Now at 8-4-0, the Pontiac Senior Comets sit comfortably atop of the Outaouais Senior AA Hockey League (OSAAHL) standings, having won more games in their latest stretch than any other team has all season.

Heading into the matchup against a strong Maniwaki squad with a high-octane offense, the boys from Coulonge knew that they had to put up a fast and strong performance on both sides of the puck to bring their winning streak to eight games.

In the first period, the Comets started off well and were rewarded for it in the early stages, as Justin Charbonneau potted his league-leading 12th tally of the season just under three minutes in, assisted by captain Darcy Findlay.

A couple of minutes later, blue-liner Maxime Belley made it 2-0 Comets, with his third goal of the season on the powerplay, fed by Stephen Blunden.

The Comets looked to head into the dressing room up two after 20 minutes of play, until Maniwaki got one back with two minutes left in the frame to cut the deficit to one.

Less than two minutes into the second period, Pontiac’s Mitchell Gibson notched his third of the year on a solo-snipe, making it 3-1.

Shortly before the mid-way portion of the frame, the Forestiers cut the Comets’ lead in half with a goal on the powerplay.

However, with under five minutes left in the period, Matthew Warren made it 4-2 with his 10th goal of the season, assisted by Gibson and newcomer Connor Romain.

Heading into the third period with a two-goal lead, the Comets knew that they couldn’t get too comfortable and had to keep applying pressure on both sides of the puck if they wanted to come home with their seventh straight win.

But just over three minutes into the frame, Maniwaki got one back on the powerplay to make things interesting.

The Forestiers kept the Comets on their heels with a dominant third period performance, seeing them outshoot their opponent 22 to 11. However, goaltender Danick Boisvert held down the fort, making a number of game saving stops.

With under three minutes left in the game, Gibson brought the Comets’ lead to 5-3 with his second goal of the night, assisted by Romain and Ryan Peck.

In the dying seconds, Findlay made it 6-3 with an empty-netter, set up by Blunden, giving the Comets another convincing victory.

The three stars, included Boisvert who stopped 44 of 47 of the Forestiers shots, as well as Gibson who took home third star honours with two goals and an assist.

After the game, Comets’ head coach Jean-Francois Lavergne said his team was feeling very confident and joyful, in the midst of its win streak. However, he stressed that his group isn’t focusing on results, rather than trusting the process and playing with good habits.

“We’re playing our games one at a time,” he said. “Same goes for the wins. It’s one at a time. Every game we reset and every time we get to win a game, it’s positive. That’s our team identity.”

Going into the game, having already beaten the Forestiers three times this year, Lavergne said it was important for his team to avoid complacency by coming out strong and setting the tone as far as intensity.

“We’re a team with a lot of speed, so we want to skate and get our legs in the beginning of the game,” he said. “Against every team, we approach it like this. For sure, Maniwaki is a good team and if we give them too much space and too many scoring chances, they’ll hurt us.”

Playing with a short bench of only four defenseman and nine forwards – due to injuries – Lavergne said he was very proud of his players for showing character and overcoming the tall task that stood in front of them.

“That was our biggest challenge,” he said. “Some players had to play outside of their comfort zones and perform, sometimes being used in different roles than they’re used to. I give my hat off to our players.”

Satisfied with his team’s performance over three periods, despite taking a little bit too many trips to the penalty box, Lavergne said he was impressed by his team’s ability to weather the storm and close things off in the late stages of the game.

“We killed a full two-minutes five-on-three in the third,” he said. “It gave us momentum and then we were able to get the fifth and sixth goals.”

Moving forward, the Comets have an opportunity to extend their winning streak to eight games. However, Lavergne said the only statistic he’s focused on is getting the next win.

“I know it’s a cliché, but that’s what it is,” he said. “We’re not looking at the streak. We know we’re playing Tremblant who have gotten a lot better. We’re preparing for that. We’re putting the emphasis on playing the right way from one game to the next.”

For their next game, the Comets will hit the road to take on the last-place Mont-Tremblant Diables (3-7-1) on Dec. 14.

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