A rough opening for the Drayton Valley Thunder in the AJHL North Division finals. Two losses over the weekend have given the Spruce Grove Saints a 2-0 lead in the series.
Game 1 was April 8, where the Saints came out on top 5-2.
The Saints were first on the board, as Logan Acheson scored near the end of the first period. Acheson scored at 18:57, while Brett Phof and Caiden Gault assisted on the play. It was 1-0 for the Saints at the end of the first.
The Thunder tied things up early in the second though as Drew Sutton scored at 2:37, with Jack Silverberg and Matthew Strilets getting the assists. Logan Acheson then got his second of the night at 12:13, with an assist from Ewan McPherson. At the end of the second, it was 2-1 for the Saints.
The Saints’ momentum kept going in the third. Jayden Davis scored on the power play just 43 seconds in to make it 3-1, as Luigi Benincasa and Breck McKinley picked up the assists. The Thunder then earned their second of the night at 2:35, thanks to Moe Hakim and assists from Ethan Browne and Daniel Kernaghan to make it 3-2. The Saints then cemented their lead with two unanswered goals. Caiden Gault scored at 9:11, with an assist from Cade Mason. Then Brett Phof scored at 17:44. Luigi Benincasa and Caiden Gault each picked up their second assists for the night. Final score was 5-2 for the Thunder.
The Saints just dominated the game, outshooting the Thunder 45-21. The Saints had the more successful power play as well, going 1 for 5. The Thunder went 0 for 8.
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Game 2 on April 9 was much more heartbreaking for the Thunder, as they lost to the Saints 4-3 in overtime.
The Thunder were first out of the gate this time, as Kadyn Chabot scored on the power play at 14:02. Brody Tallman and Rylan Brown picked up the assists. The first period ended with the Thunder leading 1-0.
The Saints tied things up at 2:08 of the second. Ewan McPherson scored while Cade Mason and Graeme Bryks assisted. The Thunder then pulled ahead with two goals. At 8:19, Kadyn Chabot and Brody Tallman got their second goal and assist for the night. Then at 13:13, Brett Bamber scored, while Stephen Kirkpatrick and Daniel Kernaghan assisted on the play. At the end of the second, the Thunder had a 3-1 lead.
But the Saints started pulling ahead in the third. Caiden Gault scored on the power play at 2:54, with Cade Mason and Liam Watkins getting the assists to close the Thunder’s lead to 3-2. Nikola Jovanovic then tied things up on the power play at 19:13, with Jayden Davis and Caiden Gault picking up the assists. With the third ending in a 3-3 tie, the game was going to overtime.
It was all over at 15:12 into overtime. Brett Phof scored on the power play with assists from Cade Mason and Jaden Senkoe. The Saints came from behind to win 4-3.
The Saints once again dominated the proceedings, outshooting the Thunder 62-24. The Saints had more power play opportunities, going 3 for 8. The Thunder were 1 for 1 on the power play.
With the Saints leading 2-0 in the series, the Thunder are hoping home ice advantage will help them turn things around. Games 3 and 4 go down at the Drayton Valley Omniplex on April 12 and 13.
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