Round robin action at the 2024 Allan Cup Challenge came to a close on Wednesday with all four teams in action. The two games played a huge role in the final standings and which team got the extra day off, advancing to Saturday’s championship game.

The opening game of the day saw the Innisfail Eagles and Southern Shore Breakers duel to stay alive in the tournament.

The teams got off to a tentative start, but each squad got a couple of quality chances to open the scoring, but neither were able to find the back of the net thanks to some stellar goaltending.

It would be the Breakers who opened the scoring just over four and a half minutes into the middle frame when Kevin Reid skated into the attacking zone and took a shot from the top of the circle which was tipped by an Eagle player and fooled goaltender Brodan Salmond. It would be Reid’s second goal of the tournament. Southern Shore looked to have extended their lead eight minutes late, on a two-on-one, but Salmond stacked the pads to deny the goal and keep it a one-goal game.

Innisfail had their chances to even the score in the third, including three or four opportunities with the man advantage as well as moments after the penalty had expired, missing an open net. Then, with 2:30 left on the clock, the Eagles pulled Salmond for the extra attacker and put pressure on the Breakers. However, the team from the East Coast would seal the victory on Andrew Paul’s second goal of the Allan Cup Challenge.

With the win, Southern Shore earned a spot in the playoffs but needed to wait for the outcome of the Dundas – Stoney Creek game to see when they played next.

Whiffen would pick up the shutout victory, making 41 saves in the contest while Salmond stopped 29 of 30 shots he faced, allowing just one goal.

Players of the Game
Innisfail Eagles – Ty Clay
Southern Shore Breakers – AJ Whiffen (41 save shutout)

The evening contest saw familiar foes take to the ice at the J.L. Grightmire Arena with Allan Cup Hockey teams Stoney Creek Tigers and Dundas Real McCoys battling it out for position in the standings.

It would be the Tigers notching the first and only goal of the opening period when Cordell James jumped on a puck that Ryan Demelo muffed covering up and stuffed it in the net at 10:23.

Dundas evened the score at one 3:19 into the second when Brad Bonello collected the rebound off Darren Haydar’s shot and put it past the netminder. Minutes later, Slater Doggett took a backhanded swipe at a loose puck that found its way in for a 2-1 lead for the host team. Stoney Creek tied the game at two with 5:36 remaining in the middle period when Dan Poliziani grabbed a rebound, spun and put it between the pads.

Both teams had chances to take the lead before the buzzer sounded to end the second. Two of the Tigers’ chances came while shorthanded, but Kyler Nixon broke up one attempt on the backcheck and Demelo made the save. For the McCoys, Ryan Horvat picked up the loose puck went the other way but was stoned by Tymen Edelkoort who appeared down and out on the play.

With no scoring in the third, the teams headed to a five-minute sudden victory overtime period. In that period, it took 2:41 for the McCoys’ to get the winner when Shane Conacher tipped in Horvat’s pass to conclude the round robin.

In the win, Demelo stopped 36 of 38 shots and finishes the round robin with the second-best goals against average at 1.98. For the Tigers, Edelkoort took the loss in his first start of the tournament, making 42 saves on the night.

With the victory, the Dundas Real McCoys will get the bye and advance to Saturday afternoon’s championship game. They will await the winner of Friday night’s semi-final winner which will be between the Stoney Creek Tigers, who finished third, and the second place Southern Shore Breakers. Game time on Friday is at 7:30pm and will be televised locally on Cable 14 Hamilton as well as online at Cable14Now.com.

Players of the Game
Stoney Creek Tigers – Tyler Edelkoort (42 saves)
Dundas Real McCoys – Shane Conacher (1G, 1A, OTGWG)

Single game tickets are available at the J.L. Grightmire Arena doors on game days approximately 90 minutes before game time.

For the 2024 edition of the Allan Cup Challenge, fans can get the schedule, scores, standings and stats on GameSheet by clicking here and searching for “Allan Cup Challenge” or use the QR code located on the home page of the Allan Cup Hockey website.

Following the round robin, the first-place team will receive a bye to Saturday’s championship game at 3pm on CHCH TV.  The first-place team will take on the winner Friday night’s semi-final game between the teams that finish the round robin in second and third place. The semi-final game will be played at 7:30pm. The semi-final will be shown live in the Hamilton area on Cable 14. Both the semi-final and championship games will be streamed live online at https://cable14now.com/live-streams/.

Upcoming Games
Friday April 26
Semi Final – Stoney Creek Tigers vs Southern Shore Breakers - 7:30pm

Saturday April 27
Championship – SF Winner vs Dundas Real McCoys – 3:00pm