Mariners widen gap as division leaders
Team had two wins at home last weekend
The Yarmouth Mariners widened the gap as the leaders in their Eastlink South Division with two wins over the Amherst Ramblers at home last weekend.
The Mariners now sit at 61 points in their division, with the South Shore Lumberjacks in second place with 56 points.
The Mariners only sit two points behind the league-leading Edmundston Blizzard who have 63 points atop the Eastlink North Division. The two division leaders meet on the ice Sunday in Edmundston.
Last week the Mariners had two 2-1 wins over the Ramblers at home.
The first Feb. 9 win came in overtime in a game that saw the Ramblers score in the first period and the Mariners score in the second, with a shorthanded goal by Luc Poirier, as- sisted by Matthew Barron.
Patrick Daley, assisted by Poirer, had the OT winner at 3:10 in the extra frame.
The Mariners outshot the Ramblers 35-28 in the game.
On Feb. 10 the Mariners put up a goal in each of the first and second periods, off the sticks of Daley (Adam Pilotte, Poirier) and Aaron Maillet (PP, Barron, Matt Smith). The Ramblers’ Brady Griffin-Hefford scored at 16:03 in the third period. Amherst pulled its goalie for the final minute, but neither team scored, giving the Mariners another 2-1 victory. Shots on goal were 35-28 in favour of the Mariners.
This weekend the Mariners are on the road playing three New Brunswick teams. On Friday the Mariners play the Campbellton Tigers, on Saturday they meet the Miramichi Timberwolves and on Sunday they face the Edmundston Blizzard.
Their next home game is Saturday, Feb. 24 when they host Campbellton. Matthew Barron of Yarmouth keeps his eyes on the ice waiting for the puck to drop in the face off circle during a game last weekend against the Amherst Ramblers.