The results of the two-game home-and-home series between the top-ranked NEAJBHL team, the Wainwright Bisons, and the Saddle Lake Warriors ended up exactly as may have been expected. The Bisons took home two big wins to stretch their record to 12-0, and the Warriors added two more losses to their record.
The Bisons whitewashed the Warriors 6-0 at the Manitou Kihew Arena on Friday night, and one night later earned a 9-2 blowout win over the team from Saddle Lake.
In Friday night’s game the Warriors got off to a nervous start and allowed a goal only 42 seconds into the game to Cody Bird. Two more goals were added prior to the end of the period to give the Bisons a 3-0 lead. Colby Schacher scored both goals.
The Bisons outshot the Warriors by a 17-3 margin in the first period.
The Warriors were victimized by another early goal in the second period. Zach MacKay scored at the 2:19 mark.
The lack of goal scoring, which has been problematic for the young Warriors team throughout the season, was not the only issue in this game. The Warriors were struggling to get any pulse going on offence. Time in the attacking zone in the first 40 minutes of the game was a very rare commodity.
Time and time again the Warriors ceded to the Bisons neutral zone trap and dumped the puck itno the zone, and the occasional time they did breach the blueline they were forced into a shot attempt that could easily be parried away.
The Bisons held a 14-7 shot advantage in the middle frame.
Warriors head coach Terry Ewasiuk said his team was dealing with a lack of confidence in the first two periods. He said what transpired on Wednesday night against the Cold Lake Ice, a 5-2 Warriors loss, played a role in his team being uneasy.
“They (Cold Lake) basically gooned us. They ran us and initiated fights and the young players on this team are not used to that, and that made us tentative and intimidated by the size of Wainwright.”
There were four affiliate players in the lineup for the Warriors and two players on the team born in 1999.
One high point was that the Warriors came out a different team in the third period and outshot the Bisons 15-12.
The increased shot total came as a result of more confident rushes into the attacking zone with speed instead of resorting to a dump and chase brand of hockey.
Ewasiuk credited some of the affiliate call-ups as being a good sparkplug for the team.
“I put some midget players on the top lines and benched a couple of disappointing veterans. Those players showed work ethic, they made good hits and the energy they created late in the second period carried over for us in the third period. Some of the veterans gave up to early but these young guys gave it all they got until the end.”
Ewasiuk identified Delden Cardinal, Taylon Moosewah and Dean Quinney as three of the players that provided positive energy.
The Bisons did end up potting two more goals in that period. Carson James struck at 3:17 and MacKay scored his second of the game at 15:19.
Ewasiuk said that coming into the weekend this year’s Warrior team has scored 12 less goals (19) than last year’s team (31). Last year’s team ended with a 2-34 record.
On the positive side, this year’s Warriors team has allowed 19 less goals (53) than the 72 allowed by last year’s team prior to the weekend. The team’s penalty kill, which has gone a perfect 17 for 17 in the past two weeks, deserves credit for this positive defensive development.
The affiliate players that sparked the Warriors were not in the lineup on Saturday. Ewasiuk said his team would have to play a 1-2-2 passive and opportunistic forecheck in order to get by with a shorthanded lineup.
The Bisons however took the play to Saddle Lake by outshooting them an incredible 58-20.
Upcoming Schedule
For the upcoming week, the Warriors will be faced with the tough task of playing three games in three nights. They will visit the Canadiens on Friday night at 8 p.m., and will host the Lloydminster Bandits and Onion Lake Border Chiefs on Saturday night at 8 p.m. and Sunday night at 5 p.m. respectively. After this, the Warriors then play a total of one game in 17 days.
