It appeared the Eagles were ready to celebrate Family Day early on Monday (Feb. 18), pumping two quick goals past Olds goaltender Ethan Jemieff, who looked shakey on both chances.
An AHJL tilt at Alex Kaleta Arena saw Luke Simpson cash in on a juicy rebound for his 25th goal of the year. Simpson was strong all night, crashing the net.
Shortly after, Riley Point also hammered home another weak rebound for his 14th of the year, putting the Eagles firmly in the driver’s seat.
But the lead wasn’t enough.
“The game should have been over in the first period. We should have scored five right there,” said Eagles head coach Andrew Milne. “We had huge missed opportunities. In the first period, we had 10 legitimate scoring chances and we shot it right at him. I will take it away from their goaltender. I don’t think he played well at all. We shot all of our pucks at him, not around him. We weren’t sharp on our execution and that cost us.”
In the second period, Olds outworked the Eagles and put a goal past Cam Barnes when Blair Oneschuk was left alone in front to make it 2-1.
Undisciplined penalties piled up for Olds, but the Eagles couldn’t capitalize on their chances. Canmore failed to score on a five-on-three power play to start the third period, and looked tentative throughout the man advantage, which gave the Grizzlys life.
Just past the 13-minute mark, Matthew Marcinew was credited with a goal after a blast from the point to knot the game at 2-2. Three minutes later, Marcinew scored his second of the night and Olds took control.
The Eagles pressed in the final minutes, but their chances ended up in Jemieff’s chest. Time and time again, Eagles’ chances were buried right into the goaltender and they couldn’t capitalize on the power play, which went zero for eight.
Milne said injuries have hurt the powerplay. “(Steven) Phee would have been on that five on three. He has a heavy shot and so does (Nils) Moser.”
For the Eagles, Barnes got the start after stopping 53 shots against the Okotoks Oilers Saturday night (Feb. 16), helping the Eagles snap a seven-game losing streak, and a 16-game losing streak against the Oilers. Barnes was solid against Olds and had little chance on any of the goals, which could be attributed to defensive miscues.
“Olds was a good character game for us. We played the game with 15 guys and that probably cost us a little bit (against Olds),” Milne said. “Barnes was outstanding for us the other night and he deserved the chance to come back. It was not his fault on any of the goals.”
Barnes said he’s feeling better again, working well with Ty Swabb to push one another in the Eagles’ net.
“I’ve been having good practices of late, getting some starts again. I feel like I’m tracking the puck well,” Barnes said. “Having Ty back is awesome. He’s a veteran guy who knows a lot and has a lot of experience. I’ve learned a lot from him. If I can push him as much as I can, I think I’m doing my job.”
The loss threatens to drop the Eagles further down the standings. Currently they’re battling with the Grizzlys and Calgary Mustangs for fifth in the division. The Eagles still have a two point lead on Olds with a game in hand at press time.
If the Eagles maintain fifth spot, they’ll face Drumheller in the first round of the playoffs. If they drop to sixth, they’ll face Okotoks, a team Canmore has only defeated once in the past three years. If they fall to seventh, they’ll face a tough Camrose club that has given the Eagles problems all year.
Maintaining that spot will be tough, as two of the Eagles final games are against the Brooks Bandits, which have only lost three games this year.
“We hope to maintain our position. This game was huge. We have a tough schedule in front of us, but we’re going to concentrate on us,” Milne said.
That means players who are on the cusp of coming back will receive extra rest. Forwards Phee, Moser and Simon Philp are close to returning, as is defenceman John Stevens.
The Eagles’ next home game is against Drumheller Saturday (Feb. 23) at Alex Kaleta Arena. Playoff tickets are now on sale.
In other Eagles news, Zack Rassell earned the Charles S. Nolan Scholarship award. The award is given to players taking post-secondary classes while playing in the AJHL.
