Ponoka Stampeders came to the very edge of the ever-elusive home ice win, but lost the opportunity in the shoot-out that decided the outcome of an intensely played game on Saturday, Oct. 18.
Hosting Three Hills Thrashers, the Stampeders started the game testing their opponents, who took a little more than the first half of first period to impose their game plan on the hosts. As they began to move the puck more effectively, Thrashers scored their first goal in 15th minute of the first period, which ended with the 1-0 lead for the Three Hills side.
As the second period started, the visitors continued to keep the puck in the Stampeders’ half of the rink, taking shot after shot at the Ponoka net. But in a quick break from the siege of the Three Hills side, Kyran Karol unexpectedly scored through a mid-range shot in the 9th minute.
The equalizer fired up both teams with the visitors aiming to regain the lead while Stampeders tried to pull ahead. Although it was the Thrashers who scored first to break the deadlock, Ponoka boys took less than a minute to respond through Nate Higgins to end the second period with a 2-2 balance.
The third period saw both teams play their heart out to score the winning point, but the deciding goal never came. When the five-minute overtime also ended without any change on the scoreboard, it was left up to the individual skills of the players to determine the outcome. In the end, Three Hills converted three of their shots while Ponoka scored only once, leaving the visitors with the trophy of two points to take home.
Earlier in the week, Stampeders also hosted Stettler Lightning on Wednesday, Oct. 15 and lost 4-2 in a game that saw tempers flare frequently, resulting in brawls and long columns of penalty on the game sheet, with at least one player from either or both teams in the penalty box throughout the game. Overall, players got penalized no less than 30 times either for roughing, slashing or interference in addition to fighting.
During the game, the visitors opened scoring in 10th minute, Stampeders responded eight minutes later, followed by two Lightning scores in quick succession, one of them short-handed, and Ponoka boys responding with one to end the period 3-2 for the Stettler side. In the third period, there was no score and in the last 90 seconds, Stampeders coach pulled out the goalie in order to increase their chances of scoring the equalizer, but it was the Stettler side who scored into the empty net just 50 seconds from the end of regulation, ending the game at 4-2.
Stampeders captain Cody Lemon said after the game that they knew their problem was the drought in their scoring. “We took 42 shots and scored only two goals,” he said.
Asked what needs to improve in their game, “60 minutes,” responded Lemon.
“The whole team needs to play 60 minutes, we let off in the second period, and that’s why we lost tonight.”
Stampeders next play Mountainview Colts away on Saturday, Oct. 25 and host Strathmore the next day.