Sedo gets first shutout of season

The Olds Grizzlys have probably seen enough of the Canmore Eagles this season and they are only half done their Alberta Junior Hockey League encounters for this season.

Olds was shutout for the second time in a nine-day period by Canmore on Saturday (Jan. 10) as Eagles netminder Hudson Sedo turned aside 34 shots in a 5-0 victory.

It was Sedo’s first shutout of the season and followed Alex Scheiwiller’s first shutout of the season, a 32-save performance during an 8-0 win over Olds on Jan. 2.

Sedo (6-6/2.93/.911) now has three career shutouts. The first came in his AJHL debut on Feb. 23, 2024, also against Olds in which he stopped 14 shots. The 19-year-old St. Albert resident also turned aside 39 shots from the Lloydminster Bobcats on Sept. 21, 2024, his first start of last season.

Canmore was looking to take over first place in a tight South Division battle but would be denied that opportunity by a last-second goal in a 3-2 loss to the Drumheller Dragons on Friday (Jan. 9).

The Eagles had gone 13-0 when leading after two periods and held a 2-0 lead on the Dragons going into the final period. Jase Johnstone would score the game winner just before the final buzzer rang out for an emotionally charged ending that saw three players end up with suspensions.

Eagles’s defenceman Carter Kowalyk would throw a water bottle at Drumheller’s Bradley Gallo and then give the Dragons’ top player in terms of scoring and agitating a two-handed chop on the shin pads. In the ensuing scrum, Drumheller goaltender Sean Cootes would use his blocker to throw punches at Kowalyk. The league deemed Kowalyk’s and Cootes’s actions worthy of match penalties and Gallo a game misconduct following the end of the contest.

Kowalyk was suspended for four games.  Cootes was suspended for three games. Gallo earned himself a two-game ban.

The fallout from the Canmore and Calgary end-of-game brawl in the Eagles’ 6-3 win on Jan. 3 was severe for both teams. For the Eagles, Miller Komarniski was handed a six-game suspension as he came back onto the ice during the melee while Landon Scott received two games for taking part in a fight after another fight had already started. For the Canucks, three players were suspended with Dreyton Aleman – who was soon after traded to Camrose – and Ben Binder-Nord each handed five game bans.

Outside of the suspensions, Canmore entered the weekend without injured players Casey Black (shoulder), Gus Schill (leg), Reid Larson (hand) and John Szabo (undisclosed).

Canmore did introduce two new defencemen to the lineup on the weekend. Evan Markel (2007, Richmond, B.C.) joined the team after 17 games with the WHL Kamloops Blazers, and Quinn Keeler (2006, Calgary) was acquired from the Lloydminster Bobcats, where he played 17 games this season.

The Eagles also brought back affiliate d-man Nixon Chanski (Grande Peach Storm U18) for Friday’s game but played one skater under the roster limit on Saturday.

As for tight South Division race, Drumheller (17-14-1-4) would roll into Calgary on Saturday and defeat the Canucks 4-1 to take over first place with 39 points. Camrose (18-13-2-0) is now second on 38 points after splitting their weekend games: losing 6-3 to the Devon Xtreme on Friday and winning 5-4 over Olds on Sunday. Canmore (18-14-1-0) is third with 37 points. Calgary (17-14-1-0), which played just the one game, falls to fourth with 35 points.

This weekend also brought about the Hockey Canada player registration deadline. Canmore has 24 active players as of Jan. 10. The team has not registered Black, the team’s captain pending determination to the extent of his shoulder injury suffered during a heavy crash into the boards on Jan. 2. If the fourth-year Eagle, in his final year of eligibility, is unable to play again this season, the Eagles would still have one signing card available to them.

Next up, Canmore hosts Calgary on Friday, Jan. 16, 7 p.m. at the Canmore Recreation Centre.

Jase Johnstone’s shot from the inside hashmark on the right wing slipped inside the far post for the game winner just prior to the buzzer sounding to bring the Dragons all the way back and give them the overnight lead in the South Division.

Canmore had built a 2-0 lead on goals by Cohen Daoust (21) in the first period and Adian Tkachuk (16) in the second period.

Two third-period goals by Jensen Marsh (10-11) would get Drumheller back on even terms by 8:30 of the period and set up the dramatic and emotional ending with the goal by Johnstone (4).

There were plenty of players on the ice when the game ended and most showed remarkable restraint in staying well separated during the main scuffle.

Drumheller outshot Canmore 43-20 with Sedo in goal for Canmore as Scheiwiller (12-9/2.96/.917) was given the weekend off. Cootes (10-10/3.12/.897) was the goalie of record for the Dragons.

On the power play, Drumheller went 1-for-5 while Canmore failed to score in five chances.

Sedo was perfect and the line of Daoust, Tkachuk and Hudson Landmark continued to be a juggernaut on offence.

Landmark (9) scored in the first period while Tkachuk (17-18) scored two of three third period goals for the Eagles. Daoust would have to settle for one assist in this game bringing an end to a run of five consecutive multi-point games.

Also scoring goals were Owen Mastroianni (5) in the second period and Cole Wadsworth (2) finishing things up with a late third-period goal.

Daoust is riding a nine-game points streak (5G-14A) and is fifth overall in the league scoring with 49 points (21G-28A). Tkachuk has points in six consecutive games (7G-8A) and has moved up to eighth in league scoring with 43 points (18G-25A). Landmark is riding an eight-game points streak (5G-8A) and is now among the top 20 in league scoring with 35 points (9G-26A).

Daoust’s 1.75 points per game average is tops in the league.

Canmore outshot Olds 35-34 with Cole Prelusky was making his season debut for the Grizzlys.

On the power play, Canmore was 1-for-5 and Olds 0-for-3.

Canmore has won each of the three meeting this season, including a 9-4 victory back on Sept. 20. The two teams will meet each other three more times this season with the next coming on Tuesday, Feb. 3 in Banff (7 p.m., Fenlands Recreation Centre).

OVERTIME: Can’t get to a game in person because it’s sold out, all AJHL games can be viewed with a flohockey.tv subscription. … The Canmore Eagles are always in need of more volunteers to help with game day experiences whether you are new to the game or an avid hockey supporter, email info@canmoreeagles.com for more information on opportunities and game-day perks that come with being part of the Game Day Crew.