CANMORE – A season of highs and lows has come to an end for the Canmore Eagles following the junior A team’s first round elimination on Sunday (March 19).
Veteran netminder Andreai Proctor-Ramirez had 49 saves in Game 6’s 2-1 overtime loss as the Eagles fell 4-2 in the series against the Drumheller Dragons.
“Unfortunately, it’s the way hockey goes. One team has to win and one team has to lose,” said Proctor-Ramirez, who played his final game in the AJHL and will play NCAA Division 3 hockey in Wisconsin next season. “For us to win games, I need to make saves and if I’m not doing that then we would have lost. Obviously, it sucks. I wish I could have made a few more and we wouldn’t be out right now, but unfortunately, it’s the way it goes.”
A fan favourite, the goalie made his mark on the Eagles as the No. 1 option in net for the past two seasons. Anyone watching Proctor-Ramirez play was often dumbfounded by his unorthodox, out-of-the-net style that made for heart-racing moments and saw more than a few mad dashes back to the crease to make a split-second save.
Given the nickname “Manny” after baseball slugger Manny Ramirez, the kid from Paradise Hill, Sask., was highly influenced by goalies such as Dominik Hasak, Martin Brodeur, and Marc-André Fleury, among others.
“I molded a little piece of all of them in one and made my own weird style, I guess,” said Proctor-Ramirez.
In six playoff games this season, Proctor-Ramirez (2-2-2) had a .926 save percentage. Of the six games, five were settled by one goal, including two overtime games in Canmore.
Eagles head coach Andrew Milne praised Proctor-Ramirez at the conclusion of the series.
“I know Manny, I know what type of character he is, and I knew he was going to bring it and lay it on the line, and he did,” said Milne. “He was outstanding for us.”
In the series, the clashing Junior A hockey clubs split games one and two in Drumheller with the Eagles winning 4-3 on March 10 and the Dragons taking March 11’s match-up, 5-1.
The series shifted over to Canmore for games three and four where the Dragons came to town and stole both. Drumheller fought back from a two-goal deficit in Game 3 to win 3-2 on March 14. In Game 4, the Eagles lost 2-1 in double overtime on March 15.
In Game 5, Vinny Scott scored twice, Proctor-Ramirez made 41 saves and the Eagles fought off elimination in a 3-2 March 17 game in Drumheller.
The series shifted back to Canmore and went into another OT thriller. However, close to halfway through the extra frame, Dragons captain Sam Simard got to the front of the net after a face-off in Canmore’s zone and knocked in a rebound to end the game and series.
The Eagles lost all three home games at the Alex Kaleta Arena.
#Canmore Eagles have been eliminated from the #AJHL playoffs, losing the series 4-2 to Drumheller. The Eagles lost Game 6 on Sunday in OT, 2-1. Eagles goalie Andreai Proctor-Ramirez had 49 saves. pic.twitter.com/ENKXTrQorb
— Jordan Small (@jordiesmall) March 20, 2023
With tears in his eyes, the Game 6 loss ends Eagles forward Owen Jones' rookie campaign. Canmore had 10 rookies on its roster during the playoffs.
“I don’t regret anything,” said Jones, who is from Canmore. “I think we put everything out that we had in us and it just didn’t come out our way.”
He said playing in front of his hometown crowd was a “dream come true.”
“To see my family and friends at my game, I couldn’t have asked for more from them and I thank them so much for coming and supporting and I’m not going to let them down next year,” said Jones.
In the playoffs, Jones had one goal and three points.
Local rookie defenceman Finn McLaughlin finished with two helpers.
Eagles Captain Vinny Scott, who played in his final AJHL game, led the team in playoff scoring with four goals and two assists.
Throughout the season, many new faces joined the Junior A club due to trades, injuries, and retirements.
Milne said once the playoffs hit, he thought depth, which lead to fatigue, was an issue. However, he praised the players for “how hard they competed.”
“That was a hell of a series,” said Milne. “You want to play your best hockey in the playoffs and we did that. It’s just, unfortunately, we were a bounce or two away from being on the winning side of that.”
As Proctor-Ramirez exits the club, Matthew Malin and newly signed John MacPherson will be in between the pipes next season.
The Eagles also host spring camps in April.
“I loved playing with these guys and they helped me grow throughout the season and this is not the way I wanted it to go,” said Proctor-Ramirez, choking back tears. “[What I’ll miss most] is showing up to the rink and just talking with these guys all the time.”
