Cochrane piles up the miles
An extended road trip that included five games in a span of six days produced five tough points for the Cochrane Crunch of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
The rugged row of road games began on Tuesday when the Crunch played the first of two matches at the NOJHL’s showcase event that was held in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
Cochrane upended the Elliot Lake Wildcats 3-2 before losing 4-1 to the Soo Thunderbirds in its Tuesday-Wednesday games at the showcase.
From there, the Crunch played the Thunderbirds again on Friday in Soo, Ontario and dropped a narrow 4-3 decision before heading back to the Michigan Soo on Saturday and earning a point from a 4-3 shootout loss to the Eagles.
Cochrane then wound up the major road test on Sunday in Elliot Lake and skated to a 4-2 win over the Wildcats to end the trip with a record of 2-2-1.
In between the games, Cochrane coach-general manager Ryan Leonard arranged a one-hour yoga session for his players at the Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario studio of instructor Cara Russon.
For the season, the Crunch now has a record of 7-8-2 through 17 games.
PHOTO: Action from Sunday’s game between the visiting Cochrane Crunch and the Elliot Lake Wildcats. (Northern Exposure Photography.)
Randy why are the thunderbirds playing with only 14 skaters
Suspensions.