Again rising to the level of their competition – but not quite rising high enough – the Canmore Eagles dropped a 4-2 decision to the nimble skating, hard hitting Lloydminster Bobcats, Saturday (Jan. 7) at Alex Kaleta arena.
Riley Point and Justin Krabben scored for the Eagles, who are now three points ahead of the last-place Drumheller Dragons in the race for the final playoff spot in the AJHL’s South Division. The Eagles are also three points behind the Calgary Canucks and five points behind the Olds Grizzlys with 17 games left in the season.
Both teams maintained a blistering pace until the third period, when goaltender Michael Salmon misplayed a wrister from the blueline that ended up behind the goalline.
“Other than the cheesy winning goal, that game could have gone either way,” said head coach Andrew Milne. “They’re one of the best teams in the league and we proved we can be there with them.”
Following a 5-2 loss to Olds on Friday night, Milne challenged his players to bring more intensity to their game.
“I challenged them to be physical and I’m happy they responded,” Milne said. “We had a tough time coming through the middle and (Lloydminster tender) Briggs is a good goalie.”
Krabben opened scoring for the Eagles on the powerplay 15 minutes into the game, with Davis Claffey and Zack Rassell drawing assists. The Bobcats bounced right back less than a minute later thanks to an effort by Mitchell Gartner.
Former Eagle Topher Flanagan gave Lloydminster the lead 25 seconds into the second period. Point drew the Eagles even, with Connor Hoekstra and Alex Barnes drawing helpers.
In the third, Kyle Harris sent a floater on net that eluded Salmon and deflated the Eagles. Bobcat Matthew Marcinew added a powerplay marker with five minutes to go and the game was essentially over.
Point said the team showed great work ethic, but they need to carry it forward if they want to stay competitive.
“We need to bring that intensity to the south and take it to those teams,” Point said.
Point has emerged as one of the leading scorers on the team and has helped turn around an anemic powerplay.
“I think we’re doing a better job. They have a good defence and kept us to the outside,” Point said.
The Eagles are in action at home again Saturday night (Jan. 14) when they face off against the Drayton Valley Thunder.
The team opened the New Year with a 3-1 win over the Calgary Canucks on Jan. 4.
