Royals forward Alex Cooper is thwarted by Jr. A Trappers goalie Laszlo Tamasik. Photo by Chris Dawson.
The North Bay Trappers evened their record on the young NOJHL season as they hung on for a 5-3 win over the Temiscaming Royals in a physical, penalty-filled affair Friday night at Memorial Gardens.
Sacha Guimond starred in a three-goal second period for the Trappers notching a goal and two assists in the team's home opener.
There was no love lost between the cross-border rivals, with referee Graham Love doling out 32 infractions totalling 118 penalty in a game that saw emotions heat up both on the ice and on both benches.
All three Royals goals came on the power play including two in the third period by Andre Leclair.
The win came with a price for the Trappers as starting goalie Micheal Mitchell left the game just 6:46 in with an apparent head injury.
His head and neck appeared to be pinned against the left post in a goalmouth collision involving the Royals' Brandon Windsor and a Trappers defenceman and laid on the ice for several minutes before leaving the ice under his own power. He was replaced by Laszlo Tamasik, who made a stellar Gardens debut in relief.
Trappers head coach Ian Swalucynski said Mitchell went into convulsions at one point and was being taken to hospital after the game for further examination.
Windsor made his presence felt often in front of the North Bay goal, and played a role in the game's opening goal.
Despite a physical opening 10 minutes which saw the Trappers get the first seven shots, the Royals scored first at 15:52 when Cole Workman's shot from the right point cleanly beat a screened Laszlo Tamasik.
However, the Trappers carried the play for much of the middle frame when Guimond stepped up.
He tied the contest just 69 seconds into the second, skating clear across the slot from right to left, outwaiting goalie Matt Zawadski before firing home a wrister. Guimond then started a highlight reel sequence, dropping a pass to Johnathan Aubertin, who fed JP Kascsak for an easy tap in at the right side of the Royals goal at 8:49.
Guimond also assisted Aubertin's shorthanded goal four minutes later. Aubertin exploded up the left wing, beating two defenders then somehow pushing the puck through a fallen Zawadski from a prone position.
"I was ready to play today, it's our home opener," Guimond said, adding Aubertin helped start the play that gave the Trappers a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
"I heard Aubertin say 'Hey Bud, hey Bud' and it`s probably like the only guy who calls me Bud, so I said OK I'll drop it," Guimond said.
"When I see that pass to Kascsak, I said oh my God. It was a pretty nice goal."
The Trappers opened a 4-1 lead at 4:05 of the third when Spencer Doduk, fresh out of the penalty box, finished off a 2-on-1 rush.
Leclair's two goals made it close but Scott Pawson sealed the win with just over two minutes left.
After the game, Swalucynski took great exception with a perceived lack of discipline shown by Royals players and coaches alike.
"When it came down to who wanted to be a man, they didn't want to be men. They were cheap shottin' our guys all over the ice, their coaches were beratin' our guys," Swalucyski said, taking issue specifically with several stickwork incidents against his players.
"We had to fight through all the 'B.S.' that was goin' on, we had to fight through all the stuff that was gettin' thrown at us, I felt our guys responded well," he said.
"We got down, they were runnin' us, we got intimidated, and then we just played our game and took over."
Royals assistant coach Chris Cloutier, however, shrugged off the criticism.
"You know it's going to be a rivalry this year with them," Cloutier said. "It's going to be hot, heated for sure."
Cloutier, who received a game misconduct with six minutes left in the game after waving a towel on a stick, wasn't as forgiving when it came to how the game was officiated.
"We've just gotta bear down...tonight we were playin' against the refs," Cloutier said.
"If you`re gonna call a game, call it the whole game."
Both Tamasik and Zawadski were sharp, each making several key saves as the Trappers outshot Temiscaming 34-30. Zawadski earned the game's second star, with Guimond grabbing first star honours and Aubertin the third star.
The Royals record falls to 1-1-and-1. The Trappers are 2-and-2 and host Abitibi Tuesday.
GAME NOTES: The Trappers revealed the new name of their mascot before last night's game -- Hudson. Danny Guimond, who won the team's "Name the Mascot" contest, had the honour of dropping the puck for the ceremonial opening faceoff...Announced attendance was 798...The Trappers went 0-for-7 on the power play, the Royals 3-for-8...Temiscaming had just 15 players dressed for the game, including only four defenceman.
