Eagles battling for top spot

For much of this past week, the Canmore Eagles were atop the South Division of the Alberta Junior Hockey League only to see it taken back by the Calgary Canucks on Sunday afternoon.

It’s turned into a three-team race with even the Camrose Kodiaks enjoying some time at the top of the heap in recent weeks as teams come up on the halfway point of the season.

Canmore, 15-7-3-0 for 33 points, ran its winning streak to four games with two more victories in a three-game week. Playing on home ice, the Eagles defeated Calgary 2-1 on Tuesday (Nov. 26) and Devon Xtreme 4-3 in overtime on Friday (Nov. 29). The win streak came to an end with a 2-1 road loss to the Drumheller Dragons on Saturday (Nov. 30).

Calgary, which has played one more game, leapfrogged over Canmore into first place in the division at the end of the week with a home-ice 3-2 overtime win over Drumheller on Sunday (Dec. 1) afternoon. The Canucks, 16-8-1-1 for 34 points, also posted a 3-1 win over Devon on Saturday after losing to the Eagles in Banff on Tuesday.

Camrose, 14-8-1-2 for 31 points, defeated the Olds Grizzlys 6-2 on Friday but lost 7-3 to the Fort McMurray Oil Barons on Saturday – a game in which the Kodiaks led 3-0 after the first period.

Canmore plays just one game this coming week, hosting the Olds Grizzlys, 10-13-0-0 for 20 points, on Saturday (Dec. 7), 7 p.m. at the Canmore Recreation Centre. This will be the first meeting of the season between the Eagles and the Grizzlys, who are sixth in the South.

 Canucks 1 at Eagles 2

This may just be ‘the game of the year edition’ for the AJHL when Canmore hosted Calgary at the Banff Fenlands Recreation Centre.

It was a hockey game that turned into a party event by nearly 11 hundred energetic and inspiring fans. The players from both sides took it to heart giving incredible performances from beginning to end, luckily the home team Eagles prevailed, earning a loud, thunderous ovation after the final buzzer.

Ethan Look scored on the Eagles’ first shot of the game, 8:58 into the first period, and Carter Coutu added a second goal in the period, a shorthanded effort with 50 seconds remaining. The Canucks would answer on their first shot of the second period, Hayden Fechner scoring just 11 seconds after play resumed. The rest of the way, it was end-to-end, pulsating action fueled by an electrifying fanbase.

Look’s goal was his team leading 10th of the season and his fourth in three games, giving the third-year forward a six-point, four-game scoring streak that also included two assists.

Coutu’s goal was his second of the season, while Fechner’s goal was his ninth for the Canucks.

Canmore’s defence was sensational shutting down the league’s leading scorer Jack Plandowski and the No. 3 scorer, rookie Nolan DuPont, who saw his six-game scoring streak come to an end.

Alex Schweiller was brilliant in this game, with the Canmore goaltender making 24 saves, while at the other end, Lukas Renaud kept his team in it until the end, making 25 saves.

A last-minute fight between Canmore’s Kayden Rawji and Calgary’s Riley Bracko put the night over the top for the fans. It earned a post-game curtain call for the third-year Eagle forward as the not-ready-to-leave-the-party revellers chanted “Rawji” to earn his return to the ice, after being banished from the game, to lead his teammates in the celebration of their victory.

Canmore will play one more time in Banff this season, Feb. 11 versus the Lloydminster Bobcats. If the game against Calgary is any indication of future value for your ticket, it will certainly be another sellout and can’t miss event.

The first meeting of Canmore and expansion Devon seemed well in control with the Eagles leading 3-0 heading into the third period, only to be forced to overtime by the upstarts, who had won just four of their previous 23 games coming into the clash.

Rawji’s (8th goal of the season) and Owen Jones (7) gave Canmore a 2-0 lead in the first period. Adian Tkachuk (3) extended the lead in the second period.

Scheiwiller, making his fifth consecutive start, faced just 14 shots over the opening two periods before the game started to unravel for his team in the third period. Devon had 12 shots in the final period, seeming to find seams in the Canmore defence to get into scoring positions. Rookie Malcolm Baar scored twice, the first and third goals, to get to 12 goals on the season, with Mason Finley (4) also scoring.

Canmore though would get the final celebration when Rhett Dekowny, who had already assisted on two goals, tipped in an Owen Jones hard pass at 3:03 while racing to the far, leftside post.

Jones would also finish the game with three points (one goal and two assists).

Canmore looked in full control even with a three-goal lead, until they weren’t, firing an AJHL season high 57 shots on Devon goaltender Preston Lewis, with three of those coming in overtime.

Hudson Sedo returned to the goal crease for Canmore after spending a couple of weeks training with the WHL Prince Albert Raiders and went head-to-head with fellow Canada West Selection Camp invitee Sean Cootes. The two netminders are expected to be on the roster for the World Junior A Challenge, which takes place in Camrose, Dec. 9-15.

Both showed why they are considered favourites to be on the roster with Sedo making 24 saves and Cootes stopping 23 pucks. However, at game’s end there can be only one winner and that would go to the home team goalie.

Cohen Daoust (7) gave Canmore a 1-0 lead with a final-minute goal in the first period. Drumheller replied with Bradley Gallo (18) scoring in the second period followed by Lauchlan Kozicky (7) scoring the game winner in the third period.

Following Sunday’s result in Calgary, Drumheller is 13-10-2-0 for 28 points and is fourth in the South.

Scheiwiller was between the posts for all four games on the winning streak, giving up just seven goals, with his season averages improving to a 2.68 goals-against average, .909 save percentage and an 8-4-3 record.

Canmore’s leading scorer, Zach Coutu had just one assist over the three games and is on 26 points (9G-17A), sixth overall in the AJHL. The second-year winger from Edmonton will join Sedo (2.02GAA – .925S/PCT – 7-2-0) at the Canada West Selection Camp which runs Monday through Wednesday (Dec. 3-5) in Calgary.

Dekowny reached 20 points (7G-13A) for the season with his three-point game against Devon.

Look (10G-8A) sat out the game against Devon for a minor injury, then was held without a point in Drumheller to see his four-game points streak come to an end.

Since returning from a five-game suspension, Jones has seven points (3G-4A) in five games, although he was held off the scoresheet by Calgary and Drumheller. The Canmore native has 18 points (7G-11A) in 20 games.

Canmore’s power play continues to struggle going 1-for-14 in the last three games with the special teams unit 15.1% (16/106) for the season. Luckily, the team is doing just fine on the penalty kill, giving up just one goal on 11 chances over the week and fourth overall at 84.3% (86/102).

Casey Black returned to the lineup after choosing to leave the BCHL Okotoks Oilers. Black was an integral defenceman for the Eagles each of the previous two seasons before deciding to give the BCHL a try, playing 19 games (two assists) with the Oilers. Black played 114 games for the Eagles the past two seasons, registering nine goals and 40 assists. The Calgary native picked up his first point as an Eagle, with an assist on the overtime, game winner versus Devon.

Canmore was again without Jaren Brinson (ankle) and Cole Wadsworth (shoulder), both are long-term injuries.

EAGLES NEST: Tickets for Canmore Eagles’ home games are available at canmoreeagles.ca/tickets. … Canmore home games in December include Olds (Tuesday, Dec. 10), Drumheller (Friday, Dec. 20) and Grande Prairie (Saturday, Dec. 21). … You can watch Eagles’ games as well as the rest of the AJHL online, along with much more live and on demand sports, through a FloSports subscription available at flohockey.tv.

Russ Ullyot