LAURIE WEIR
The Smiths Falls Bears saw their season come to a bitter end Wednesday night as the Rockland Nationals pulled away late for a 3-1 win in Game 7 of their CCHL semifinal series.
It was a gutsy effort from the Bears, who opened the scoring with a power-play goal from veteran forward Travis Ouellette at 13:31 of the first period — but that was all they’d get past Nationals netminder Benoit Forget.
Rockland tied it in the second when James Marshall buried the equalizer just before the halfway point of the frame. Then, in the dying minutes of the third, Spencer Bowes tipped in the game-winner on the power play, followed by an empty-net dagger from Danel Myloserdnyy to seal the series.
The Bears were outshot 30–20, with Smiths Falls goalie Ethan Morrow standing tall once again, stopping 27 shots and earning third-star honours in the loss.
Ouellette’s goal — assisted by Tyson Parker and Kyle James — was the only bright spot for Smiths Falls on a night when they couldn’t find their offensive footing. The Bears were perfect on their lone power-play chance but couldn’t generate momentum at even strength, mustering just four shots in the second period.
Special teams were the difference. Rockland went 1-for-3 with the man advantage, while the Bears took eight minutes in penalties — including a costly hooking call late in the third that set up the go-ahead goal.
The loss caps off a back-and-forth series between two evenly matched squads. The Bears clawed back from a 3-1 series deficit to force the deciding game, but Rockland had the final say on home ice in front of a packed crowd of 1,892 at Rockland Arena.
Rockland advances to Bogart Cup final
The Nationals will now face the Carleton Place Canadians in the Bogart Cup final after CP edged Navan 4-2 in their own Game 7 on Wednesday.
Carleton Place jumped out to a 3-2 lead in a wild first period, with goals from Loic Prud’homme, Miller Kay and Finn Barton. Barton added an empty-net goal late in the third to seal the win and earn first-star honours. Goalie Ian Vandenberg stopped 29 shots for the win.
Navan made it interesting early with power-play tallies from Sebbie Johnson and Noah Carpenter, but couldn’t beat Vandenberg in the final 40 minutes. The Canadians outshot the Grads 38–31 and matched them on special teams, each side going 1-for-3.
Now, Rockland Nationals and Carleton Place Canadians will battle for CCHL supremacy and the coveted Bogart Cup. Watch the CCHL website for the schedule.
