Saturday November 23, 2012 – It might not have been the story book ending that Canmore fans were hoping for, but the 501 fans that were in attendance at last night’s Alberta Junior Hockey League game certainly witnessed a fast-paced, hard-nosed game of Junior A hockey as the visiting Camrose Kodiaks defeated the home town Eagles by a 3-2 score.
The game was intense right from the get-go and never let up until the final whistle. The two teams combined for 17 minor penalties, with Camrose converting for two power-play goals in nine attempts, and the Eagles responding with two power play goals of their own in eight attempts.
Canmose jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period thanks to goals by Kieran O’Neil and Scott Feser. Canmore came back to even it at 2-2 after two periods courtesy of power play goals by Trey Phillips (#1) and Luke Simpson (#9). Kirsten Odendaal scored the only goal of the third period with a power play marker at 5:55. The Kodiaks outshot Canmore by a 32-30 margin.
With the victory, Camrose moves into third-place in the Southern Division standings with 28 points and a record of 13-11-2. Canmore falls to seventh-place with 24 points and a record of 10-11-4.
The two teams will meet again tonight at the Canmore Recreation Centre for the second half of the double-header weekend. Game time is 7 pm
“We didn’t play a disciplined first period and it caught up to us,” said a disappointed Eagle’s Head Coach and General Manager Andrew Milne. “We rebounded with a good second period but a mental mistake and some bad luck cost us a too many men penalty call that they capitalized on in the third. Otherwise, I thought we competed hard and played within our structure. We just need to learn how little things are so important over the course of a 60 minute game. The “game within the game” is why we lost tonight.”
NOTEBOOK: More than 80 Camrose fans made the trip to Canmore for this weekend’s games. The Canmore Eagles organization would like to thank them for travelling to our town and we hope you enjoy a fantastic weekend in the mountains. . . . Might be a good idea to come to the rink a little early tonight because the Canmore Nordic Ski Club will be holding a fund-raising bake sale in the lobby prior to face-off. . . The Lake Louise Ski Area is giving away a Louise Plus for the next three home games . . .On Friday morning, the Eagles traded forward Paul Lamoureux to the Flin Flon Bombers of the SJHL. The Bombers then traded Lamoureux back to the Spruce Grove Saints of the AJHL where he will be re-united with fellow former Eagle Connor Hoekstra. The Eagles would like to thank Paul for his hard work and dedication while in Canmore and wish him the best of luck in Spruce Grove. . .Depending on road conditions, former Flin Flon Bomber forward Austen Hebert, who was acquired in the Lamoureux trade, will make his Eagle debut tonight . . . Former Saint Bryan Arneson , who came to Canmore in the Hoekstra trade on Thursday night made his Eagle debut last night. . .The Eagles also called up affiliate player Ryley Risling from Medicine Hat AAA Midget for last night’s game. . . In four of the last five home double-header weekends against Camrose, the Eagles have battled back to earn a split in the series by winning the second game.
