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Sports Oakville Beaver 25 · Wednesday, December 5, 2012 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com SPORTS EDITOR:JONKUIPERIJ Phone 905-632-0588 (ext. 294) email sports@oakvillebeaver.com Hornets extend unbeaten run to six games The Oakville intermediate AA Hornets are entering uncharted territory. Oakville posted a tie and a win last weekend in Provincial Women's Hockey League play, extending its undefeated streak to six games. The previous longest unbeaten run for the Hornets (formerly Oakville Ice) since the start of the 2009 campaign had been four games, and they did not go more than two games without a loss all of last season. "It's nice to see," said Hornets forward Amanda Pereira. "I've played for the Oakville Hornets (rep association) my whole life, I've never switched organizations. To be part of a team getting stronger, I'm proud to see the organization turning around." Making the Hornets' current streak all the more impressive is the fact it has come without several regulars in the lineup. Andrea Benac, Brooke Caligiuri, Savannah Newton and Heather Hood are among the players who have missed recent time due to injury, but Hornets coach Bradi Cochrane has plugged holes with callups like Connor Garagan and Jessica See Hornets, page 27 Here, you take it GRAHAM PAINE / OAKVILLE BEAVER / @HALTON_PHOTOG HAND OFF: Oakville Venom player Fletcher Lorenzo (with ball) passes off to teammate Mickey Griffiths during Sunday's atom boys' basketball contest in Milton. Oakville fell 52-36 to the Stags in its opening game of the season. Blades don't like ice that's smaller, make roster bigger By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR Bigger really is better, at least as far as the Oakville Blades are concerned. Playing in the smaller confines of St. Michael's College School Arena Sunday afternoon, the Blades fell 3-1 to the St. Michael's Buzzers in a showdown of two of the top teams in the Ontario Junior Hockey League's South Division. Oakville was outshot 25-15 in the opening period, allowed the first three goals of the game and didn't get on the scoreboard until Eric Chore tallied midway through the third. Blades general manager Duncan Harvey felt the smaller ice surface (St. Michael's College School Arena's rink is 180 feet long and 80 feet wide, while the Blades' Olympic-sized home rink at Sixteen Mile Sports Complex measures 200 feet by 100 feet) was a big factor in the outcome. "If we could have the first period and most of the second back, we would," Harvey said. "As the game went on, our guys got more comfortable... All our guys are looking forward to getting (the Buzzers) on our big ice, where a lot of things they did really well (Sunday) wouldn't really work." The disparity in ice surfaces might make it more critical that the Blades finish the regular season ahead of St. Michael's so that they can enjoy home-ice advantage if the teams meet in the playoffs. Oakville (17-7-3) currently trails the Buzzers (20-8-1) by four points for first place in the South Division, with the Toronto Lakeshore Patriots (19-91) in second place, two points ahead of the Blades. But, just in case Oakville doesn't finish ahead of the Buzzers, Harvey has a contingency plan. "I think the team's capable of playing (well) at St. Mike's," Harvey said. "It's one of the downsides of practising and playing on an Olympic pad. Next time, before we play St. Mike's, we'll have to get some ice time at (smaller ice surfaces) Kinoak Arena or Oakville Arena." Team adds forward, backup goalie The Blades made a pair of roster moves last week, bolstering their forward ranks with the addition of Jimmy Cusan and solidifying their goaltending by acquiring Spencer Bacon. Cusan, an Oakville resident, had nine goals and eight assists in 25 games this season with the Mississauga Chargers. Bacon, a native of Victoria, was 5-10-2 with a 4.01 goals-against average and an .889 save percentage for the Pickering Panthers. Both transactions involved the Blades sending cash, but no players, the other way. Harvey said the addition of Cusan adds depth up front, while Bacon should be a capable backup to No. 1 goaltender Evan Buitenhuis. "With Evan, we think we have the best goalie in the league. We wanted to ensure that, with so many games scheduled after Christmas (including several instances where the team will play three games in three days), we had two solid goalies in net," Harvey said. "Jimmy is a younger guy (born in 1994), is a proven player in the league and, on top of everything else, he's an Oakville kid. Early on, the coaches will give him a shot to do pretty much anything. He's put up numbers in this league that would be good on a first or second line." Both players made their Blades debut Friday at Sixteen Mile, helping Oakville to a 4-2 win over the North York Rangers. Bacon made 34 saves to record the victory in goal, and Chore carried the offence with two goals and two assists. Jonah Renouf had the Blades' other two markers and added a helper, with Stefan Leblanc and Nathan Renouf contributing two assists apiece. Cusan will get a chance to take on his former team in the Blades' next contest. Oakville will be home to the Chargers this Friday (Dec. 7) for a 7:30 p.m. start at Sixteen Mile, then visit the Hamilton Red Wings the following evening. -- Jon Kuiperij can be followed on Twitter @Beaversports