Ripley Wolves

The Ripley Wolves fell 6-4 (empty netter) in Petrolia on Friday night to lose their opening round Sr. AA playoff series four games to one.

Goals were scored by Cody Britton, Dan Nicoloff, Brian Stanley and Matt Mah. Assists went to Stanley, Mah, Nicoloff, Dylan Sayle, Tyler Soehner and Ryan Dudgeon.

Kurt Edwards was excellent in the Wolves net, stopping 39 of 44 shots.

The Wolves battled a very good Squires team right to the end, and will remember this series as one where a couple of bounces could have made it a six- or seven-game series. It will also be remembered for an unbelievable seven-goal outburst on home ice in Game 2 after being down 6-0 midway through the second period, in an eventual 7-6 win.

The Wolves made huge strides this season, finishing sixth in the league and making the Sr. AA playoffs for the first time since the playoffs were restructured into AA (top four/eight teams, depending on the season) and A (lower-ranked teams) divisions.

The Wolves executive must thank the players, coaches, management and trainers for their dedication to the team this season. They give up countless hours and every weekend during the long season, and we can’t thank them enough for their hard work. Our long list of local sponsors also deserve much appreciation, as we could not operate this organization without their assistance. Please support those who support Senior hockey in our community!

Thank you also to our fans for supporting the team in 2016/17, and we look forward to seeing you at the rink again in October!

Petrolia took a stranglehold on the first-round Senior AA playoff series with a 3-1 win on Sunday in Ripley.

The Wolves carried the play for most of the game but missed the net with a lot of their shots and were stymied by the Petrolia goalie on many others. In their own end, Kurt Edwards was a rock, stopping 32 of 34 shots for the Wolves, who now trail the best-of-seven three games to one.

Ryan Armstrong scored Ripley’s only goal, tying the game at one early in the second. Assists went to Derek Regier and Tyler Soehner. Petrolia would net the game winner 10 minutes into the third and add an empty netter.

The Wolves look to stay alive on Friday night, at 8:30 p.m., down in Petrolia. Should they pull out a win to stay alive, they’ll return to Ripley on Sunday, Feb. 19, at 2:30 p.m.

Watch our Twitter feed @RipleyWolves or follow us on Facebook for updates.

The Ripley Wolves fell behind early again to Petrolia and couldn’t deliver another miracle comeback in a 7-3 loss on Friday night.

Wolves scorers were Brett Catto, Drew Davidson and Tyler de Vos. Assists went to Cody Britton (2), Brian Stanley, Catto, Jarred Colling and Dylan Sayle.

Mitch Campbell stopped 37 of 43 shots in the Wolves’ net.

Visit the league’s playoff website for more information.

The Wolves return home for Game 4 on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. Game sponsor is Boston Pizza and Sobeys.

The Ripley Wolves staged a nearly unbelievable comeback on Saturday night, scoring seven unanswered goals – all in the last 23 minutes of the game – to erase a 6-0 deficit and win 7-6.

The game winner was scored with just 4.5 seconds left on the clock, with Cody Britton playing the hero.

Petrolia led the game 6-0 late in the second before the Wolves got their first to end the period 6-1. The third was all Wolves, with six goals – and none on the powerplay.

It looked like it was going to be a tough night for the Wolves, as they fell behind 4-0 after just 14 minutes of play, chasing starting Kurt Edwards, who stood little chance on the first three goals. He was replaced by Mitch Campbell, who soon suffered the same fate against a physically imposing and highly skilled Petrolia line-up.

The Squires scored two more within 15 seconds of each other in the 13th minute of the second, making many it feel like the game was on ice with the visitors up 6-0.

Drew Davidson gave the Wolves a bit of life with 3:15 left in the second, putting the Wolves on the scoresheet from Dan Nickeloff and Jordan Turcotte.

The third was all Wolves. Tyson Soers scored just over a minute in from Nickeloff and Tyler de Vos, who added his own three minutes later from Nickeloff and goalie Campbell, who made 25 saves for the win.

The fans barely had time to catch their breath before Jarred Colling made it a 6-4 deficit 30 seconds later, from Dylan Sayle and Derek Regier. Matt Mah scored just over two minutes later, from Brett Catto and Davidson, to pull the Wolves to within one.

Catto tied things up at sixes with just over five left on the clock, from Davidson and Britton, and the shocking, epic comeback was completed by Britton, from Catto and Tyler Soehner, with just 4.5 seconds on the clock.

We have a series, ladies and gentlemen. Game 3 goes Friday, Feb. 10, in Petrolia at 8:30 p.m., with Game 4 back in Ripley on Sunday, Feb. 12, at 1:30 p.m. The game is sponsored by Sobeys and Boston Pizza.

Something tells me you don’t want to miss it…

The Ripley Wolves lost 9-4 in Petrolia on Friday night in Game 1 of their best-of-seven.

Scoring for Ripley was Dylan Sayle, Drew Davidson and Brett Catto (2). Assists went to Matt Mah (2), Ryan Dudgeon, Jordan Turcotte, Cody Britton (2) and Drew Davidson.

Mitch Campbell stopped 14 of 18 shots before being replaced by Kurt Edwards, who stopped 18 of 23.

Game 2 goes tonight, Saturday, Feb. 4, in Ripley at 7 p.m. Game sponsor is Presto Crest.

The Ripley Wolves will face the Petrolia Squires in the first round of the WOAA Senior AA playoffs, beginning Friday, Feb. 3, at 8:30 p.m. in Petrolia.

Game 2 will be Saturday, Feb. 4, in Ripley, at 7 p.m. Game sponsor is Presto Crest

The rest of the series will be:

Friday, Feb. 10, @ Petrolia, 8:30 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 12, @ Ripley, 1:30 p.m. Game sponsors are Sobeys and Boston Pizza
*Friday, Feb. 17, @ Petrolia, 8:30 p.m.
*Sunday, Feb. 19, @ Ripley, 2:30 p.m.
* Game 7 TBD
*if necessary

Petrolia won both meetings between the teams this year, 4-2 in Ripley and 4-3 in Petrolia.