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Several players shine in Cubs overtime win
2022-10-28

Making his return to the NOJHL for the first time in two years and assisting on the game-winning goal, Samuel Assinewai was sure to be a topic of conversation Thursday evening at the Gerry McCrory Sports Complex.

But in a 3-2 overtime victory for the Greater Sudbury Cubs over the Timmins Rock, the 18 year-old native of Manitoulin Island was hardly the only one worth mentioning.

While Billy Biedermann was kept quiet for stretches of this contest, he did provide the prettiest goal of the evening, taking a no-look backhand pass from Oliver Smith in full stride, splitting the Timmins D pairing seamlessly and roofing a backhand to give Sudbury a 2-1 second period lead.

Speaking of Smith, his OHL experience also came in handy, displaying great poise when gifted the glorious opportunity in overtime, outwaiting Rock netminder Patrick Boivin and tucking home the tally that would send local folks home happy.

While Sudbury keeper Noah Beaulne would love to have a do-over on the second Timmins goal, he more than offset that with at least a pair of jaw-dropping saves and a handful of others of the simply great variety, giving him six straight wins between the pipes.

At various times, the likes of Matthew Mazzotta, Carter Geoffroy, Cameron Shanks and Nolan Newton all took turns to shine - and then there's the imposing presence of Cole Crowder.

The big man helped turn the tide of this affair, connecting with a laser while stationed off to the far left of Boivin, drilling home a bullet with just 14 seconds left in a Cubs power play to equalize the game at 1-1, with Biedermann's goal coming just 91 seconds later.

"When the puck went out to the point, I just knew the puck was coming right where I was," said Crowder, who has clearly found his "A" game under coach Darryl Moxam and staff. "I sat there and waited and when it was on my stick, I knew that I was putting it upstairs, over the goalie."

There is pretty much no chance at all that Crowder will never be tied to his physical play. That said, the 20 year-old who came to the Cubs after playing two years of high-school hockey is working hard at expanding his overall skill-set.

"I'm just trying to play my best game, pull all of my attributes together and bring it every game," said Crowder. "Whether it's putting pucks on net, making the right plays or finishing my checks: whatever I've got to do to help my team get the win is what I am going to do."

In fact, one area where Crowder has received a clear-cut vote of confidence from Moxam is in ability to understand the defensive component of the game, earning valuable minutes in games that are coming right down to the wire.

"I know what I can do out there with my defensive skills and my offensive skills," he said. "I'm putting myself in all of the right positions. Wherever I am, I know I've got to be there."

Lucas Piekarczyk handled all of the scoring for the visitors, breaking the ice with a first period strike with the man advantage and tying the encounter at 2-2 just 52 seconds into period three.

With the win, Sudbury makes it ten straight games collecting at least one point, pulling four points clear of the Blind River Beavers and preparing for a match-up with the French River Rapids Saturday night in Noelville.

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