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18 Sports Oakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2009 Showdown with Kingston, alumni game on tap for Blades The Oakville Blades suffered a painful loss Tuesday in Buffalo. Fortunately, there's plenty of excitement coming up to take the defeat off their minds. Coming off a last-minute 4-3 loss to the Jr. Sabres, the Blades visit Brampton tonight (Thursday) for a clash with the Capitals before returning home for two important events. Tomorrow (Friday), Oakville will host the Ontario Junior A Hockey League-leading Kingston Voyageurs in a rematch of last year's league final. The following evening, the Blades will hold their annual alumni game in which they'll face a team of former Blades and ex-National Hockey League players. The game against Kingston is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start, while the alumni game will start at 7 p.m. Both events will take place at Joshua's Creek Arenas. Last year's alumni game attracted more than 500 spectators, and Blades general manager Carlo Coccimiglio is optimistic of a similar turnout for this year's event as the team raises money for the Oakville community. Wilf Paiement, Pat Hickey (whose son, Steven, plays for the Blades), Bill Derlago, Gary Leeman, Rick Vaive, Dan Daoust, Darryl Shannon, Craig Muni and Lou Franceschetti headline the list of former NHLers expected to participate, while the Blades' alumni group includes former captain and current National Lacrosse League player Paul Dawson. The night will also feature a silent auction, where tickets for next Thursday's NFL contest between the Buffalo Bills and New SCOTT STEWART / SPECIAL TO THE OAKVILLE BEAVER ALUMNI GAME: Former Toronto Maple Leafs stars Rick Vaive and Bill Derlago (third and fourth from left, respectively) are two of the ex-NHLers that will participate in Saturday's Oakville Blades alumni game. Also pictured from left to right are current Blades Ryan Murphy, Mike Ingoldsby, general manager Carlo Coccimiglio, Steven Guzzo and Thomas Evans, and former Blades Dan Calitri and Joey Piccone. York Jets will be up for grabs. Kingston, which defeated Oakville 4-2 in the league championship series last spring, is 25-1 so far this season. The Blades gave the Voyageurs one of their toughest tests of the year in the teams' season opener, dropping a 1-0 decision in Oakville. Despite Tuesday's loss in Buffalo, when the Jr. Sabres netted the winner with 10 seconds left in regulation, Oakville has overcome a recent rash of injuries to win nine of its past 11 games. The Blades won a pair of games last weekend, rallying from a twogoal deficit to double the Brampton Capitals 8-4 Friday at home and then earning a 9-3 victory in Bramalea the following night. Josh Ranalli recorded a hat trick in Friday's game and Dustin Alcock added a pair of goals. Mark McGowan, Kyle Lysaght and Kyle Badham rounded out the Blades' scoring. Ryan Murphy led the offence Saturday, scoring once and adding three assists. Zack Ray and Lysaght had two goals each, with Steven Guzzo, Matt Ribeiro, Mark McGowan and Ranalli adding singles. Mike Morissette earned the victory in goal in both contests. Ranalli, McGowan and Ray scored against Buffalo. Short turnaround hurts Jr. Titans By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR KEEPING SENIORS INFORMED Our LivingW e l l Events are Open to the Public Time can be more than money, especially when it comes to football. Time off between games provides an opportunity for players to recover from bumps and bruises from their previous contest and for coaches to formulate a game plan for their next opponent. The Holy Trinity Titans junior football team was afforded neither luxury this past week. The Titans were eliminated from the Metro Bowl provincial playdowns Tuesday with a 3521 loss to the St. Michael's Kerry Blues at Trinity. The game took place four days after the Titans routed the Corpus Christ Longhorns in the Halton Division 1 final. And, while Titans head coach Anand Pillai didn't want to make it an excuse, he acknowledged the short turnaround was a factor. "(A couple more days) would have given us coaches a chance to get more prep," he said. "All the prep we did was for Corpus Christi. (Monday) was a walk-through. We didn't even know (St. Michael's) formations." St. Michael's coach Frank Ribarich, the convener of the Metro Bowl tournament, agreed the Titans were at a disadvantage. "I have a lot of respect for them. They played a championship game Friday, and to suddenly come back the following Tuesday and be ready to go right away, it takes a lot," said Ribarich, whose team's previous game was nearly two weeks earlier. The Titans hung with St. Michael's throughout the first half, even taking a 14-7 lead at one point. But a kickoff return for a touchdown gave the Kerry Blues a 28-21 lead going into halftime, and St. Michael's turned to the inside power running of Frank Trentadue in the second half to "(Monday) was a wear the Titans walk-through. We down. "I thought their didn't even know defence was strong," their formations." said Ribarich. "I just really credit my Trinity coach offensive line. I didAnand Pillai n't think we'd be able to run that well inside, but the offensive line did a fantastic job getting first downs and allowing our running backs to penetrate." Baptiste Bodin scored two of Trinity's touchdowns in the game. Teluwa Fayemi had the other Titans' major, scoring on an interception return. The loss to St. Michael's was the first of the season for the Titans, who finish the year with an 8-1 record. It was also the second straight year Trinity's exited the Metro Bowl playdowns in the first round, but Pillai feels his team is getting closer to advancing in the eight-team provincial tournament. "We're getting there. This year we were better than last year, and next year we'll be better than we were this year," he said. "We keep building on everything." Saturday, November 28th 9:00 a.m. Glen Abbey United Church Bazaar (Delmanor will have a table) Delmanor Glen Abbey is Oakville's premier retirement residence for active adults. We emphasize independence and individuality in a community environment that promotes an active mind and a sound body. In short, we believe in LivingWelll and we'd like you to join us. All the events are free of charge. Just call 905 469-3232 to reserve your spot. People's Choice Award Winner 4 Years in a Row... Thank You Oakville! TM 1459 Nottinghill Gate just south of Upper Middle, west of Dorval