Fuelled by the chance for a permanent spot on the team, players still in contention to play for the Bonnyville Jr. A Pontiacs hit the ice for the team's first home exhibition game of the pre-season.
On Friday, Aug. 24, the Pontiacs faced off against the Lloydminster Bobcats at the RJ Lalonde Arena in Bonnyville and in a fast-paced, high-intensity game that saw both teams have their fair share of chances. The Pontiacs managed to edge out a 4-2 victory.
For many of the players, who are still undergoing evaluations by Pontiacs coaching staff, the game was the first taste of competition against another team, despite having played in Lloydminster earlier in the week, and head coach Chad Mercier said he was impressed by the pace the players kept up.
“It was, for a lot of the guys, the first exhibition game and I thought a lot of the guys got better as the game went on and could certainly see the pace picked up,” explained Mercier. “(We had) a lot of young guys in the line-up and… seen a lot of positive things tonight from a lot of guys and we will certainly move forward and make some evaluations and continue to get better.”
The Pontiacs dominated play during the first period, out-shooting the team from Lloyminster 10-2. They were unable to put any by the Bobcats goaltender though and the period ended in a 0-0 tie.
The Bobcats turned up their offensive play early in the second and after eight shots on goal in the first four minutes of the period they put one by the Pontiacs goaltender for the first goal of the game.
Shortly after though, Ty Carey scored the first goal of the night for the Pontiacs to tie the game at 1-1.
After the ensuing centre ice face-off, Stephen Zipp of the Pontiacs squared off with a Bobcats player who took a run at one of his team mates and helped swing the momentum in the Pontiacs favour. Zipp was kicked out of the game after the fight.
“(It) shows he cares, I mean, you need people around who care,” replied Mercier when asked about Zipps's willingness to step up and defend his team. Mercier added that situation can't make or break a players chance of making the team but Zipp's intensity is something they are looking for.
“One situation isn't going to make or break a guy yet. Ultimately, when have all those things combined (with all skills, it) makes the difference and it shows that he cares.”
The Pontiacs fed off of Zipp's intensity and added two goals back-to-back in under 15 seconds in the last five minutes of the period to make the score 3-1 for the Pontiacs going into the second intermission.
The first half of the third period saw both teams battle for puck possession in the neutral zone and fail to muster any offensive chances. But with under 10 minutes left to go, Pontiacs forward Tanner Dusyk scored a power-play goal to make the score 4-1; the icing on the cake for the Pontiacs.
The Bobcats scored one last goal late in the third but were unable to deal with the pressure of a young, impassioned Pontiacs team who won by a final score of 4-2.
Overall, Mercier said he was impressed by his team's performance and with the young players still trying to earn a permanent spot in the Pontiac's line-up. He said the big thing for young players at this stage of tryouts is just not to get overwhelmed.
“(The big thing is to) not get overwhelmed with what we're showing them and working on in practice. Not get overwhelmed by what's being thrown at them and making sure that they come every day and are able to read and react and play to their strengths. It's a tough time of the year for everybody.”
On Sunday evening, the Pontiacs were back in action at the RJ Lalonde Arena against the Fort McMurray Oil Barons. In a back and forth, low scoring game, the Pontiacs squeezed out a 2-1 victory.
The Sunday evening line-up changed from Friday night's line up in order for the teams coaching staff to evaluate more of the players still trying for a spot on the team and Mercier said the coaches will narrow down their line-up to the 25 players best suited to make a strong team.
“We're looking for the guys that can make plays, the guys that are willing to come in and compete on a shift-by-shift, day-to-day basis and guys that are willing to take some of the stuff we're trying to throw at them and be able to take them and put them into action,” he explained.
“We look at a lot of different things and ultimately we're looking for the top best fit 25 guys that are going to make us the best hockey team moving forward.”
Mercier and his staff still have three more exhibition games to go before they make the final decision on the line-up but the they will have the team list finalized before they play their first game of the regular season on Sept. 7 at 7 p.m. at the RJ Lalonde Arena in Bonnyville.
