Shawn Gawrys scores the game winner with 20 seconds left to lift the Jr. Blues over the Columbus Stars.

Gawrys Leads Jr. Blues Comeback!

After a long night of travel, the Jr. Blues looked primed for a Columbus Stars upset.  Larry Kopecky showed no signs of bus legs as he scored the game's first goal on a great breakaway move.  The Stars tied the score late in the first period.  The Jr. Blues showed more jump in the second period, out shooting Columbus 15-3.  Unfortunately the Columbus netminder stoned the Jr. Blues as the Stars scored the only goal of the period to take a 2-1 lead into the locker room.  The third period showcased a very desperate Jr. Blues squad.  Shawn Gawrys was sent in on a breakaway by Larry Kopecky.  Gawrys used his magical hands as he tied the score with 15 minutes remaining in the contest.  Numerous scoring chances by the Jr. Blues came up empty the next several minutes.  Then, Derek Szesny made the save of the game with less than 5 minutes remaining on a mad scramble in front of the Jr. Blues net.  In the final minute of the game, the "87 line,"  got it done again for the Jr. Blues.  Shawn Gawrys sniped a perfect shot over the goaltenders shoulder with 20 seconds remaining.  Zach Barron and Pete Wildhaber assisted on the game winner.

St. Louis  1-0-2-3
Columbus  1-1-0-2

Shots:
St. Louis  18-15-18-51
Columbus  8-3-8-19

Scoring:
Shawn Gawrys  2 goals
Larry Kopecky  1 goal, 1 assist
Mike Hewkin  1 assist
Joey Vitale  1 assist
Pete Wildhaber  1 assist
Zach Barron 1 assist

Derek Szesny made 17 saves on 19 shots to improve his record to 11-0-0.

Branden Moran showed the Stars his many talents as his three points led the Jr. Blues to a 6-1 victory.

Bugs Moran Too Much for Stars!

The Jr. Blues were flying high right from the beginning.  Cory Spradling intercepted a clearing attempt and quickly fired home the games first goal.  Moments later, while shorthanded, Ken Jacobsmeyer deflected a Mike Hewkin shot after Derek Janssen won an offensive zone face-off.  The goal was Jacobsmeyer's 3rd short handed goal of the season.  More special teams success as Shawn Gawrys dazzled the Stars with a great move off the boards as he then deked the goaltender for the power play goal.  Kyle O'Kane assisted on the goal.  Michael Davies deposited a goal off a Branden "Bugs" Moran feed with Tony Jost also getting an assist as the Jr. Blues took a 4-0 first period lead.  The Jr. Blues were short six times in the second period as the Stars took advantage of a 5 on 3 power play to score their only goal of the game.  The third period was more Jr. Blues offense.  Moran scored an unassisted goal on a great fake then Michael Davies deposited his second goal of the game off a Moran rebound to finish the scoring on a Jr. Blues power play.  Devan "Denver" McConnell made numerous great saves in the contest to keep the Stars from mounting a comeback. 

St. Louis  4-0-2-6
Columbus  0-1-0-1

Shots:
St. Louis  14-13-11-38
Columbus  7-7-10-24

Scoring:

Branden Moran  1 goal, 2 assists
Michael Davies  2 assists
Cory Spradling  1 goal
ken Jacobsmeyer 1 goal
Shawn Gawrys  1 goal
Derek Janssen  1 assist
Shawn Wring   1 assist
Tiny Jost   1 assist
Mike Hewkin  1 assist
Kyle O'Kane  1 assist

Devan "Denver" McConnell made 23 saves on 24 shots.

Joe Vitale led the Jr. Blues with 1G, 1A and dominant play along the boards.

Jr. Blues Use Balanced Scoring to Defeat Cobras!

Zane Truman scored the only goal of the first period off of a Ken Jacobsmeyer face-off win.  Truman calmly went in on the goaltender uncontested and slid the puck between the pads for the quick St. Louis lead.   The second period started good for the Jr. Blues as they quickly scored on a 5 on 3 power play.  The tic-tac-toe passing play ended with Jimmy Jost netting the goal and Joey Vitale and Pete Wildhaber assisting.  Late in the second period, Kyle O'Kane netted a goal on a quick shot with '87 line mates Shawn Gawrys and Zach Barron assisting.

