- The Stouffville Spirit secured a 3-2 victory in an exciting away game against the nationally ranked Milton Menace last night, bouncing back from two recent losses and bringing their season record to 12-8-3.
- Forward Peter Kioussis, leading the team with 19 goals this season, netted the first two goals for the Spirit. Forward Julian Demiglio scored the game-winning goal late in the third period.
- “It was a hard-fought, playoff-like game,” according to Kioussis. “It took everyone’s best effort to bring home a big win in a tough building and against a good team.”
- Goaltender Stephen Toltl had 39 saves, boosting his personal record to 6-0 in his first Junior A season.
- “I thought the boys never backed down tonight. We didn’t worry about where they were ranked, we showed up and we played to win,” Toltl said after the game. “We had a great week of practice leading up to this game, and it will be a great game for us to build off of going forward.”
- The Spirit’s penalty kill was impressively strong, staving off all 10 Menace power plays through three periods.
- The Menace, who sit at #8 in the Canadian Junior Hockey League rankings and out-shot the Spirit 41-37, were thwarted in their pursuit of a seventh consecutive win.
- Stouffville is currently seated in the 8th and final Eastern Conference playoff slot. The regular season ends in early March.
- The Spirit’s next game is a home match against Pickering on November 30, with a 7:30 p.m. puck drop at the Stouffville Arena.
Photo taken by Amy Deroche, courtesy of OJHL Images
