OAKVILLE, ON (June 12, 2024) — After a three-day hiatus, the Toronto Beaches headed to Oakville to take on the Buzz in the first half of their doubleheader. A close, high-strung match came down to the final second and saw the Beaches out on top with a 9-8 win at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre.
Willem Firth had an eight-point night, consisting of five goals and three assists to lead the offensive side of the ball for the Beaches. Alongside Firth, Greg Palmer tallied six points with two goals, one of which was the game-winner.
Hunter Lubiniecki put together a game of his own, netting a pair for himself while battling every second of the game.
Lubiniecki got the scoring started on the night, opening the scoring after a scoreless 13 minutes. Five minutes later, the Buzz equalized on the man advantage, with a goal from Will Sheehan.
Palmer grabbed the last laugh with 18 seconds to go in the first to give the Beach a 2-1 advantage through 20 minutes.
Coming out of a lacklustre first for both teams, the Buzz went on a two-goal run, making their mark, with both goals coming from Riley Ford to take a one-goal lead. Firth responded by grabbing three and securing a natural hat trick – two of which were on the power play. Trailing by two late, Oakville’s Brian Jackman grabbed his first goal of the game.
Beaches held a one-goal lead over the Buzz heading into the final frame.
Oakville took no time to settle into the third and opened with three goals of their own in two minutes, with credits going to Xander Derkatz, Sheehan, and Jake Wright. Down two with 13:48 to play, Lubiniecki cut the lead in half after a well-executed passing play. Less than two minutes later, Firth would cause trouble in the Buzz’s zone, intercepting a pass to beat Goaltender Evan Constantopoulos one-on-one to tie to game up again.
Jackman and Firth traded goals to make the game eight apiece, with 3:33 to go in regulation.
With overtime and a possible undefeated season on the line, Beaches pulled Thomas Kiazyk to get a 6-on-5 opportunity on the final possession. Palmer got a chance on a step down and delivered the dagger with one second on the clock to keep the streak alive – pushing the Beaches record to 9-0 for the year.
Toronto will return home to the friendly confines of Ted Reeve Arena for the second half of their mid-week back-to-back as they welcome Kitchener Waterloo to The Sandbox.