otters play but encouraged them knowing they’d pull back with the coach calling a time out to regroup and make a new plan of action.
Halfway through the third, the Kings received a penalty giving the Otters the power play to use to their advantage but could not get the puck to the net. At 2:55, another fight broke out in the corner and two players exited the game. Twenty seconds later, each team earned a penalty for slashing and cross checking, leaving three on three. Before the last minute of play, the Kings pulled their goalie in hopes to tie up the game but #9 Josh Zantingh, stole the puck, took a corner shot and landed the puck into the open net, taking the lead by two.
The Otters scored an open-net goal in the third which sealed the win
The Kings could not pull out another goal, leaving the Otters with a 6-4 win. Three stars were shouted out to The Penetang Kings player #17, two stars were shouted out to the Otters player #9 Josh Zantingh and one star shout out to #24 Jack Armstrong. Thanks for the intense game play, Otters!
About Cheyenne Wood
I am a kind-hearted, hard-working teacher, mother and a wife. I love to learn and consider myself a life-long learner. I enjoy being a coach, a tutor, and a supporter in my community. My passion is photography. Capturing the greatest moment, greatest shot is thrilling to me and brings me joy!
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