The BC Jr. Canucks huddle at their bench during Monday's 4-3 loss to the Toronto Bulldogs.
The first day of the 30th annual Brick Invitational has come to a close, with two teams nursing 2-0 records after the initial day of competition.
In the Styles Conference, the Connecticut Jr. Rangers reign supreme, scoring wins over the Chicago Jr. Blackhawks by a score of 8-6 and the Western Selects 7-3. The high-flying Ranger attack was led for the day by the duo of Caiden Pellegrino and Rocco Pelosi. Both players concluded day one with five total points, tops in the tournament. The Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Bulldogs also earned wins in their respective fist contests, as the Motor City crew rode the stellar performance of Lily MacLeish to a 4-0 win over the Saskatchewan Jr. Pats. MacLeish made 22 saves to earn the shutout in the victory.
The Bulldogs kicked off the day with a come-from-behind win, scoring the game’s last four games in a 4-3 triumph over the BC Jr. Canucks. The Chicago Jr. Blackhawks evened their record at 1-1 with a 5-1 win over the Saskatchewan Jr. Pats in the final game of the day, powered by Colby Coombe’s two goals and the pair of assists handed out by both Jackson Smith and Nolan Shorter.
Team Brick Alberta skated to a pair of wins on opening day, pulling off an overtime thriller in game one against Team Quebec and handling Team Pennsylvania 5-1 in the nightcap. Landon Dupont scored the game-winning goal on a one-time blast from the point, claiming the game for Team Brick Alberta and spoiling a fabulous goaltending performance by Team Quebec’s Max Psarras. Psarras stopped 29 of 32 shots in the tough loss.
Also finishing the win column on Monday were Toronto Pro Hockey and the Boston Junior Bruins, who defeated Team Minnesota and Team Manitoba respectively. Toronto Pro Hockey took a slim 1-0 lead into the third period of the win over Minnesota before exploding for six goals in the final frame for a 7-0 victory. Michael Tang led Pro Hockey in scoring with a hat-trick. Patrick Ula handed out two assists to pace the Junior Bruins, as they hung on to edge Team Manitoba by a score of 3-1.