EAGLES UPSET SAINTS TO SPLIT FIRST 2 GAMES OF ROAD TRIP
On Friday night, the Eagles started off a three game in three days road trip. Unfortunately, the trip did not start the way they would have liked against the Sherwood Park Crusaders. A tough first period that had the Eagles trailing 3-0 to the Crusaders after 20 minutes was too much to overcome as the Eagles fell by a score of 5-1.
“We started slow. They had lots of jump and caught us off guard” says Eagles Head Coach and General Manager Andrew Milne. “They got some pretty lucky bounces in the first. We had lots of chances ourselves but couldn”™t capitalize”.
Down 3-0 to start the second period, the Eagles got on the board in the early minutes of the period as Carter Myrol scored a powerplay goal for his seventh of the season. Riley Dekowny and Isaac Suppin assisted. Unfortunately that was the only goal the Eagles would get on the night and the Crusaders would add a goal in the second period and an empty goal to seal the victory in the final minute of the third period. The final shots on goal were 31-29 in favor of the Eagles. Andrei Proctor-Ramirez got the start between the pipes and he made 25 saves.
On Saturday night, the Eagles were facing a tough challenge as they were taking on the top team in the North Division, the Spruce Grove Saints. But unlike Friday night, the Eagles had a great start to the game, holding leads of 2-0 and 3-1. The Eagles never looked back as they picked up a 5-3 win over the Saints.
“That was as complete a game we played all season” says Eagles Head Coach and General Manager Andrew Milne. “Our offence was there, it was great to see Riley Dekowny get 2 goals. He has been playing really hard, just not being rewarded and tonight he was. The entire team was good tonight. Manny (Andrei Proctor-Ramirez) was doing what he does. He can”™t play every game at his peak, but tonight he was definitely on point. It was great for the guys to play with the lead and have confidence”.
It only took 44 ticks for the Eagles to get on the board as rookie Defenceman Austin Lusok scored his second of the season with Riley Dekowny assisting. At 5:08 of the first, the Eagles doubled their lead off Ethan Schaeffer”™s team leading 19th goal of the season. Dylan Bidyk and Isaac Suppin picked up the helpers. The Saints got a powerplay goal from Breck McKinley at 16:35 to cut the Eagles lead in half, however the Eagles responded with a power play goal of their own at 18:10 courtesy of Kyle Young”™s ninth goal of the campaign. Suppin and Schaeffer assisted.
In the 2nd period, the Saints again got within one early in the period on a goal from Jayden Davis. But again, the Eagles responded to regain their 2-goal cushion as Riley Dekowny scored the first of two goals on the night. Brayden Plaschewsky assisted. Dekowny added another at 9:56 of the middle of the frame to give the Eagles a 5-2 lead. For Dekowny, it was his 12th and 13th goals of the season. Emmanuel Hudson and Vincent Scott drew the assists.
Only one goal was scored in the final frame and it came from Saints”™ forward Braeden Virtue.
The Saints got lots of puck possession in the offence zone trying to climb back up, but Andrei Proctor-Ramirez stopped 43 of the 46 shots he faced to pick up his 14th win of the season. The final shots on goal were 46-21 in favor of Spruce Grove.
In the AJHL South Division standings, the Eagles remain seven points back of the Okotoks Oilers for 4th Place and they are 2 points up on the Blackfalds Bulldogs.
The Eagles wrap up their 3-game in 3 days stint as they head to the Badlands to battle the Drumheller Dragons (25-14-5) at 4 pm. The two teams met very recently, last Tuesday in Canmore, with the Eagles winning 4-3.
“We are going to have to carry it onto today”™s game as we will have our hands full. The boys used a lot of energy last night” says Coach Milne.