The Jr. Blues netted their second 5 on 3 power play goal with Joey Vitale one-timing the quick pass from Jim Jost and Larry Kopecky.  With 7 minutes remaining, Cincinnati broke the shutout on a breakaway goal.  The Jr. Blues quickly restored momentum as Danny Brown roofed a perfect shot off of a Ken Jacobsmeyer feed.  Cory Spradling converted a quick cycling play with Tony Jost and Michael Davies assisting.   Derek Szesny upped his perfect record to 10-0-0 allowing 1 goal on 19 shots. 

Each of the Jr. Blues four lines scored at least one goal in the balanced attack. 

St. Louis  1-2-3-6
Cincinnati   0-0-1-1

Shots:

St. Louis  15-13-11-39
Cincinnati  8-4-7-19

Scoring:

Joey Vitale  1 goal, 1 assist
Jim Jost   1 goal, 1 assist
Ken Jacobsmeyer  2 assists
Zane Truman   1 goal
Danny Brown  1 goal
Cory Spradling   1 goal
Pete Wildhaber  1 assist
Zach Barron  1 assist  
Shawn Gawrys   1 assist
Larry Kopecky  1 assist
Tony Jost   1 assist
Michael Davies   1 assist

Jim Jost's 2 goals help salvage the win for the Jr. Blues in weekend sweep of Cincy.

Vitale Line Rescues Jr. Blues!

The Cincinnati Cobras played a physical, grinding game in the tiny confines of the Sports Plus Rink.  The much larger Cobras had things going their way for most of the game, frustrating the Jr. Blues with hard work and spectacular goaltending.  After the Cobras took a first period 1-0 lead, they continued to force the Jr. Blues in the second.  

Shawn Gawrys and Zach Barron teamed up on a beautiful goal to tie the game 8 minutes into the second.   Gawrys undressed a Cobra defender at the blue line creating a St. Louis two on one break.  Just as it appeared that Gawrys was going to shoot, he hit Barron with sharp pass.  Barron sniped the goal just under the crossbar as the Cobra goaltender slid across low.   The goal seemed to inspire the sluggish Jr. Blues.  Joe Vitale made a perfect power move driving from behind the net, then hit Jimmy Jost who gave the Jr. Blues the lead.  Larry Kopecky also assisted on the second period power play goal.  One minute later Jimmy Jost scored a highlight reel goal while shorthanded.  On the goal, Vitale slid the puck to Jost after he was tripped sending him on a one-on-one break.  Jost outsmarted the defender and made a quick shot on net.  Then, on a great second effort, Jost pounced on the rebound and slammed it home for a 3-1 Jr. Blues lead.  The Cobras were not going to give up though.  Cincinnati scored a power play goal with 14 seconds remaining in the period to cut the lead to 3-2.  St. Louis also was assessed a 4 minute high sticking penalty so the Jr. Blues started the third period short.  The Jr. Blues did a great job of stopping the 4 minute power play holding the Cobras without a shot.  Then moments later the Jr. Blues were assessed their 5th straight penalty.  The Cobras scored a controversial goal to tie the game with 12 minutes remaining in game.  The Jr. Blues might have been tired from the long penalty kills, but they never showed it.  With the '87 line applying great pressure, a frustrated Cobra took the penalty the Jr. Blues needed.  Again it was the Vitale line that got the job done.  This time Larry Kopecky netted the game winner with Jim Jost and Joey Vitale assisting.  The last 6 minutes of the game were tense but uneventful as the Jr. Blues defense limited the Cobras opportunities.  Devan McConnell was sharp in nets once again for the Jr. Blues.

St. Louis  0-3-1-4
Cincinnati  1-1-1-3

Shots:
St. Louis  8-11-14-33
Cincinnati  8-13-9-30

Scoring:

Jim Jost  2 goals, 1 assist
Joey Vitale  3 assists
Larry Kopecky   1 goal, 1 assist
Zach Barron   1 goal
Pete Wildhaber  1 assist
Mike Keeven  1 assist
Shawn Gawrys  1 assist

Devan McConnell made 27 saves on 30 shots.

