Beaupre gets three goals in the first, Thunderbirds hammer Voodoos 9-3

By Matt Stefano

Friday night’s game at the John Rhodes was a battle of two third place teams in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League, as the third place team in the West Soo Thunderbirds took on the third place team in the East Powassan Voodoos.

Both the Thunderbirds and the Voodoos also entered Friday night’s game with 73 points each.

On Friday night, the Thunderbirds scored a total of nine goals, including four in the opening period, as they went on to defeat the Powassan Voodoos by a score of 9-3 in front of 207 fans at the John Rhodes.

The win also gave the Thunderbirds their 35th victory of the season.

“Right from the drop of the puck, I felt like we were a very determined group,” said Soo Thunderbirds head coach Cole Jarrett. “We always challenge our guys during the week and before games to raise their compete level and I thought every guy on our team did that tonight.”

“Tonight we stuck to our game plan and we really wanted to focus on that coming in,” added Soo Thunderbirds forward Daniel Beaupre. “Tonight we worked hard and won our one-on-one battles and it turned out really well for us.”

With the game scoreless almost seven minutes into the first period, the Thunderbirds then scored three times in a span of 5:52, thanks to a natural hat trick from forward Daniel Beaupre.

Two of Beaupre’s three goals in the first period also came on the man advantage.

“Tonight was a different challenge for Beaups (Daniel Beaupre), because he played in the middle and we put him in a different spot on the power play, and it seemed to click and I thought he did a really good job playing in the middle of Santa (Brock Santa Maria) and Youssef (Chaouachi),” Jarrett said.

Beaupre, who scored three goals in the first period, also became the first Thunderbird player to score three goals in a first period since Nick Smith did back on October 30, 2019.

“Nick Smith is a name with the Thunderbirds that I’ve heard a lot of and it’s great to have my name to be put up there with his,” Beaupre said. “I also have to give credit to my linemate Brock Santa Maria, because he made some great passes to me and it just felt great to help my team tonight with my three goals in the first period.”

“You don’t see a player get a hat trick in a first period very often, but it was great to see Beaups do that tonight,” added Jarrett. “There were some nice plays made tonight and Beaups did a good job of finishing those plays off.”

Beaupre, who scored three goals on Friday night, also added two assists for his second five-point-game of the season.

Since being acquired in a trade from the Timmins Rock back on September 19, Beaupre has recorded 42 points in 42 games played as a member of the Thunderbirds.

“I think I’ve just been getting more opportunities to score here in the Soo and I’m playing with some good players here who are giving me chances,” Beaupre said. “My game has been progressing and I’ve also gained more confidence.”

“Beaups has been great for us ever since we got him from Timmins and there’s no doubt about that,” Jarrett added.

On Friday night, Thunderbirds captain Brock Santa Maria also had a big night offensively with a goal and three assists, which turned out to be his first career four-point-game, while Thunderbirds rookie forward Jackson Truchan also recorded a goal and three assists of his own, which gave him his second four-point-game of the season.

Thunderbirds leading scorer Dharan Cap scored a pair of power play goals on Friday night, which were both scored in the third period, while forward Youssef Chaouachi finished the night with a goal and an assist.

Blueliners Austin Fellinger and Tyler Boudreau both set up two goals each for the Thunderbirds on Friday night while Thunderbirds forward Wyatt Marlow also got on the scoresheet with one goal, which was scored on a power play.

Marlow’s power play tally, came at the 13:45 mark of the first period, which at that time gave the Thunderbirds a 4-0 lead.

Nicholas Liotino, Cameron Lemcke (Power play) and Thomas Gazich (Power play) had the goals for the Voodoos while Alex Little and Michael MacLean both set up a goal each.

Little, who had an assist for the Voodoos, was also playing in his 100th career NOJHL game.

Friday’s game saw both goalies for the Voodoos split time in net, as Kannon Flageolle gave up 6 goals on 35 shots while Daniel Dirracolo gave up 3 goals on 13 shots.

Thunderbirds goaltender Landon Miller made 30 saves for the victory.

The Thunderbirds will now play their final home game of their 2022-2023 regular season on Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m., when they will take on the Hearst Lumberjacks at the John Rhodes.

It will also be the second straight year that the Thunderbirds will play their final home game of the regular season against the Hearst Lumberjacks.

SWITCHING THEM BACK

After giving up 4 goals in the opening fourteen minutes of play in the first period, Voodoos goaltender Kannon Flageolle was then replaced in net by rookie netminder Daniel Dirracolo.

Dirracolo, who then gave up 3 goals during the second period, was then replaced in net at the start of the third period by Kannon Flageolle.

Flageolle, who replaced Dirracolo in net at the start of the third period, then gave up another 2 goals in the final twenty minutes of play.

GOING FOR 37?

In Friday night’s 9-3 loss against the Soo Thunderbirds, Voodoos defenceman Alex Little recorded one assist, which gave him a total 36 assists on the season.

Little, who recorded his 36th assist, is now just one assist away from tying the franchise record for most assists by a Voodoo defenceman in a single season.

Cameron Moore (2017-2018) currently holds that record with 37.

(Photo of Soo Thunderbirds forward Daniel Beaupre credit to Bob Davies)

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