Junior Miners, Bulldogs open series tonight
The Kameron Junior Miners may have had a bit of a layoff, but they’re primed and ready to open their Sid Rowe Division championship series tonight at home against the Antigonish Bulldogs.
The Nova Scotia Junior Hockey League teams lock horns at 7:30 p.m. at the Membertou Sport and Wellness Centre.
The Junior Miners haven’t played competitive hockey since they completed a four-game sweep of the Strait Pirates on Feb. 24, a 7-5 win at home. The Bulldogs, however, needed six games to upset the defending league champion Pictou County Scotians in the opening round, and wrapped up their series March 2.
Junior Miners head coach Ryan MacDougall said the team has been on the ice regularly over the past two weeks in an effort to stay sharp for Round 2.
“It’s always nice to get some guys rested, some bruises healed and whatnot,” he said. “On the flip side, practice is only so much. You can’t simulate a game and the atmosphere for a game. It’s important for us to come out the first game not flat. We need to come out with a good start and hopefully, that will carry on for the entire series.”
The first-place Junior Miners (26-6-0-2) won four out of six meetings with the third-place Bulldogs (17-15-0-2) during the regular season.
“They have some skilled forwards, but most of their play goes through their defence,” said MacDougall. “It’s well-known that they have a few guys back there that can move the puck, so we’re going to try and limit their chances through their defence and put pressure on them.”
The winner of Sid Rowe Division final series will face the winner of the Fred Fox Division championship between the East Hants Penguins and the Cole Harbour Colts for the NSJHL championship.
The Junior Miners will host the 2018 Don Johnson Memorial Cup Atlantic junior ‘B’ hockey championship in Membertou, April 24-30.
“You can’t simulate a game and the atmosphere for a game. It’s important for us to come out the first game not flat. We need to come out with a good start and hopefully, that will carry on for the entire series.”
Ryan MacDougall