Amherst, Nova Scotia – Noah Rowe’s goal with exactly 0.0 seconds left on the clock gave the Ottawa Jr. Senators a 4-3 win over the Amherst Ramblers on Saturday night.
Ottawa is now heading to the Fred Page Cup Final for the second straight season. They will take on the first place Princeville Titan on Sunday May 5th at Amherst Stadium.
There were 23-seconds left with the faceoff in the Amherst zone. Darcy Walsh held the puck in at the boards, found Boulerice behind the net who centered it in front, and on a bouncing puck, Noah Rowe fired the puck through the legs of Ramblers goaltender Matt Williams at the buzzer.
“I didn’t see the goal because I was heading to the dressing room,” said Ottawa Jr. Senators Head Coach Martin Dagenais. “My Asst. Coach Ryan Garlock turned around and looked at me and said it’s a goal. I was surprised but I liked our play in the last two minutes. After they made it 3-3, instead of sitting back, we pressured them.”
Ottawa had a 3-1 lead heading into the third period. Cole Waugh scored off a faceoff tie up along the right circle, tying the game 3-3 with around three minutes left in the game.
“The back-to-back penalties gave them momentum even though they didn’t score. Their top line on the other side (Amherst) has some good hockey players. We might be getting tired or it might be because we have some key guys out – it’s possible but at this point in the year, you have to find a way to win.”
Dagenais says the the overall performance had a lot of ups and downs, “It’s tough to come here and play in front of their fans, but I thought we made some dumb mistakes. We’re happy to escape with the win.”
The Jr. Senators went 1-3 on the power-play and outshot Amherst 44-34 in the win. Chris Piche, Darcy Walsh and Thomas Freel all scored for Ottawa and Bailey Brant recorded two assists. Freel netted his first career Jr. A goal, deflecting Brant’s point shot on the power-play.
“Good for him (Freel) because he works hit butt off. He’s a good kid, goes to the dirty areas and he was a good example for some of our vets who were just okay today,” said Dagenais on Freel’s first career Jr. A goal.
The Ottawa Head Coach also noted that the Jr. Sens must play almost perfect, with urgency and tougher against the Princeville Titans in the Fred Page Cup Final on Sunday.
You can follow all the action on mixlr.com/ojsradio and CKDJ 107.9 – FM starting at 3:00 p.m., Eastern Time.
