The McLean & Dickey Orillia Terriers returned to Rotary Place Saturday night for their first home game since Dec. 18. The fourth-place Terriers downed the seventh-place Midland Flyers 10-2 in front of a home crowd of about 210 fans.
Before the initial puck drop, Terriers forward Josh Brown was awarded the Provincial Junior Hockey League's North Carruthers Division Player of the Month for October.
"It shows that I'm doing something right," Brown said. "I don't really focus to much on individual awards because it's all about the team for me, but it's good to be recognized."
Brown banged home three goals in Saturday night’s game - he now has 21 on the season, which leads the Jr. C club in scoring.
"It boosts my confidence, that's for sure," he said. "The last few games before the break I was in a scoring drought. It's good to get off to a good start here."
Defenceman Isaiah Philip was also recognized for his recent play as he was awarded Player of the Month for December.
"It feels great," he said. "It's good to be recognized and it lets me know my place in the league and how other teams think of me."
Philip registered four assists on Saturday night.
"It's good to get back into a rhythm," he said "These next few games are very important for the standings. Staying on the scoreboard doesn't really matter as long as I'm doing it when it matters."
Saturday was the Terriers' first game since their trade deadline additions. One of those new additions, former Flyers defenceman Taylor Rehling, only lasted five minutes and five seconds before being ejected from the game after being assessed a head contact 10-minute misconduct penalty.
Newly-acquired defenceman Josh Harrison had a strong debut with a second period goal.
"It felt good to give the team a boost," Harrison said. "I'm glad I could make an impact right away."
Harrison, a former North Central Predator, says being traded to Orillia from Stayner last month caught him off guard.
"At first this wasn't a place that I wanted to come to," he said. "Now that I've been in the room and gotten to know everybody, I 100 percent want to be here."
Forwards Dylan Palomaki and Jake Ventrella, also making their Terriers' debut, were kept off the scoresheet in Saturday's blowout win.
Terriers captain, Broderick Black, says the new additions breathed new life into the team.
"They fit in really well," he said. "I feel like Harrison had a big game, and having Palomaki on forward brings so much depth to our team."
Black says the Terriers got off to a better start than he expected them to on Saturday night.
"It was nice getting the legs going again and shaking off the rust," he said. "I thought we were feeling it right away."
Black says the two points earned on Saturday night will go a long way in the final standings.
"We gotta keep it going," he said. "We have to keep stacking these wins and keep moving up the standings."
The Terriers (15-5-1) return home next Saturday to face the Huntsville Otters. Puck drop is at 7:30 p.m.