 Shawn Gawrys' two goals and one assist lead the Jr. Blues over the Motor City Chiefs.

Jr. Blues Dominate Chiefs in 5-2 Victory

The Jr. Blues won all facets of the game Saturday night in front of a large crowd at the Affton Ice Rink.  Captain Jim Jost scored the games first goal halfway through the first period with Joey Vitale and Pete Wildhaber assisting.  Moments later Motor City tied the score off of a blown face-off.  Then the Jr. Blues continued to pressure as Shawn Gawrys gave the Jr. Blues the lead. 

The second period was started with a big Motor City flurry as the visitors took the first 6 shots on goal.  Strong goaltending by Devan McConnell kept the Jr. Blues lead intact.  The first power play of the game proved to be valuable as Kyle O'Kane netted the goal.  The goal was a beauty as Shawn Gawrys fed Zach Barron behind the net and Barron made a nifty pass to O'Kane who came cruising in from the slot. 

The Jr. Blues gave up an early power play goal in the third period as Motor City closed the gap to 3-2.  The Jr. Blues O'Kane, Barron, and Gawrys line quickly countered just 1:12 later to give the Jr. Blues a comfortable lead again.  The line again dazzled the crowd with their unselfish passing with Gawrys netting his second goal of the game and O'Kane and Barron assisting.  The final goal of the game was scored by Cory Spradling who was sent in on a breakaway from Michael Davies.  Spradling made no mistake as he calmly deked the goaltender and roofed a backhand goal. 

Motor City  1-0-1-2
St. Louis   2-1-2-5

Shots:
Motor City    4-9-6-19
St. Louis    15-15-14-44

Scoring:

Shawn Gawrys  2 goals, 1 assist
Kyle O'Kane   1 goal, 2 assists
Zach Barron   2 assists
Joey Vitale     2 assists
Jim Jost        1 goal
Cory Spradling  1 goal
Pete Wildhaber   1 assist
Michael Davies   1 assist

Devan McConnell made 17 saves on 19 shots.

November 2nd vs. Motor City Chiefs

Jim Jost nets a hat trick to power the Jr. Blues to a weekend sweep of the Motor City Chiefs.

Too Much Jim Jost and Derek Szesny for the Chiefs to Handle!

The Jr. Blues started a little sluggish but Pat Dolan scored his first CSHL goal as he snapped a wicked shot from the point early in the game on the power play.  Then the game was turned over to Jim Jost and Derek Szesny.   Captain Jost scored late in the first period to give the Jr. Blues a 2-0 lead.  In the second period, Jost scored a power play off a picture perfect play from line mates Joey Vitale and Larry Kopecky.  Then early in the third period, Jost made it 4-0 as he converted a Kopecky pass for the hat trick.  Kyle O'Kane scored a few shifts later on a dazzling play with Shawn Gawrys and Zach Barron.  Joey Vitale finished the scoring as he powered past the Chiefs defense. 

Derek Szesny has been a star in net so far for the Jr. Blues.  Particularly against the Chiefs as he recorded his second straight shutout against them and his third shutout of the season.  Szesny leads the entire CSHL in virtually every category with a Goals Against Average of 1.56, a save percentage of .941, a perfect 9-0-0 record to go with his lead leading 3 shutouts.  Szesny made 23 saves for this shutout as the Chiefs are yet to solve him after two games.

Motor City   0-0-0-0
St. Louis   2-1-3-6

Shots:
Motor City   9-9-5-23
St. Louis   15-13-11-39

Scoring:

Jim Jost     3 goals
Joey Vitale   1 goal, 2 assists
Larry Kopecky   3 assists
Kyle O'Kane  1 goal, 1 assist
Pat Dolan    1 goal
Pete Wildhaber  1 assist
Shawn Gawrys   1 assist
Zach Barron    1 assist

Derek Szesny made 23 saves for the shutout. 

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