photo via Target Photography
The Sherwood Park Crusaders were looking to make three wins in a row tonight against the Camrose Kodiaks.
Head Coach, Adam Manah made a few changes to his lineup with Matt Berlin, Tyler Jette, Zafir Rawji, and Brett Wieschorster all sitting this one out. The four of them were replaced by Brandon Vogel, Connor Hart, Brayden Hyland, and Deklan Whillans.
Here’s how this one went down:
First Period
Brandon Vogel got the start for the Crusaders tonight for the first time since opening night against the Drayton Valley Thunder. It did not start out so well for Vogel conceding on the first shot. It would have been a tough one for any goaltender to make as the puck with slid right across his crease and tipped in by Colson Gengenbach.
Shortly after, William Zapernick was sent to the box for tripping, putting the Kodiaks on the powerplay. The Crusaders killed off the penalty and gained momentum from it, putting Camrose on their back foot.
Michael Benning’s shot ended up in the back of the net, however, it was quickly disallowed as the net had been knocked off. Benning had a couple other chances but was denied by Roddy Ross in the Kodiaks goal.
Camrose would add another one before the period was over. A loose puck in the scramble somehow made it by Vogel in goal. Gengenbach was credited with the goal.
Second Period
The first chance of the second frame fell to Michael Bentz. Bentz was left wide open in the slot but failed to put his shot on goal. With the speed that was behind the puck if he had managed to get it on goal and likely would have given the Cru their first of the game.
However, the Kodiaks were the first to open the scoring in the period. Zach Vinnell found Kyler Kupka on the backdoor to make it 3-0 in favour of the home team.
Deklan Whillans had himself a good checking period, finishing every check with power. He played his energy role well for the Crusaders.
With under five minutes to play in the period, Arjun Atwal got the Crusaders on the board on the powerplay. Atwal managed to squeeze the puck over the left shoulder of Ross in the Kodiaks goal.
The Cru would end the period on the penalty kill with Jayden Platz in the box for holding.
Third Period
It was a bit more of a feisty third period with the Crusaders getting a little frustrated with the way the game was going. On the back end of the frame, it seemed at almost every whistle a scrum was emerging. Stay tuned to see if any of those boil over into next week’s matchup between the two teams.
Tyson Scott had a chance within the first couple of the minutes when he was sent away on a shorthanded breakaway. He was denied by the Camrose netminder, Ross, who had himself a solid night in goal.
Not many other good chances fell in favour of the Crusaders.
A rare mistake by Jacob Franczak led to the Kodiaks fourth goal. Franczak attempted to pass the puck up the ice but completely missed it. McAdams took it away and had a clear lane to the net giving Vogel not much of a chance.
Not much else really happened in the third with the final score being 4-1 to the Kodiaks giving the Crusaders their second regulation loss of the season.
The Ups:
- Brennan McDonnell is getting better game by game. He’s becoming more comfortable when the puck is on his stick and is a very reliable defenceman.
- The penalty killed looked good tonight not giving up many chances. The only goal they gave up on the penalty kill was the mistake by Franczak.
- Deklan Whillans made himself a factor in the game finishing every check. Again, he played his role very well.
The Downs:
- Even though they had 35 shots they did not have many great shots that tested Ross. They had a couple of good opportunities but failed to hit the net.
- They allowed early goals in the first and second period. Always tough to come back from those ones.
- Not having Jette on the ice was a factor for sure. The defence did a decent jump without him but when you are missing your best defenceman their going to be a noticeable hole.
Up Next:
Crusaders look for some revenge against the Drayton Valley Thunder on the road. That one gets underway at 7:30 p.m. at the Drayton Valley Omniplex.
