The Mount Forest Patriots are a team the Mitchell Hawks really did not want to meet.
Much improved and buoyed by a renewed taste for victory, Mount Forest’s able Jr. C squad opened the postseason in the Hawks barn. If the home side wondered if the Patriots were up to the challenge, the Pats quickly removed all doubt by walking in on a mission, and walking out with a gutsy 4-3 win.
Mitchell fired 52 shots at Patriot goaltender Brendan Zwambag, but could not stop Mount Forest from launching a third-period comeback that was capped off by a late game winning goal from Joel Reeves.
Mitchell led 1-0 in the first period, until Kenny Collingridge capped off a powerplay effort from Matt Reid. The Hawks soon tied the game with a powerplay goal of their own, and then led 3-1 late in the second period thanks to another marker with the man advantage.
The green machine was not done, however, and top sniper Dustin Campbell cut the damage to 3-2 at 17:07 on a feed from Collingridge. Holstein native Jon Aitken tied the game midway through the third period, thanks to Robbie Moe assist, setting the stage for Reeves’ unassisted late game heroics.
The locals knew they could upset the Hawks, having played their finest hockey of the season over the past month. The win was Mt. Forest’s first in the playoffs since a game one win over Hanover in 2007.
Further testament to the team’s recovery this year, the Patriots allowed a total of 173 goals, their fewest allowed since 2004,  six long seasons ago. Their final tally of seven wins and 16 points was the team’s best regular season showing since posting eight wins and 20 points in the 2004/05 Jr. C season.
Still flying from their game one win, Mount Forest led the shocked Hawks 4-2 in the second period of game two on Friday night in Mount Forest.
But then the worm turned.
A bout of egregious officiating tore the game away from the Patriots, and they fell 5-4 in overtime. The referee failed to spot a goal that was in and out of the Hawks net; and questionable calls, including halting a 2-on-1 Patriot rush late in the game, smothered Mount Forest’s fire and allowed Mitchell to scratch their way back into the contest.
Mitchell opened the scoring in period one, but Campbell quickly took it to 1-1 on a play from Underwood. The Patriots, playing one of their best periods of hockey this season, ran the lead up to 3-1 before the first intermission.
Collingridge dented the twine once more on an assist from Campbell and Moe, and Campbell potted his second of the period, with help from Underwood and David Boswell.
The Hawks drained a second goal to open period two, but Mount Forest had the answer with Reid’s 4-3 effort, this time assisted by Thomas Kingston and Robert Dejaray. Benefitting from the one-way mudslide of Patriot penalties, Mitchell made it 4-3 at 6:31 of the third period, and drew even on the powerplay with three and a half minutes to go in regulation time.
Overtime was no better, as the officals somehow missed the fact the net was off its moorings, plus Mitchell had too many men on the ice as the goal was scored, much to the chagrin of the fans watching upstairs at the Sports Complex.
Mitchell was credited wih the 5-4 winning goal, after seeing only three penalties over the final 40 minutes, compared to 14 penalty calls for the home side.
The demoralizing overtime loss tore the heart and soul out of the Mount Forest playoff surge, and Mitchell made use of the travesty on Saturday night to waltz to an ugly 6-0 shutout.
Suddenly teetering on the brink of elimination, the Patriots hosted Mitchell again this past Tuesday night, but results were unavailable as of press time.