Hawks play 'best game of the season'

The 2009-2010 season has not been kind to the Hawkesbury Hawks, but if their last home game of the season was a preview of things to come, the future looks bright for the Junior "A" squad.

Nearly 300 fans poured into the Robert Hartley Sports Complex on Friday, March 5 to pay homage to their hometown Hawks, who thrilled the crowd with a 2-0 shutout of the visiting Carleton Place Canadians.

"I feel that we played our best game of the season tonight," said head coach Martin Dagenais. "Defensively, we were outstanding."

The Hawks got on the board early when Joey House found the back of the net at 12:08 into the opening frame. Jeremy Melbye and Julien Quincou both drew assists on the goal.

In the second period, Hawks rookie Yanik Laliberté corralled an incredible breakaway pass from defenseman Eric David and slid the puck past Carleton Place goalkeeper Francis Dupuis to give the home team a 2-0 lead.

With a two-goal lead, the Hawks would place the game in the hands of goaltender Philippe Magnan. The Hawkesbury puck-stopper would answer in convincing fashion, stopping all 29 shots that he faced and earning the Hawks their first shutout of the season.

"Philippe has given us great goaltending all year long," Dagenais said, "and what better way to end the season than with a shutout in front of our home crowd."

As the horn sounded to signal the end of the game, the hometown crowd saluted the Hawks with a standing ovation. The players returned the gesture by gathering at center ice and raising their sticks to thank the fans for their endless support all season long.

"Our fans were there for us all season long," said Dagenais. "This win is for them."

The Hawks will be concentrating on recruiting new players in the off-season. Management is hoping to take full advantage of the CJHL draft in May as well as the Hawks prospect camp in the first weekend of July.

"We have a great group of scouts that have been working hard for us all year," said the head coach. "We hope to make some moves in the off-season that will get us back into the playoffs next year."

After the game, the Hawks held their annual awards ceremony. Winners of the awards are as follows:

Most Valuable Player: Eric David

Top Goal Scorer: Joey House

Top Point Getter: Julien Quincou

Best Defenseman: Eric David

Rookie of the Year: Yanik Laliberté

Most Sportsmanlike Player: Joey House

Most Dedicated Player: Alexander Barr

Most Improved Player: Sebastien Lavoie

Scholastic Player of the Year: Nicholas Bigelow

3 Star Award: Philippe Magnan

Best Teammate (Voted by the players): Sebastien Lavoie

Volunteer of the Year Award: Guy Tessier