By: Agrani Tiwari
The Ottawa West Golden Knights secured a hard-fought 5-3 victory over the Winchester Hawks in a thrilling game on Thursday, October 17, 2024, at the Barbara Ann Scott Arena. With strong performances from key players and a relentless offensive effort, the Golden Knights solidified their position atop the standings.
The Golden Knights opened the scoring late in the first period with a power-play goal from forward Ryland Landon at 18:31, assisted by Bailey Pipe and Jacob Perreault. This marked Landon’s fourth goal of the season, giving Ottawa West a 1-0 lead heading into the intermission.
Early in the second period, Justin Murdoch doubled the Knights’ lead just ten seconds in, with assists from Cooper Moore and Matthew Stringer. The pressure didn’t let up, and despite being down a player, Connor Weido added a short-handed goal at 18:31 to extend the lead to 3-0.
However, the Hawks responded late in the second, with Isaac Bradley finding the back of the net to make it 3-1. Bradley continued to shine, scoring again early in the third period to cut the deficit to one goal.
Ottawa West regained control midway through the final frame when Connor Dickey netted an unassisted goal pushing the score to 4-2. Though Vincent Dube of the Hawks narrowed the gap to 4-3 at 15:03, Xavier Goussis sealed the victory with an empty-net goal at 18:58, assisted by Landon and Tyson MacCoubrey.
Speaking after the game, Ryland Landon expressed satisfaction with the team’s performance but acknowledged there were areas to improve. “I thought we played really well. There were a couple of mistakes that we need to clean up, but overall, it was a really good game. I think we rallied, even though we weren’t performing great at times,” Landon commented.
Assistant Coach Jack Parker also weighed in on the team’s overall effort, admitting that while the Knights managed to secure the win, they faced challenges throughout the game. “It was a bit of a rough one for us. I felt we played down to their level a bit, but the boys battled through and grabbed two points. We’ll move on from here,” Parker said.
He praised defenseman Brennan Miller for his contributions, despite not registering points. “Miller was moving the puck well and doing a lot of good things out there,” Parker remarked.
With this victory, the Golden Knights continue their strong season, setting the stage for upcoming matchups as they strive to maintain their winning momentum.