Uxbridge Bruins sweep rivalry weekend

DARRYL KNIGHT The Standard

With just two weeks remaining in the 2023-24 regular season, the Uxbridge Bruins maintained their grasp on third place in the Orr Division standings over the weekend with a pair of rivalry game victories.

First, the Bruins pulled off a thrilling 5-4 comeback win over the Little Britain Merchants at the Bear Den on Friday, February 9th. Then, the Bruins hit the road for a Battle of North Durham against Port Perry on the afternoon of Sunday, February 12th, drubbing their archrivals by a 5-1 final score.

On Friday night at the Bear Den, Uxbridge found themselves in a 3-0 hole at the end of the first period. However, the Bruins would bounce back early in the second period, as they replied with three goals of their own to knot the game 3-3. Ty Roberts, Nolan Winter, and Gavin Graham all scored for the home side before a late goal for the visitors gave the Shopkeepers a 4-3 advantage after forty minutes of action.

The third period belonged to the Bruins, with their veteran core taking control of the match. First, Anthony Lamanna scored just over four minutes into the third, with assists credited to Tanner Ryan and Quinn Meek. Then, just over four minutes later, Meek put Uxbridge ahead for good with a powerplay goal, assisted by Lamanna, to seal the dramatic 5-4 comeback victory in front of Christian Lambert, who turned aside 25 shots throughout the evening in goal for the Bruins.

Looking to sweep the weekend, the Bruins hit the road on the afternoon of Sunday, February 12th, for Scugog Arena and a Battle of North Durham match-up against the Port Perry Lumberjacks.

In a reversal of fortunes from Friday night, the Bruins raced to a 2-0 lead in the first period behind goals from Owen Shier and Tanner Ryan. After a scoreless second period, Meek put the game out of reach in the third period with two goals to push the Uxbridge advantage to 4-0. The ‘Jacks would break up the Bruins’ shutout bid late in the third period before Lucas Marshall sealed the win with an empty net goal. Andrew Claughton earned the win in goal for Uxbridge, turning aside 30 of the 31 shots he faced.

Loose Pucks:

- Assistant Coach Trevor Cox celebrated a milestone on Sunday afternoon when he stepped behind the Bruins’ bench for his 200th regular season game.

- This weekend, the Bruins are back in action at the Bear Den on Friday, February 16th, against the Clarington Eagles, with the action getting underway at 7:45 p.m.

- On Sunday, February 18th, Uxbridge is back on the road for a 5 p.m. match-up against the Chiefs in Lakefield.