PHOTO – Eagle goaltender Ryan Ferguson stopped all 22 shots in the first period last night but couldn't stop them all as the Eagles lost 3-2 to the Brooks Bandits. – (photo courtesy of Mark Neustaedter)
NEXT HOME GAME – Fort McMurray Oil Barons – Saturday, October 11
Canmore Eagle goaltender Ryan Ferguson did his absolute best to keep his team in the game last night but it simply wasn’t enough as the Eagles dropped a 3-2 decision to the visiting Brooks Bandits in Alberta Junior Hockey League action at the Canmore Recreation Centre.
The Bandits came out flying and outshot the Eagles by a dominating 22-4 margin in the first period and went on to hold a 40-30 advantage by the end of the game. Canmore had several opportunities to tie the game late in the third period but couldn’t bury their chances.
The Eagles, who were playing without the services of injured defenceman Nikolas Kosman and Brayden Biccum and forward Brett Radford, were a disappointing 1 for 8 on the power play.
Kurt Hildebrand (3rd) and Joe Serpico (2nd) had the Eagle goals, while Ferguson was named the Eagle’s “Star of the Game.”
“We made a few mistakes tonight and unfortunately they ended up in the back of our net,” said Eagle’s Head Coach and General Manager Andrew Milne. “Most of our mental mistakes happened while we were on the powerplay and that didn’t help us either. We need to learn how to finish off our opportunities when they present themselves.”
With the loss, the Eagle’s early season record drop s to 6-6.
The Eagles will try to get back in the win column tonight (Sat. Oct. 11) when they host the visiting Fort McMurray Oil Barons at the Canmore Recreation Centre at 7 PM.
Fort McMurray Oil Barons (8-5-1) – Saturday, October 11 – 7 PM
The Oil Barons are always a perennial powerhouse in the AJHL Northern Division as they have compiled an impressive 166-63-12 regular season record over the past four AJHL seasons.
Fort McMurray, who lost 5-4 in overtime to the Drumheller Dragons on Friday night, will come to Canmore looking for some revenge as the Eagles downed the Oil Barons 5-4 in Fort McMurray on Sept. 21. It represents the only home loss of the season for Fort McMurray.
The Oil Barons feature the AJHL’s top scorer as left winger Jetlan Houcher has been red-hot notching 13 goals and picking up 5 assists in just 14 games played. Team-mate Mitchell Vanderlaan is close behind with 6 goals and 10 assists for 16 points.