Jack Nolan admits scoring five goals in a game does not happen every day in junior hockey.
But the Pittsburgh product who joined the Voodoos as a free agent at the NOJHL Showcase last Tuesday not only scored five goals but he also netted a natural hat trick.
"I have never scored that many times in one game," admitted Nolan.
"I have had two goal games but five is definitely different."
Nolan exploded for the Voodoos as he not only scored five times but he also added an assist in a convincing 7-0 win for the Voodoos over the French River Rapids in Noelville Sunday afternoon.
"I couldn’t have done it without the fellas and the hard work they put in through out the whole 60 minutes," said Nolan.
"We expect nothing but this it’s all a part of the plan."
The last Voodoos player to score five goals in a single game was Tomas Yachmenev on January 29, 2020 when he netted 5 goals and 3 assists in a win over the French River Rapids.
It was a good day for newcomers, as Voodoos recent goaltender acquisition Austin Seibel was solid when needed en route to his first NOJHL win and first NOJHL shutout.
The Voodoos took flight seven and a half minutes into the first period when Caleb Dawson fed Nolan who powered his way down the slot and pumped a shot into the top left-hand corner on Rapids goalkeeper Carter Vicente.
Owning the middle stanza, Nolan bagged three more as part of a four-goal barrage by Powassan in the session.
Up a skater three minutes into the frame, Nolan notched his second by wiring one upstairs from the left circle over the short side shoulder of Vicente.
He then hit his hat trick at 8:50 with another man advantage effort as he worked his way down the right wing and sizzled one into the net.
That marker also saw Nicholas Tarantella come in and replace Vicente.
However, Caden Dubreuil greeted Tarantella with a shorthanded effort as he chipped a play ahead and while driving down the left side, neatly picked a corner.
It was more Nolan after that when he collected his fourth as he worked his way in front and promptly finished off a Heath Bradley feed from behind the goal line.
Action in the third saw Owen Kahl lift in a Nolan feed into the crease for Powassan’s sixth.
Nolan then capped off his impressive performance by ripping in his fifth, through a screen from between the circles to complete the one-sided result.
With the win the Voodoos improve to 3-4-0-1 on the season.
Voodoos add defender
The Powassan Voodoos continue to shuffle their lineup adding 19-year-old defenceman Marcus Krats from the Brockville Braves of the CCHL for a development fee.
The Labrador City, Newfoundland-Labrador product missed a chunk of the second half of the season due to an upper body injury.
Peter Goulet, Voodoos head coach, says Krats has been on his scouting radar for two years.
“Krats had a great first half as a rookie and then at the deadline was traded to Brockville Braves where, unfortunately, in his first game with Brockville he got hurt and the injury ended his season,” explained Goulet.
“Marcus will give us great depth on our defence and we are all looking forward to seeing him play.”
Earlier in the week the Voodoos added 19-year-old forward Jack Nolan as a free agent from the Niagara Falls Canucks of the OJHL.
Nolan started the 2023-24 season with the Hearst Lumberjacks where he netted 8 goals and 10 assists for 18 points in 19 games before he was moved to Niagara Falls where he netted 6 assists in 28 games.
“Nolan is a player we scouted last year and we were very interested in signing him,” stated Goulet.
“The Canucks general manager Frank Pietrangelo allowed me to speak with Jack and Jack agreed to come play for us. We are all very excited to add Jack Nolan to our lineup.”
The Voodoos also let go veteran netminder Miles Gordon, who is joining a new team in Lake Tahoe in the United States.
The well liked teammate was one of only seven returning players to the Voodoos roster from the 2023-24 season.
