By Terry Martin
The Saints battled the Storm in only their third meeting of the year, with Spruce Grove taking the other two victories. The last time these two teams played against each other, Tristan Martin ended up scoring the first goalie goal in AJHL history. Heading into the last month of the season, the Saints hold a 4-point lead as they look to keep 1st place in the North division. The Storm have 13 wins with 33 points as they sit last in the North, but they are coming off a 2-1 win last week against the Wolverines in overtime.
The Saints and Storm would battle it out, trading chances back and forth through the first 10 minutes of the game. Caden Cabana would be the one to break the ice with 6:15 left in the opening frame. Connor Rooney would then score for the Storm a minute later to tie the game. Caiden Gault would then retake the lead for the Saints as he picked up the rebound in front of the net. Jayden Davis would then fire the puck from the blueline through a crowd to give the Saints a 3-1 lead headed into the 2nd period. Spruce Grove also lead in shots 12-8 after 20 minutes of play.
Evan Gass would open the scoring for the Storm just 2:40 into the 2nd period. Caden Cabana would then shovel the puck home for his 2nd goal of the game with 7 minutes remaining in the second period. Luigi Benincasa would then fire the puck blocker side to give the Saints a 5-2 lead with 1 minute remaining in the middle frame. The Saints would also double up the Storm in shots, leading 26-13 after 2 periods of play.
The Saints and Storm would not register any goals through the majority of the period but Grande Prairie would battle back, outshooting the Saints after getting a few power play opportunities. Both teams would also get more into the rough stuff, gathering for scrums in front of the net after whistles. Brett Pfoh would get the last goal of the game with 2 seconds left, roofing the puck on the power play. Spruce Grove would win this game 6-2 and fire 36 shots on net after 60 minutes of play.
The Saints now take a quick trip up to Fort McMurray on Saturday to take on the Oil Barons as both teams continue to fight for first place in the North.