Saints Roll to 6-1 Victory over Bobcats.
By: Adam Kulak
The Saints rolled into Lloydminster Wednesday night and put on a clinic, putting up 40 shots and cruising to a 6-1 victory over the Lloydminster Bobcats. Ethan Edwards, Ryan Peckford, Jordan Biro, Brett Trentham and Cam Mitchell all lit the lamp in this one and Maxence Duchesne would pick up the win in his first start of the season. Garrett Larsen would get the start at the other end for Lloydminster as we get things underway.
First Period
The Saints had a very good start to this game and were the better team through 20 minutes. They were the faster team, they defended well in transition and they spent a good amount of time in the Bobcats zone.
They came close to taking the lead several times, Reid Schaefer and Bruce MacGregor had a good chance on a 2 on 1, and the Saints had multiple chances from the slot. Each team had one powerplay opportunity in the period but neither team could convert.
The Saints had their man advantage with 3 minutes left in the period. They managed 10 shots on Bobcats netminder Garrett Larsen, but he would not be solved as it would stay a 0-0 game after 20 minutes of play.
Second Period
The Saints would continue their strong play from the first and carry it over to the second period. It would be Lloydminster however who would strike first in this game. Just 2 minutes into the period, Cameron Aucoin would take a feed from Breydon Berthold and beat Maxence Duchesne short side to give the Bobcats a 1-0 lead.
That lead would only last 2 minutes, as Ethan Edwards would break in alone and go backhand five hole on Garrett Larsen to tie the game back up. After killing off a penalty at the 9-minute mark of the period, the Saints would get two chances close together on the Powerplay to try and find the go-ahead goal.
The Bobcats were able to kill off the first minor, but the Saints would only need 5 seconds to convert on the second Powerplay. Cam Mitchell out front, would redirect Stanley Cooley?s pass to the slot and the Saints would grab their first lead of the night in the later half of the period. That?s how the period would end, with the shots being 24-11 in favor of the Saints, they will head into the final 20 minutes with a 1 goal lead.
Third Period
The Saints wasted no time in the third period, scoring 3 quick goals to put the game away early. Just 24 seconds into the period, Cam Mitchell would cut in down the right side and go top corner for his second of the game, an almost replicated goal of his shorthanded marker on opening night.
Just a minute later, Ryan Peckford would finish the back-door feed from Grahame Gamache off the rush to add to the lead. At the 7-minute mark, Jaxsen Wyatt would put a shot on net and Jordan Biro would get a stick on it, extending the Saints lead to 5-1.
Lloydminster only managed 1 shot in the third period as the Saints had full control of this game from start to finish. Brett Trentham would add a late Powerplay goal as the Saints would close out Lloydminster convincingly 6-1 at the Centennial Civic Centre and improve to 3-0-0 on the season.
The Saints dominated possession wise tonight, outshooting the Bobcats 40-13 in this game. Lloydminster couldn?t get into the Spruce Grove zone as the Saints defended the blueline and neutral zone really well. They created a lot of turnovers in the neutral zone leading to counterattack opportunities as well as created zone entries to get them set up in the offensive zone.
It was a great night all around for everyone on the team. Ethan Edwards would score his first AJHL goal, Cam Mitchell would earn player of the game honors after another two-goal performance and Jaxsen Wyatt and Riley Bodnarchuk were very good as a pair, adding two assists each from the backend. Maxence Duchesne wasn?t tested a whole lot but made the saves he had to in his Saints debut as he picked up his first career AJHL win.
The Saints are back home this Friday and Saturday night, as they welcome the Fort McMurray Oil Barons Friday, and the Whitecourt Wolverines Saturday, puck drop is 7:00pm for both games.