www.georgetownraidersjra.com GEORGETOWN JUNIOR A GAME OF THE WEEK GEORGETOWN TOYOTA GEORGETOWN JR. A RAIDERS vs BRAMPTON CAPITALS Saturday, October 6, 2007 7:30 pm Mold-Masters SportsPlex (Alcott Arena) 16 Independent & Free Press, Wednesday, October 3, 2007 SPORTS & LEISURE As one of just three returnees from last seasons edition of the Georgetown Raiders, new captain Evan Zych has had a tough time putting names to new faces, never mind being the anchor of the teams defence. And just a few games into the OHA Provincial Jr. A Hockey Leagues regular sea- son, the Raiders are one point out of first place behind Hamilton with a 5-2-1 record after skating past the winless Buffalo Jr. Sabres 6-3 at the Alcott Arena on Saturday night. Eighteen-year-old Zych, who hails from nearby Kilbride, almost didnt return to the Raiders this fall, either, as he was slated to accept a scholarship to the University of Massachusetts at Lowell before deciding to play another year at the Jr. A level. The 5- foot-11, 185-pound former Milton IceHawks captain feels that the new-look Raiders can be West Division title contenders again in March with a few months of familiarity between them. Were still building with a lot of first-year Jr. A players but I think our character within the next few weeks will show through, Zych said after his clubs first road loss in five starts, a 4-1 defeat at Burlington to the Cougars Friday evening. We had a lot of guys move on after last year and weve brought in some guys who do have a lot of Jr. A experience. You can say that our rookies are young and inexperi- enced but some of them already play like theyre 18- or 19-year-olds. The Raiders received a goal from veteran Andrew Ella early in Friday s contest , although they were unable to cause much trouble for 17-year-old Cougar netminder Andrew Hare, who is now 5-0-0. On Saturday night, Georgetown was out- shot 20-8 in the first period by the 0-7-0 Jr. Sabres and trailed 1-0 at one point, then ral- lied with four straight goals in the middle stanza while Buffalo went 2 for 14 with the man advantage on the night. Big winger Mark McGowan of Toronto led the Raider charge with a hat trick and singles came from Trevor Branning, Paul Yovanic and Anthony Luciani. For the Thanksgiving weekend, the Raiders visit Milton on Friday to face the IceHawks and then theyll host Brampton Saturday at the Alcott Arena beginning at 7:30 p.m. Defenceman Chris Borges of the Georgetown Raiders fends off an attempted elbow smash by Burlingtons Scott Charbonneau during their OHA Provincial Jr. A Hockey League contest Friday night at the year-old Wave Twin Rinks. The Cougars led 3-1 after the first period and although outshot 35-29, the hosts received a second-period marker from Charbonneau to earn a 4-1 win, Georgetowns first road loss of the cam- paign. Photo by Eamonn Maher New-look Raiders manage split with Cougars, Sabres EAMONN MAHER Staff Writer I think our char- acter within the next few weeks will show through. Raiders captain Evan Zych The life-long contributions of six local residents were recognized and the 25th reunion for the Georgetown Raiders 1982 Hardy Cup Canadian intermediate A championship team was celebrated by the Georgetown Hockey Heritage Council at a dinner and ceremony last week at Royal Canadian Legion Branch #120. Five of the six 2007 citation recipients were off-ice volunteers who generously gave their time to various organizations and have enhanced Georgetowns hockey tradition. Former Raider captain John Boyce was the other honouree, and the common denominator for all six citations was their connection to the Raider glory days of the 1970s and 80s. Several players and executive members from the 1982 Hardy Cup champs were in attendance for the reunion and guest speakers recounted their favourite memo- ries and the difficult losses along the way. I cant believe its been 25 years. No one looks any older, joked former Raider president and treasurer Bob Hooper, who is now commissioner of the OHA Provincial Jr. A Hockey League. The Hockey Heritage Councils citation awards are presented every three years and the latest half-dozen recipients bring the total number of honourees to 33. A moment of silence was also observed for the four community members who have passed on recently Wilf Brownlow, Ron Knight, Trevor Moores and Roy Ward. Following are the 2007 citation recipi- ents: Jim Barclay Starting as the Raiders first-aid atten- dant and then goal judge, Barclay per- formed many of the b e h i n d - t h e - s c e n e s duties that help build a successful organiza- tion. He served as the Booster Club Chairman for a season and chipped in on the fund-raising side, also serving on organiza- tional committees for international exhibi- tion games. Unable to attend last weeks ceremony due to his wifes illness, Barclay rarely missed even a Raider practice and had a hard time saying no when asked to help the team in some way. John Boyce Although he didnt play on the Hardy Cup champion squad, Boyce was one of the players who helped build the Raider dynasty of the 1970s and 80s. His nine-year career saw him emerge as team captain, often coming up with inspirational dressing Hockey Heritage Council honours six for contributions EAMONN MAHER Staff Writer JIM BARCLAY JOHN BOYCE See SIX, pg. 18