Minor hockey: Hounds encounter odd stretch

By Medicine Hat News on February 11, 2020.

NEWS PHOTO RYAN MCCRACKEN
Medicine Hat Hounds alternate captain Connor Miller looks for a shot during a South Central Alberta Hockey League game against the Airdrie Lightning on Sunday at the Kinplex.

It sure was an odd weekend for the defending provincial midget AA hockey champions.

The Jasper Homes Hounds lost one and were given all they could handle in another game, but the good news is their schedule sets up well for a bit of vengeance.

On Friday in Taber the Golden Suns earned a surprise 8-2 win over Medicine Hat. Nathan Verloops, Wyatt Broderson and Cody Stange each had two goals and an assist for a team that entered the night below .500 and had lost their previous game with the Hounds 8-0 back in October.

Medicine Hat lost just its fourth game of the regular season, outshooting Taber 41-37 and getting goals from Brady Dovichak and Cameron Hall.

The teams do play each other at the Kinplex this Friday at 7:15 p.m., then the following Friday also.

The Hounds nearly lost their second in a row for the first time this season, but hung on for a 4-3 win at home to Airdrie Sunday.

The wild game saw 22 power plays necessitated by 80 minutes in penalties. There were slew-foots, spears and double minors galore but the hosts never trailed, getting early goals from Callen Prosofsky and Cayden Dumanowski. Connor Miller and Caleb Irvine added second-period power play goals and Brennan Olson made 24 saves as his team outshot the Lightning 47-27.

Midget 15’s

The South East Athletic Club’s midget 15-year-old Tigers had to settle for a single point in the standings on the weekend.

Leading the Calgary Blazers Sunday at Hockey Hounds Recreation Centre, the Tigers gave up two power-play goals, the last with nine seconds to go and wound up with a 3-3 tie.

That followed a 3-1 loss in Calgary Saturday to the Blackhawks.

Kieran Christianson, Ty Flaig and Brady Mahar scored in the tie, while Kyle Woolridge had the lone goal in the loss.

Midget girls

The Southern Express leapfrogged the Rocky Mountain Raiders in the Alberta Female Hockey League’s midget elite division with a 4-1 win at the Family Leisure Centre Sunday.

Hometown player Maddy King scored twice and fellow Hatter Hayley Whelen came 6:10 away from a shutout, stopping 18 shots on the day.

Express next hosts league-leading Calgary Fire Red on Saturday at the Moose Rec Centre, a 7:45 p.m. start.

Bantam AAA

SEAC’s bantam AAA team faced two division leaders this past weekend and emerged with wildly different results.

On Friday at Hockey Hounds, the Tigers beat the Lloydminster Bobcats 4-2. Lloydminster leads the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League’s Charger North Division but was held at bay by Tigers goalie Beck Boiteau, who made 38 stops.

Dawson Seitz scored two power play goals, Ford Gilbert and Deegan Kinniburgh also found the back of the net in a game that saw SEAC get nine man advantages to the Bobcats’ three.

Still on home ice Saturday, the Tigers were throttled 10-0 by the Challenger South-leading Calgary Royals. The Tigers had another 10 power plays but this time couldn’t beat goalie Alex Jessey, who made 30 saves for the shutout.

Bantam AA

Olds beat Medicine Hat 8-0 in bantam AA action Saturday.

At Olds, Walker Overwater had four goals, Aidan Saunders five assists and Treyton Mirus 24 saves for the home team.

Peewee AA

In peewee AA action, Medicine Hat Black lost 5-2 to division-leading Taber Friday, despite Ryder Straarup’s two first-period goals.

They rebounded with a 9-5 win over Airdrie at the Moose Rec Centre Saturday. Colby Motz, Cole Fisher and Owen Bruins each had two goals, while Carter Allan and Ryan Miller had three helpers each.

Orange tied Cranbrook 4-4 on home ice Friday and lost 5-4 in Okotoks Saturday. A crazy third period Friday included seven of the game’s eight goals, with Orange taking a 4-1 lead before Cranbrook rallied to tie it with 1:39 to go.

Davin Torgerson’s hat trick led the way for Medicine Hat Saturday but Okotoks scored the final two goals in a back-and-forth contest.

Peewee girls

The Wildcats peewee girls team had a busy weekend, going 3-0.

Against Lethbridge’s Cyclones Friday, Medicine Hat earned a 5-4 win with two goals from Riley Gramlich and singles from Keyana Bert and Hayley Grad.

A rematch with the Cyclones Saturday saw the Wildcats win 4-2, with Gramlich and Keira Grant scoring two apiece.

Finally, an 8-2 win over Airdrie Sunday saw Gramlich with a hat trick, Grant and Bert with two each and Myla Motz scoring the other.