Written by Coach Oly
Brooks Bandits
The Dragons took on the Brooks Bandits, the #1 team in the nation. It was a back to back home and away series on Feb 10 and 11. The Friday night game started out well, we ended the 1st period even with a score of 0-0. We ran into trouble starting in the second period where the Bandits scored 7 goals. Blake Kleiner (6) put the Dragons on the board with a little over three minutes left in the second period. Brooks continued the pressure in the third scoring another 4 unanswered goals to finish the game with an 11-1 final score.
The second game took place in Brooks, it was a better game overall for us despite a 6-0 loss. We ran into penalty trouble both games which is a recipe for disaster against a team like Brooks who scored 5 power play goals in two games. We made mental mistakes in all three zones of the ice, Brooks took advantage every time. We are one of the youngest teams in the league with a depleted lineup. No matter what the score is or how tired they are, they always give more. All I can ask is that they come to work and never give up, they have never let me down.
Calgary Canucks
Dragons took on the Canucks on Valentines Day undermanned but determined. We scored the first 3 goals of the game with points from:
1 – #39 Chad Hurtubise from #13 Gage Misskey
2 – #24 Cody Young from #25 Jordan Evans
3 – #14 Jordan Taupert from Cody Young and Jordan Evans
The first period was one of the best we played in a long time, a 3-0 lead helped us gain some confidence. We had a few mental errors and breakdowns in the second period and the Canucks tied it up with three quick goals. Canucks pulled ahead in the third period but Kleiner tied it up with a great slap shot from the point assisted by Hurtubise and
Risk. It was great to see some of the changes to our power play pay off as we scored three power play goals out of the seven opportunities. We battled hard in overtime but the Canucks snapped a quick goal to finish the game 5-4. We lost 2 more players during the game. Nate Keeley had to leave in the second period to get stitches after a puck to the face and Markus Boguslovsky will be out for a few days with an upper body injury. Despite facing more challenges to our lineup, the boys never gave up. Once again, I am proud of their work ethic and determination to earn a point for the night.
We are looking forward to the challenge of the Canmore Eagles this weekend with another back to back series. Come on out and ROAR for the Dragons.
Photo by Broken Curfew Photography
