The Orangeville Northmen defeated the Coquitlam Adanacs 12-5 on Saturday in the opening game of the 2025 Minto Cup.
Liam Matthews led all scorers with 4 goals and 4 assists, while Trey Deere added 4 goals and Ayden Matthews had 2 goals and 3 assists. Aidan McDonald and Ryan Colsey had 2 points each to lead the Adanacs.
Northmen Get Going Early
The devastation of last year’s final quickly turned to inspired motivation as the Northmen would jump out instantly on the Adanacs to the tune of a 6-0 score line after the first. Quick ball movement coupled with back door cuts and flashes into the middle allowed Orangeville to gain immediate offensive traction.
There were countless times that the Northmen would slip in behind their defenders down low for quick sticks or fade over to the wrong side of the floor and get looks on the crease. They also did a great job of getting the ball low and cutting from up high straight down the middle. I loved the commitment shown to try and access the middle that I have felt at times was far too perimeter oriented in the past. Â
Perhaps most importantly, the quick start provided confidence which is always an invaluable element to have in this sport, especially at such an elite event like the Minto Cup. From that point on Orangeville would roll along with their biggest names, Liam Matthews and Trey Deere firing body blows.
Home Cooking Proves Important (Again)
The Northmen playing in their home province seemed to take advantage of being the more comfortable and prepared team. As history will show you, it’s not uncommon for teams traveling across the country to have a tough time in the first game or two.Â
As a reminder, the Northmen lost the opener last year by a nearly identical score of 12-7 to the Po-Co Saints, so it’s normal to struggle early.
Movement Between the Pipes
Another storyline in this game was Coquitlam Adanac goaltender Jack Kask, normally a centre-piece to the Adanacs success and last year’s Minto MVP really struggling early on. Kask would allow FIVE goals on the first nine shots and Coquitlam never really recovered. Kaden Lee played in relief and performed fairly well, making some big saves in transition and on blown coverages. But the Adanacs will expect a bounce back from their starter tomorrow.
Adanacs Find Their Game in Second
On a positive note, the Adanacs appeared to get some traction in the second period of play perhaps playing a little more free and faster. As the pace of the game increased, the BC champs started to create some chances especially in transition. Front gate players like Nate Chalmers and Cody Malawsky really started to utilize a quick first step to activate the underneath lane to the net and a few goals resulted.
There was also a sequence of crease calls, right or otherwise, that went against Coquitlam, sometimes the breaks just don’t go your way. From there, the Northmen tightened things up on defence and didn’t allow the Adanacs to go on an extended run.
The third period was played at a slow pace, with both teams seemingly having an eye on tomorrow. A comfortable seven goal lead for Orangeville would result in a lot of draining of the shot clock on their end and Coquitlam struggled to get into high danger areas to really make a threat at any type of comeback. And when there was a chance, the massive frame of Evan Constantopoulos was there waiting to absorb the ball.Â
On that note, Constantopoulos was very sharp in this game, in particular against outside shots. Coquitlam has some real sharpshooters, but they were rarely if ever able to get it through the big netminder on straight shots.
This was a huge victory for the Ontario champions who get some semblance of revenge for last year’s Minto and set themselves up nicely to grab the much important bye out of the round robin. Meanwhile, I’d expect a Coquitlam side with ample experience at the Minto Cup and playing in big games to respond in impressive fashion beginning tomorrow when they take on the Raiders.Â
Three Stars:
As we move throughout the week, we will name three stars for each game, who had a particularly important impact on the game.
#1. Liam Matthews (ORG)
Matthews was the best player on the floor, finishing with 4 goals and 4 assists for the Northmen. Apparently well healed from a late-season injury, he looked the part of a fifth-year star.
#2. Evan Constantopoulos (ORG)
Constantopoulos was rock-solid, not allowing any weak goals and allowing the Northmen defence to sit back and allow outside shots.
#3. Logan Mellish (COQ)
Not normally a goal-scorer, Mellish got on the board in the third period for just his second goal of the season. But Mellish had great energy all night and was physical on defence right to the end.
Unsung Hero:
Ayden Matthews (ORG)
The younger Matthews finished with 2 goals and 3 assists, but it was his work off-ball, moving his feet and creating space for himself and others that caught my eye. He was confident after an early goal, and Orangeville will hope this carries through the rest of the tournament.
Stay tuned for a full recap of the night game between the host St. Catharines Athletics and the Raiders! And keep an eye out for more coverage all tournament long!