UPCOMING GAME
Saturday, Feb. 6 – Canmore at Olds Grizzlys – 7 PM
The expression “Can’t Win For Losing” could certainly apply to the Canmore Eagle’s fortunes in the 2016 calendar year.
The Eagles saw their 2016 record drop to 2-11-1 on Friday night as they lost a 3-2 overtime decision to the Calgary Canucks in Alberta Junior Hockey League action played at the Max Bell Arena before 129 fans.
On the positive side, the Eagles did pick up a single point in the AJHL Southern Division standings with the overtime loss and it enabled them to move back into a fourth-place tie with the Drumheller Dragons with 45 points. The Dragons, who have played one more game than the Eagles, lost 5-3 to the Spruce Grove Saints on Friday night. The fourth-place team will secure home-ice advantage for the first-round of the upcoming AJHL playoffs.
Matt Forchuk, with his team leading 24th goal, and Coy Prevost (16th) scored the Eagle goals, while goaltender Ryan Bontorin took the loss to see his record drop to 11-16-3. The Eagles outshot the Canucks 33-22 on the night, including a wide 19-8 margin in the third period.
“We got beat by a hot goalie tonight,” said Eagle Head Coach and General Manager Andrew Milne in reference to Canuck netminder Logan Drackett. “We didn't start the game with as much excitement as we should have, but we were hampered by too many early penalty calls.
“But the bottom line is, we only played hard for 20 minutes and that wasn't enough to get two points. That's the frustrating part for the coaching staff. How can we play so well in the third period and dominate the way we did, but not have the confidence to start the game the right way? It blows my mind.”
The Eagles will attempt to snap their current five-game losing streak when they travel to Olds on Saturday night for a meeting with the seventh-place Grizzlys (16-30-2). In their last meeting in Olds on Jan. 12, the Grizzlys dumped the Eagles by a 7-2 margin.