Hearst: Greater Sudbury Cubs thumped in third as Hearst forces Game 6

Article content Greater Sudbury Cubs forward Lucas Signoretti (91) is hooked by Hearst Lumberjacks forward Chase Thompson (18) as he tries to score on Hearst goaltender Alexandre Boivin (31) during NOJHL action at Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex in Sudbury, Ont. on Friday, April 25, 2025. Photo by Ben Leeson / The Sudbury Star The Hearst Lumberjacks were on the ropes, but had plenty of punching power left. With the Greater Sudbury Cubs up 6-4 and 20 minutes away from clinching back-to-back NOJHL championships, their opponents racked up no fewer than six goals in the third period at Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex on Friday night to take a 10-6 victory and force a sixth game in their best-of-seven final. That contest, to be played at Claude Larose Recreation Centre in Hearst, goes Monday at 7 p.m. "From the drop of the puck, we looked like a nervous hockey club," suggested Darryl Moxam, Greater Sudbury's head coach. "Played desperate at times, but we played outside of our structure and we chased the game. We understand the fourth one is going to be the hardest one to win and that is a great hockey club. "I thought tonight, the score was indicative of the game. They outplayed us from start to finish. We have a chance to reset here and realize we're in a real good spot, jump on the bus and maybe it's a good thing, playing on the road, to settled our nerves and stuff like that - go up there and win a hockey game." Noah Kohan, twice, Cameron Shanks, Michael MacLean, Lucas Signoretti and Spencer Horgan scored and Karsen Chartier made 37 saves for the Cubs, who led by two goals after 40 minutes, but were outshot 22-6 in the final frame as the Lumberjacks took over. Mathieu Comeau helped to pace the Hearst attack with two goals and two assists, while Liam Boswell and DonHeaven Veilleux also scored two apiece and William Paquet, Chase Thompson, Henry Ouellet and Bronson Babyak, the latter two with empty netters, had singles to help the Jacks stave off elimination. Own Bonthuis, who relieved Hearst starter Alexandre Boivin to start the pivotal third frame, turned aside all six shots he faced to pick up the win. The absence of a couple of veteran defencemen, namely 20-year-old captain Mason Chitaroni and 19-year-old William Haley, may have been keenly felt as their younger teammates struggled to hold their lead in the final frame, but Moxam said players of all ages should take a lesson from the outcome on Friday. "Take that third period and learn from it," he said. "I think it looked like the pressure got to us a little bit and whether you're a 16-year-old kid or a 20-year-old kid, understand that we're going to hope to be in that situation again and we've got to go. Some guys on the back end have logged a lot of minutes and I thought that caught up to us tonight, so we've got to get a rest the next couple of days and jump right back at it." The Game 5 results wasn't for lack of crowd support, as the Countryside stands were all but packed on Friday, with the Lumberjacks also bringing their share of loyal fans. "It's unbelievable," Moxam said. "I've got to thank all the people in Sudbury for coming out and supporting these guys. That's the biggest disappointment in this room right now - they feel they let a whole bunch of people down. We're got to worry about what's going on in that dressing room, but I've got to say, to see the culture we've built here and the guys who came up from down south who won last year, all supporting these guys, it has been pretty phenomenal and I've got to say thanks to everybody so far." He's confident his players will respond well in Hearst, where the Cubs won Game 3 and 4 by a combined 11-2 score. "We have been a resilient group all year, as has Hearst," he said. "We expect nothing but a tight game again up there on Monday. It's going to be hard to finish this thing out. They have been through the wringer before, too, with a bunch of veteran guys, and our guys need to be up for the task on Monday in Hearst." Game 7, if needed, will be back in Sudbury on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. bleeson@postmedia.com