Western adds to dynasty
Red Wings win franchise’s fourth straight provincial junior B title
ABRAM-VILLAGE – Silas Handrahan made sure his last time wearing an Arsenault’s Fish Mart Western Red Wings uniform turned into a memorable experience.
Handrahan, the MVP of the playoffs, scored what proved to be the championshipclinching goal sending the Red Wings to their fourth straight Island Junior Hockey League title.
“It’s pretty amazing,” said the 21-year-old Tignish native. “Every year, it gets better and better.”
Handrahan’s highlight-reel goal ignited a five-goal Red Wings’ outburst in a span of 3:28 between the end of the second period and start of the third. It turned a 1-1 game into a 6-1 victory over the Sherwood-Parkdale A&S Scrap Metal Metros at the Evangeline Recreation Centre on Wednesday night. The Red Wings won the best-ofseven championship series 4-1.
“I think Austin Callaghan banged it off the boards, and I had to get onside,” said Handrahan, describing his goal that came with exactly two minutes left in the second period. “I went across the blue-line, and I knew I wasn’t
I put on the brakes, took a shot, and it went in.”
Handrahan, who didn’t have a lot of room to work with, made no mistake picking the top corner over the left shoulder of Metros goaltender Matt Jelley.
Western captain Chandler Wood banged home a shorthanded goal with 37 seconds left in the middle frame to send the Red Wings into the second intermission up 3-1.
Wood, Isaac Knox and Chandler Wood added three more goals in the first 1:28 of the third period to put the game out of reach.
“We kept with it and had a lot of offensive chances,” said Red Wings head coach Nathan DesRoches. “After we weathered the storm the first 15 minutes of the game, we did a good job of taking over.
“Silas made a world-class play to score the go-ahead goal, and two of our leaders, Chandler Wood and Isaac Callaghan, just out willed (the opposition battling) for the third goal. That put us in a good position for the third period.”
Red Wings goaltender Stephan Giansante turned in a 28-save performance. In eight post-season games, Giansante allowed only 17 goals.
“Stephan is an excellent goaltender,” said DesRoches. “We don’t win a championship without Stephan.”
NOT INDICATIVE
The game was much closer than the final score indicates. The teams played end-to-end hockey that featured excellent goaltending at both ends and playoff-style physical hockey.
“Things didn’t go our way to end the second and start the third,” said Metros head coach Craig MacLauchlan. “It’s a tough hole to climb out of when you are down three, four or five goals.”
MacLauchlan said he is proud of how his players competed and never gave up. After falling behind in the series 3-0, the Metros won Game 4 on the road 5-2 to stay alive and snap the Red Wings’ 24-game winning streak.
“Those boys are unreal,” MacLauchlan said about his players. “They work really hard, they love working hard and they are a great bunch of kids. They like playing hockey the right way, and I was really proud to coach them.”
RESUMÉ
The Red Wings completed the 2020-21 season with an overall record of 29-3-0. It includes a 21-2-0 regularseason mark and an 8-1-0 showing in the playoffs.
The Red Wings played this season in memory of Alex Hutchinson, who played his rookie season with the team during the 2019-20 campaign. Hutchinson died when a boat he was in capsized near Alberton in September.
“I am really proud of the guys this year and how they responded in all different situations,” said DesRoches. “Whether it be on the ice or off the ice, I can’t say enough about them. They deserve to have this moment, and there is not a prouder coach in the world than me right now.”
Asked if this year’s edition of the Red Wings had a specific trademark, DesRoches, who has been behind Western’s bench for all four IJHL titles, paused for a moment before praising the team’s work ethic.
“They have always been here putting the workboots on,” said DesRoches. “They love the game but, most importantly, their success comes from guys who care about one another. I have seen that at different points this year, on and off the ice. I think that puts our team just a cut above the rest.”