OSHAWA, ON– The Oshawa FireWolves (1-3) were able to get off to a quick start and score four goals in the first quarter, but the Vancouver Warriors (2-1) veteran presence helped them come away with an 8-6 victory on Friday night at the Tribute Communities Centre in Oshawa. Alex Simmons and Dyson Williams each recorded a goal and an assist, while Taggart Clark made the Teddy Bears rain down from the stands as he recorded a goal.
View full stats here: Oshawa vs Vancouver
With the moves and Head Coach Glenn Clark hoping for a change on the offence, it happened in the first. Ethan Walker got the party started with his third goal of the season. Later on, it was Dyson Williams scoring shorthanded with a bullet from the outside. Eight seconds later off the ensuing faceoff, Mike Byrne was able to win the draw and score on a breakaway for the second fastest shorthanded goals in National Lacrosse League history. With the FireWolves having a three goal lead, Vancouver had an answer off the stick of Jackson Suboch. Before the quarter ended, Alex Simmons found the score sheet as a shot snuck through Warriors starring goaltender, Christian Del Bianco to make it 4-1 after the opening 15 minutes.
The second quarter was a good defensive one for Oshawa. They were blocking shots, knocking down passes and FireWolves starting goaltender Doug Jamieson made some good saves. The lone goal was scored by Marcus Klarich to make it a two-goal game at halftime and see the FireWolves hold a lead heading into the break.
Coming out of halftime, the FireWolves wanted to use the message they were given in the locker room to build on their lead.
“You have to play complete games and not let up”, said Captain Colton Watkinson. “There’s no margin for error in this league with there being so much parody, we just had to keep playing our game and it unfortunately slipped away from us in the second half so, we were listening to the message for the third quarter and started to drift away from in the fourth quarter”.
Less than two minutes into the quarter was when the home crowd erupted after not seeing their team score in the second. With the shot clock winding down, Taggart Clark found a shooting lane on his wrong side and made the fans stand up and throw their teddy bears onto the turf. An incredible amount of bears were donated to the community as the Durham Region fans are sending 2,327 teddy bears to Lakeridge Health hospitals this holiday season.
After Clark made the bears pour down, the Warriors found a response as Keegan Bal scored his first of the game to cut the lead to one before Curtis Dickson went end-to-end and scored a shorthanded goal. Bal was then able to score another goal to tie the game at five heading into the fourth.
With the game tied in a low scoring affair with 15 minutes left to play, Oshawa was eager for a win; and on home floor too. The FireWolves threw everything they had at Del Bianco and the Warriors defence but it wasn’t enough as Vancouver scored three straight to take an 8-5 lead. The FireWolves would add one late but the Warriors held on for their second win of the season.
Glenn Clark commented on the defence and how their goaltending is helping them win games.
“Our defence and goaltending is the reason why we’ve been able to stay in games. They’re good, solid and physical which helps us and they’ve been great.”
Clark and Watkinson also spoke on the community supporting them on Teddy Bear Toss night.
“It’s great for a lot of things, certainly great for the players,” said Clark. “It’s also great for the community too. I mean, there is that excitement in this area and we want to show them what we can do.”
“Being in Oshawa gives us energy every time we’re playing at home. So here in the fans and the level support that we’re getting is fantastic”, said Watkinson.
The FireWolves will now be on a bye week before returning to the TCC on Saturday, January 3 against the Ottawa Black Bears for their Indigenous Heritage Night at 7:00pm ET. Fans can watch the game on TSN+, ESPN+ and NLL+.
Visit www.oshawafirewolves.com for tickets and all team news.
About Oshawa FireWolves
The Oshawa FireWolves are Durham Region’s professional box lacrosse team, competing in the National Lacrosse League (NLL) out of the Tribute Communities Centre in downtown Oshawa, ON. For more information, visit OshawaFireWolves.com. Follow the team on Facebook at facebook.com/FireWolvesNLL, Twitter @FireWolvesNLL, and Instagram @FireWolvesNLL.
About National Lacrosse League
The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is North America’s largest professional lacrosse league and welcomed more than 1 million fans for the third consecutive year during the 2024-25 season. Founded in 1986, the NLL is comprised of 14 franchises across Canada and the United States, and recently unveiled its largest brand campaign ever, “Welcome to The Next Major League™” and introduced its comprehensive grassroots initiative, NLL UnBOXed™, that will expand the League’s footprint to 60 communities across North America by 2028. For the latest scores and developments in the National Lacrosse League, please visit: NLL.com and find the NLL on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok. Games are available live and streaming on TSN, TSN+, the ESPN family of networks, ESPN+, and NLL+.
About Tribute Communities Centre
The Tribute Communities Centre is Durham Region’s premier sports and live entertainment facility and is managed by Oak View Group. The Tribute Communities Centre is home to the Oshawa FireWolves of the National Lacrosse League, Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League, and hosts a myriad of events including concerts, circuses, ice skating and family shows. Visit TributeCommunitiesCentre.com, and follow on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
About Oak View Group
Oak View Group (OVG) is the global leader in live experience venue development, management, premium hospitality services, and 360-degree solutions for a collection of world-class owned venues and a client roster of arenas, convention centers, music festivals, performing arts centers, and cultural institutions. Founded by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff in 2015, OVG is the leading developer of major new venues either open or under development across four continents. Visit OakViewGroup.com, and follow OVG on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X.
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