Blackhawks come up short

October 20 the Caledon Blackhawks minor atom selects battled the Brampton Spitfires in the back end of a home-and-home series.

The Spitfires set the tone early by scoring just past the one minute mark of the first period. The Blackhawks hammered back. Opportunity after opportunity they pounded away at the Spitfires goalie with the line of Steve Luongo, Chris Hunter and Tyler Gillis leading the way. Finally, with 2:05 left in the first, and with the Blackhawks on a power play, Hunter scored with Luongo and Chris Cola drawing the assist. The Blackhawks kept it up with Zachary Infusini, John Sopinka and David Ryan pressing the Spitfires , but to no avail as the period ended tied 1-1.

The 2nd period kept the fans on the edge of their seats. Back and forth play by both teams. The Blackhawks pressured again and again with Hudson James having opportunities but not able to capitalize on them. The Blackhawk goaltending was remarkable. Despite the chances and nail-biting moments the period ended 1-1.

The 3rd period saw a ton of action. With both teams hustling, the Spitfires finally broke the tie with 6 minutes left in the game. After 40 seconds, the Blackhawks tied it up. Scoring was Gillis with Hunter and Luongo getting the assists. With the game opened up, the Blackhawks James and Infusini made heroic attempts but again not finding the goal.

With 2:20 left on the clock, the Spitfires scored retaking the lead. Not another minute later, they scored again going up by 2 for the first time. That was short-lived, when only 12 seconds later, Luongo scored with Lucas Mizzi getting the lone assist. The crowd went wild. With the score now 4-3, the Blackhawks poured on the pressure but despite their valiant effort, that was the hockey game 4-3. The Caledon fans stood on their feet and cheered for their team. What an entertaining game.

Goalie Steven Nelson was the coaches' pick for player of the game.

The Caledon Blackhawks would like to send a special thank you to the following player sponsors: Dr. F. Garofalo, Chic's Auto Repair, Blackmont Capital- Alan Nelson, Secure-Lee Alarms, Payworks Payroll Services .

For a complete summary of this and all the Blackhawks games visit their Web site at www.leaguelineup.com/98.