North Stars open commanding series lead

The Soo North Stars took another step towards their goal of reaching the Ontario Provincial Championships over the weekend.

The North Stars opened the second round of the Great North Midget League playoffs with a pair of victories over the Rayside Balfour Sabrecats at the John Rhodes Community Centre.

The North Stars opened the series with a 3-1 victory on Saturday night before taking a 2-0 series lead on Sunday with a 4-0 blanking of the Sabrecats.

Brett Perlini and Adam Pyymaki scored first period goals on Saturday to open up an early 2-0 lead for the Stars. Dan Vernelli of the North Stars and Chris Shawanda of the Sabrecats traded second period goals before the teams played to a scoreless third period. Ryan Dube was solid in picking up the victory in goal for the North Stars.

On Sunday, Thomas Gravelines was perfect as the North Stars scored a 4-0 victory. Derrek Coccimiglio and Dylan King scored first period goals while Tyler Luikkonen and Jerry Petingalo scored in the second and third periods respectively to cap off the win.

"(Sunday), I thought we had a good first and a lot better second period," said North Stars coach Mike Hall. "Out of the six periods of hockey we played, they controlled the second period of last night's game. Other than that, I thought we controlled a lot of it. In the second and third period today, we just made sure we weren't outmanned coming through neutral ice.

"A couple of our goals (Sunday) were from hard work," he added. "We worked hard in their zone and they turned the puck over. When they give you the puck, it's usually because you had a good forecheck on them."

Hall was pleased with his team's defensive play as well as their ability to win key faceoffs at key times in the two games.

"Dube did a good job for us last night and Thomas is on a roll," said Hall. "We've played well defensively all year and we told the kids that that's what's going to help us move on if we continue to play well defensively. If you can go 120 minutes and only give up one goal that speaks well for your defensive play.

"We did extremely well on faceoffs," added Hall. "Faceoffs are so important because you control the puck. That's been our game all year."

The series now shifts to Rayside for games three and, if necessary, game four set for Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. If necessary, Game five is set for Mar. 15 in Sault Ste. Marie.

*** GNML SEMI-FINALS:

1. SOO NORTH STARS vs. 4. RAYSIDE BALFOUR

(Soo leads series 2-0)

Game 1 - Sat. Mar. 4 - Soo 3 Rayside 1 Game 2 - Sun. Mar 5 - Soo 4 Rayside 0 Game 3 - Sat. Mar. 11 - Soo vs. Rayside * Game 4 - Sun. Mar. 12 - Soo vs. Rayside * Game 5 - Wed. Mar. 15 - Rayside vs. Soo

2. SUDBURY vs. 3. NORTH BAY

(Sudbury leads series 2-0)

Game 1 - Sat. Mar. 4 - Sudbury 6 North Bay 3 Game 2 - Sun. Mar. 5 - Sudbury 3 North Bay 0 Game 3 - Sat. Mar. 11 - Sudbury vs. North Bay * Game 4 - Sun. Mar. 12 - Sudbury vs. North Bay * Game 5 - TBA - North Bay vs. Sudbury

(* = if necessary)

QUARTERFINALS:

1. SOO NORTH STARS vs. 8. VALLEY EAST

(Soo wins series 3-0)

Game 1 - Sat. Feb. 18 - Soo 3 Valley East 0 Game 2 - Sun. Feb. 19 - Soo 7 Valley East 3 Game 3 - Fri. Feb. 24 - Soo 4 Valley East 1

2. SUDBURY vs. 7. KIRKLAND LAKE

(Sudbury wins series 3-0)

Game 1 - Sat. Feb. 18 - Sudbury 6 Kirkland Lake 2 Game 2 - Sun. Feb. 19 - Sudbury 4 Kirkland Lake 3 Game 3 - Sat. Feb. 25 - Sudbury 8 Kirkland Lake 3

3. NORTH BAY vs. 6. TIMMINS

(North Bay wins series 3-1)

Game 1 - Sat. Feb. 18 - Timmins 2 North Bay 0 Game 2 - Sun. Feb. 19 - North Bay 6 Timmins 1 Game 3 - Sat. Feb. 25 - North Bay 4 Timmins 0 Game 4 - Sun. Feb. 26 - North Bay 5 Timmins 3

4. RAYSIDE BALFOUR vs. 5. NEW LISKEARD

(Rayside wins series 3-2)

Game 1 - Sat. Feb. 18 - Rayside 5 New Liskeard 2 Game 2 - Sun. Feb. 19 - New Liskeard 3 Rayside 1 Game 3 - Fri. Feb. 24 - Rayside 5 New Liskeard 4 (OT) Game 4 - Sat. Feb. 25 - New Liskeard 7 Rayside 5 Game 5 - Wed. Mar. 1 - Rayside 7 New Liskeard 4

***