Levi Nelson recorded the first shutout of his AJHL career in a 4-0 win on Sunday (Jan. 11) against the Calgary Mustangs and captain Connor Wilson notched two goals and an assist on Saturday (Jan. 10) in a 5-1 win over the Calgary Canucks, as the Canmore Eagles finally found a way to win in 2015.
On the eve of trade deadline day with head coach and general manager Andrew Milne off the bench for long stretches of Saturday’s game and several regulars scratched from the lineup, the Eagles used a dominant first and third period to put away the pesky Canucks.
Marksman Ryley Risling scored 38 seconds into the game after the Canucks took a penalty on the opening faceoff, which set the tone for the evening. Kurt Hildebrand then made it 2-0 seven minutes later, while Wilson followed it up with his first of the night.
The Canucks showed signs of life in the second period, when Bryson Gore snapped a wrister past Eagles goaltender Ryan Ferguson, who was stellar when called upon.
But the Eagles ensured the Canucks could create next to no sustained pressure in the offensive zone, as it became abundantly clear that even though only five points separate the two teams, the Eagles are vastly superior on the ice.
In the third period, Jeremy Gordon caught Simon Philp behind the defenders and fed him a perfect breakout pass, setting up a pretty shorthanded breakaway goal. Wilson snipped his second of the game with a hard wrister off a two-on-one. Showing no sign of backing down, the small centre concluded his celebration with a few words for the Canucks bench.
Assistant coach Jeremy Reich said after the team’s horrible start to 2015, with three losses in a row, including a pair of blowouts, he wanted to see the team respond.
“This was a gut check for us tonight to see how the guys would respond. The Canucks and the Mustangs, they’ve been playing good hockey and tonight, overall we played a good team game,” Reich said.
Milne blasted the club last week after a loss to Drumheller and said there was dead weight on the club. He shipped out defenceman Kevin Wolf at the deadline (see related story on page 28) and tried to make more moves, but the coaches both know they can win with the current group, despite the team’s sub-.500 record.
“There have been four, five, six guys who are going for us and five, six, seven or eight guys that haven’t been going or playing the right way. We harped about it in practice and tonight I thought everyone was on board. We’ve said all year if you play the same way and play a simple game, you’ll have success,” Reich said.
The Eagles have 18 games left in their season, and ideally want to crawl out of sixth place, which would spare them a first round match-up against the 31-10 Brooks Bandits or the 26-12 Okotoks Oilers. Reich said he still believes the Eagles can skate with the top clubs in the league.
“We say to them, ‘we’ve seen you can do it,’ and when they don’t, you have to hold them accountable. We know they can do it. It’s finding that consistency in the last 18 games,” Reich said.
The game also saw hulking defender Jakob Lavoie return to the lineup, which helped solidify the back end. Wilson said Lavoie’s return had a huge effect on the lineup.
“He’s the most conditioned guy I’ve ever seen and he does his job perfectly. When he’s back there, the opposition isn’t getting anything. He’s a presence for sure. He sparked our dressing room and we came out firing.”
On Sunday, the Eagles held the Mustangs to 19 shots, while Nelson was perfect on the night. Hildebrand, Nik Kosman, Noah Philp and captain Wilson scored for the Eagles.
“We started slow, but got better as the game went on, and eventually, we took it over in the third. Brett Radford and Noah Philp were awesome for us up front, and goaltender Levi Nelson was solid when tested,” said Milne.
The Eagles play at home twice this weekend, beginning with a game Friday night (Jan. 16) against the Lloydminster Bobcats, followed by a rematch with the Calgary Mustangs, Saturday (Jan 17).
