The Season So Far

We're nine games in to the 2013-2014 season and the team has a 1-4-4 record. Despite the lack of wins, the team has been slowly pulling together. Several of the losses and many of the ties could easily have been wins.

The team opened the season with a win against a traditionally tough opponent - Thornton 2. NobleKing matched them goal for goal in a 'last-goal-wins' affair. The final score was 7-6 thanks to a late NobleKing goal. Evan White had a hat trick, and the team showed that they could put the puck in the net.

NobleKing's second game was on the road as well. The team visited the small Beeton arena, and had a short bench for this game. Although we lost 3-0 in a penalty filled game, as one Coach said, it was 'an honourable loss'.

Game three was in Innisfil again with a short bench. This was another festive meeting filled with penalties.Similar to the Thornton game, the teams exchanged goals and the lead several times. A Knight power play goal with only fourteen seconds left tied the score at 5-5, and this was how the game would end. Sean Marchand had four goals.

Game four saw NobleKing facing East Gwillimbury #1 in their fourth road game. NobleKing was a bit flat in this outing, and they snuck only a single goal past the EG goaltender. NobleKing lost 6-1.

NobleKing met the first place team in game five in their home opener. The Knights lost 6-2 against a beatable team. However, Lefroy played a disciplined game, and both their passing and positioning were strong.

Game six looked like trouble, as the Knights got into penalty trouble early and often. However, Mitch Harknett put together a natural hat trick in the third period to give the team a 4-4 tie.

In their seventh game of the season, NobleKing and TNT #1 battled hard for a win. This game was again dominated by Knight penalties, but a short-handed goal seemed like it would hold up for a win. But TNT scored late in the third to grab a tie.

Bradford #3 was next up, and the Knights put up a solid effort against this beatable team. But again, a late goal by Bradford tied the game, and the team's second win was yet to be found.

In game nine, NobleKing came up against the first place team. The Knights had a very short bench, with only a single spare. But they weren't going to give this one away. Lefroy scored first, but NobleKing replied quickly. The Knight forecheck was working, and with just over six minutes left, NobleKing was leading 4-3. However, the tank was almost empty, and Lefroy took advantage of a few 'tired' mistakes to win the game 5-4. By any measure, NobleKing had played well, and had dug deep to challenge Lefroy. Notably the Knights were almost penalty-free.

Any one of these last four games could have been a win.

We have pictures from a number of these games:

• Game 1 - Thornton #2 - 6-5 Win: Pictures
• Game 2 - Beeton #1 - 3-0 Loss
• Game 3 - Innisfil #1 - 5-5 Tie
• Game 4 - EG #1 - 4-1 Loss Pictures
• Game 5 - Lefroy #1 - 6-2 Loss: Pictures
• Game 6 - Bradford #1 - 4-4 Tie
• Game 7 - TNT #1 - 1-1 Tie : Pictures
• Game 8 - Bradford #3 - 2-2 Tie: Pictures
• Game 9 - Lefroy #1 - 5-4 Loss: Pictures

There is also video from two of the games, but it is not yet ready for viewing. Watch for it soon!