Kitchener Jr. Rangers Minor Midgets Show Well in Brantford Showcase Tournament
The
Kitchener Jr. Rangers played in the Brantford Minor Midget Showcase tournament
as defending champs and didn’t disappoint.
The Jr. Rangers played 6 games in less than 48 hours.
The round robin saw the Jr. Rangers finish with a 3-1 record and a 3 way tie in their division. Despite beating the other two teams they were tied with the Rangers finished 3rd in goals for and against. The difference being an empty net goal given up with 0.1 seconds left in their only loss of the round robin.
Round Robin Games:
Kitchener v Upper Canada Cyclones (4-2 KJR)
Kitchener v Ottawa Jr. Senators (5-3 Ottawa)
Kitchener v North Central Predators (3-1 KJR)
Kitchener v Grey Bruce Highlanders (3-2 KJR)
The tie meant the Rangers had to wait around for the final game of the tournament to confirm their place as a wildcard team in the Quarter Finals. The Rangers met CIHA Voyageurs who finished 2nd overall in the tournament round robin. The Quarter Finals was the 3rd game of the day for both teams and was a back and forth battle that was finally decided with 17 seconds remaining of the 2nd overtime format with Kitchener winning 7-6.
This result meant a showdown with the Ottawa Valley Titans in the Semi-Finals. Ottawa finished the round robin portion ranked #1. These two teams had met earlier this year in the Hamilton tournament with Ottawa winning 3-1. Despite playing with a very short bench the Jr. Rangers gave Ottawa everything they could handle and frustrated them repeatedly with their forecheck. Ottawa capitalized on their chances and advanced to the finals with a 2-0 victory over the Jr. Rangers.
The Jr. Rangers are back in action when they host the London Jr. Knights Wednesday November 19. Puck drop is 8:00 pm at Activa.