LumberJacks on a roll, Bruins seek revenge, and Merchants take overtime thriller in weekend PJHL action

DARRYL KNIGHT The Standard

It was an action-packed weekend of Provincial Junior Hockey League play across North Durham and Kawartha Lakes, featuring high-scoring wins, intense rivalries, and overtime drama.

The Uxbridge Bruins bounced back from a rare loss on Friday against Georgina with a dominant 10-2 road victory over the Clarington Eagles on Thursday night in Bowmanville. Darin Bain led the way with a hat trick, while Jack Kemp, Luke Kemp, Colin Tingay, Cameron Meek, Tucker Roberts, Trent Nobes, and Ryan Shier also scored. The Bruins built an early lead and never looked back, with multiple players contributing on the scoresheet.

However, the Bruins’ momentum stalled at home on Friday night, as the Port Perry LumberJacks skated to a 3-0 shutout win in the latest chapter of the Battle of North Durham. Parker Lemay, Liam Aitken, and Dylan Leslie scored for the LumberJacks, with Aitken’s late power-play goal sealing the victory.

The LumberJacks carried that energy into Sunday, overwhelming the Caledon Golden Hawks 10-1 at Scugog Arena. Lemay notched a hat trick, while Darren Baker, Johannes Kalm, Dylan Waduck, Aaron Dawson, Liam Rampersad, Raine Nadeau, Aiden Farr, and Zachary Caron all found the back of the net. Caledon’s lone goal came from Ryder Graves.

Meanwhile, the Little Britain Merchants split their weekend outings. On Thursday, they edged the Schomberg Cougars 4-3 in overtime on the road, with Jason Shears scoring the game-winner. Kyle Allan and Mackenzie Fullerton also tallied for Little Britain. On Saturday night, the Merchants fell 5-2 at home to Georgina. Keegan Paylor and Rheydan McCoy scored for Little Britain, but Georgina surged in the third period with four goals, including an empty-netter by Connor Kingsley.

Looking ahead, the Bruins host Clarington at the Bear Den on Friday, Dec. 6, at 7:45 p.m., while the LumberJacks visit Keswick to face the Ice. The Shopkeepers take on Caledon on Saturday night in Little Britain at 7:30 p.m., and the weekend wraps up with a Sunday matinee Battle of North Durham at Scugog Arena at 2:25 p.m., as the Bruins and LumberJacks clash once more.