Cougars battle back to earn draw with Stayner
By Bill Rea

Mike Shuryn and Sean Teskey were in this scramble in front of the Fergus net Thursday night, but John DeRosa cruised in from the right to finish the play and give the Cougars their second goal of the evening.

Points in the standings are coming slowly, but surely for the Schomberg Cougars.

The local junior C heroes picked up their fourth Sunday when they came from behind to earn a 6-6 draw against the Stayner Siskins.

Thursday's match was another frustrating affair. They were giving the visiting Fergus Devils a solid battle until late in the second period when the visitors pulled away, eventually notching an 8-3 victory.

Head Coach Gary Waldrum said it was penalties that hurt his men, and the figures on the game sheet bear that out. Schomberg drew 34 minutes in penalties, plus a game misconduct when John DeRosa was called for checking a foe from behind. The Siskins were only called for 14 minutes. One of the results was seven powerplay goals for Stayner, although one of Schomberg's markers came while they were killing a penalty.

The home forces were also badly outshot, to the tune of 37-18.

"Our lack of discipline is what beat us," the coach observed after the match. "Talent wise, I think we can compete with any team in the league, if we work hard and show some discipline."

Discipline is something that's hard to teach. Waldrum said the players themselves eventually have to step up and take responsibility for making mature decisions in tight moments.

"We believe this group will come around," he added.

Captain Thomas Faris led his mates in the scoring department with a pair, including the short-handed marker and one on the power play. Derosa got the other goal. Mike Shuryn and Matt Steenhoek each collected a pair of assists, while Todd Cantelon and newcomer Sean Teskey notched one apiece.

Faris said the club needs to work on "everything."

"We can play one period in every game," he added. "That's about it right now. We've got to play three periods."

"I think we've got a good nucleus here," he added. "I'd rather be losing now than at the end of the season."

Teskey was playing his first game in a Cougar uniform, coming from the NobleKing juvenile system last year. He said it looks like he's joined up with a lot of good players, but "we definitely need to get working."

The 19-year-old King City resident also pointed out a lot of his mates have to get used to playing with each other. That was one of the differences Thursday night, as the Fergus players seemed more familiar with their team, he observed.

Sunday's contest in Stayner saw the hosts jump out to the early lead, but the Cougars were able to keep pace and eventually tie things up.

Steenhoek came to the rescue with the two final goals, coming less than a minute apart, to even things up, and he also drew an assist. Faris scored one of the goals and assisted on three others. Adrian Dupuis, Jake Whelan and Shane Jones scored the other goals. Cantelon notched two assists, with singles were counted by Pat Homersham, Dupuis and goalie Cory Shody.

The Cougars are evidently learning a bit about discipline, drawing only 20 minutes in penalties, while Stayner counted 28. And the team was ahead in shots on goal, on the order of 33-30.

Waldrum called it "a real step forward."

"It's just part of the learning curve," he added.

Steenhoek is proving to be a valuable addition to the club, and the coach is impressed with the chemistry of the line of Steenhoek, Faris and Dupuis.

The Cougars have only one game this week. That will be tomorrow (Thursday) night when they host the Midland Flyers. The game will start at 8:15 p.m.