The kid keeps scoring
The North Dundas Rockets’ rookie forward, Justin Lefebvre (11) just doesn’t stop scoring goals and that continued when they hosted the CP of Meyrin Junior team from Switzerland on Fri., Dec. 29, in an exhibition game. Lefebvre scored a hat trick and the Rockets took the game 9-5.   O’Donohue photo

Jeff Moore
Record Staff
CHESTERVILLE—The North Dundas Rockets played an exhibition game this past Friday as they welcomed a Junior team from Switzerland.

Rockets 9 CP of Meyrin 5: The Rockets welcomed the Club des Patineurs (CP) of Meyrin to the Chesterville Arena on Fri., Dec. 29, as part of a goodwill tour for the Swiss-based team. The CP of Meyrin began their Canadian tour the previous day when they were welcomed by the Gatineau Hull-Volant at the Robert Guertin Arena in Gatineau. It was a very even match but the Swiss team came out on top with a 6-5 win over the Volant in overtime. The Volant sit in second place in the NCJHL standing four points ahead of the Rockets so the Rockets had their work cut out for them.

The Rockets got the ball rolling at 10:01 of the first period as Brodie Barkley pounded one home from Shawn Simms on the power play to take a 1-0 lead.

The Rockets made it 2-0 when McKay Balaton snapped one to the back of the net from Jack Van Kessel at 11:51. The Rockets took the 2-0 lead into the first intermission. The Rockets kept the pressure on in the second period as Justin Lefebvre fired one home from Bryden Van Kessel and Jason Buma at 4:34 of the second period to take 3-0 lead.

The Rockets made it 4-0 when Jack Van Kessel slid one to the back of the net from Barkley at 7:22. The CP of Meyrin finally got on the scoreboard when Maxime Piller scored from Claude Christian at 9:51 to make it a 4-1 game.

The Rockets restored their four-goal lead when Simms blasted one home from Barkley at 16:55 short-handed but the CP of Meyrin squad answered when Romain Tavernier scored from Michaël Walther and Benoit Walker with 1:53 remaining in the middle frame. The Rockets took a 5-2 lead into the second intermission.

The Rockets made it it 6-2 when Lefebvre scored his second of the game from Griffin Mccaffery and Matthew Cowley just 19 seconds into the third period. The Rockets maintained the pressure and Lefebvre completed his hat trick just 36 seconds later from Cowley to make it 7-2.

The Rockets made it 8-2 when Jack Van Kessel scored his second of the game from Cowley at 7:38. CP Meyrin made it an 8-3 game at 10:33 when Luca Adobati scored from Walker and Benoit Dagau.

The Rockets made it 9-3 when Balaton scored his second of the game from Jack Van Kessel at 11:49 but the Swiss team kept up the fight and made it 9-4 when Walker scored from Dagau at 12:16 and got to within four at 15:06 when Dagau scored from Maxime Vulliet but that was as close as they got as the Rockets took the game with a 9-5 victory.

Picking up the win in the Rockets’ goal was Jason Buma making 43 saves on 48 shots and suffering the loss for the Swiss was goalie Nicolas Riccardi making 38 saves on 47 shots.

Up next: Fri., Jan. 5, 8:30 p.m., Rockets vs. Blackburn Inferno, Blackburn Arena, Ottawa; Sat. Jan 6, 7:30 p.m., Rockets vs. Bytown Royals, Chesterville Arena.