Goalie turns heads in debut with Predators

Goaded into taking a rookie lap at the start of Friday night’s game against the Windsor Aces, Niagara Predators goalie Warren Krogman knew all eyes would be on him for the next 60 minutes.

The 18-year-old from Grimsby didn’t disappoint in his first Greater Metro Junior A Hockey League start, turning away 36 shots to lead the team to a 5-1 victory.

“Cam Savoie was at the door, making sure no one went out,” associate coach Connor Shipton says about the team’s entrance onto the ice surface. “Warren came on and skated around. I can tell you he was a little nervous, but he did what we asked him to do. He kept us in the game, and the boys really wanted to play well for him. ”

Indeed, Krogman’s Predators teammates pulled through, swarming the Windsor goal from the opening faceoff, en route to outshooting the Aces 63-37. Five different Predators found their way onto the score sheet in what was probably the steadiest, most well-rounded performance of the year from the entire team.

“We got scoring and opportunities from all of our lines,” says Shipton, who took over the bench for his third game in a row with head coach Kevin Taylor serving his final game of a suspension meted out the previous Friday. “It was a whole-team offensive effort. Everyone was getting in on the action.”

Nolan Wyers was the first to beat Windsor goalie Ben Hardy, scoring just 1:30 into the game, assisted by Anthony Tropea and Cole Ellis. Cameron Savoie followed up almost 15 minutes later when he took a pass from Tropea and beat Hardy in the top corner. The Preds kept Hardy busy in the first, peppering the 20-year-old New Hampshire native with 24 shots on goal.

Reese Bisci put Niagara up 3-0 early in the second period, but Windsor’s Samuel Senft notched his 27th goal of the season about two minutes later on a breakaway. The Preds squandered a two-man advantage midway through the period, but later managed to get a goal from Cole Ellis when he buried a rebound off of Tyler Gearing’s shot on Hardy, regaining the three-goal cushion. 

The Aces had their best opportunities of the game in the third, but Hardy came up big to hold onto the lead. Leo Savin added a fifth goal for Niagara late in the third period. 

Shipton was pleased with the chance to beat a team for which he played defence during his own GMHL career. He was with the Aces for 17 games in the 2016-2017 season, and still holds some resentment toward the team for the way he was treated.

“My last ever win as a player in junior,” he added, “was knocking Windsor out of the playoffs in my last year. That was nice as well.”

Friday’s win followed a 6-1 loss to the Bulls in Bradford Wednesday night. The Bulls outshot the Predators 48-30, taking a 2-0 lead in the first and beating Niagara goalie Jordan Duquette four more times in the second. Cameron Savoie scored the lone Niagara goal in the loss. 

“Aside from the second period, it was a very good game,” Shipton says. “We got away from playing our 1-2-2 system in the second, and they capitalized. It was a lot closer than the score indicates. The bounces didn’t go our way, we hit a couple posts, we had a lot of good chances, but didn’t capitalize on them.”

Taylor will be back behind the bench this week as the Preds go into their busiest stretch of the year. They have four games coming up, including two rare mid-week morning games as part of the GMHL’s Annual College Showcase, and a home-and-home series against the fourth place Tottenham Thunder this weekend.

The showcase pits South Division teams against North Division teams this Tuesday and Wednesday at the Gale Centre in Niagara Falls. The Predators take on the South Muskoka Shield Tuesday at 10:30 a.m., and the West Nippissing Lynx Wednesday at 11:30 a.m.

“I like that we get to play a couple of Northern teams this year,” Shipton says. “It will be an interesting test, getting to see two teams we normally don’t see. I’ve been watching some videos of both teams. I kind of know what to expect from both of them.”

The Shield recently acquired former Kingston Frontenac Dennis Golovatchev from Tottenham, where he had amassed 45 points in 19 games. In only six games with South Muskoka he has already collected 10 goals and 9 assists. They also boast 6’7” Latvian forward Toms Breikss, who has 35 points in 23 games. 

“I know the North is a little more physical,” Shipton adds. “But I think our squad stacks up pretty good against both teams. They will be good games, if we continue to build off what we’ve done in the past few games.”

Shipton sees the fact that the Showcase is happening in Niagara as an advantage for the Predators. With the mid-week games, many players from other teams may not make the trip due to school or work commitments. And the Preds will be one of the only teams sleeping in their own beds Monday and Tuesday nights. 

“I’m telling the guys to look at it like they’re back in minor hockey, playing a tournament,” he laughs. “Let’s look at these two games as home games, go out in the morning and play with all that energy. Let’s use it to our advantage.”

Admission for all 16 College Showcase games at the Gale Centre is free. The full schedule is up on gmhl.net.

The Tottenham Thunder visit Virgil’s Meridian Credit Union Arena Friday at 7:30 p.m., while the Predators will travel to Tottenham Saturday. 

Bisci earns spot in December power rankings

Niagara’s leading scorer Reese Bisci is the lone Predator to find a spot in the South Division’s Power Rankings for December. With six goals and 11 assists, the Welland native is on pace to match the 32 points he collected with the Predators in 2022-2022. Bisci is in 19th place amongst South Division forwards in this month's rankings. 

Of the 25 players on the list (five goaltenders, 20 skaters) North York leads the way with seven players while Bradford and the Durham Roadrunners boast five each.