Panthers Start Strong but Fall 6–3 to Huskies in Weekday Home Matchup

PORT HOPE, ON – The Port Hope Panthers came out flying at home on Thursday night, building early momentum and a two-goal lead after 20 minutes, but the Huskies mounted a steady comeback and pulled away late as Port Hope fell 6–3 in a high-tempo, physical matchup.

Port Hope opened the scoring at 5:42 when Ryerson Minifie buried his second of the season off a crisp passing play from Christian Sokoljuk and Zach Naherne. Frankford answered quickly, but the Panthers regained control minutes later. On the power play, Christian Sokoljuk struck with his 17th of the campaign at 8:49, finishing a setup from RJ Jackson and Luca Damiani-Reis. Sokoljuk wasn’t done—at 13:42 he added another, his second of the night, giving Port Hope a 3–1 lead after a dominant opening period.

The second period, however, shifted in Frankford’s favour. The Huskies capitalized on a string of Port Hope penalties, beginning with a power-play goal from Deke Osterhout at 8:40. The equalizer came at 14:22, and Frankford completed the turnaround with another power-play marker at 18:18, taking a 4–3 lead into the third.

Frankford’s momentum carried over into the final frame. Keagan Carr netted his second of the game at 5:31, extending the lead, and Jake Sage added insurance at 15:14 as the Huskies took control in the late stages. Despite creating chances throughout the night, the Panthers couldn’t beat Frankford goaltender Noah Groenveld in the final 40 minutes, who finished with 30 saves in the win.

Port Hope netminder Braden Henderson turned aside 33 shots in a busy outing, keeping the game within reach as the Huskies made their push.

After a strong start but a challenging back half, the Panthers will look to regroup ahead of their next game, a rematch vs. the Huskies on the road this Saturday night. Puck drop is set for 7:00 PM.