It was a game the Grande Prairie Storm had no business losing…but somehow they did.
Playing against the last place team in the entire AJHL, the Storm raced out to a 2-0 lead before the game was four minutes old and looked ready to blow the doors off the Calgary Canucks. Then, however, the Storm began a steady parade to the penalty box and turned a sure win into a 6-3 loss.
Canucks ending up with ten powerplay chances on the game, with many of those being long 5-on-3 advantages. Three of those powerplays they capitalized on, turning a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 lead by the end of the second period.
Storm coach Matt Hughes was left shaking his head afterwards, on a game his club basically handed away.
“We had no discipline tonight and it cost us dearly. Calgary had few scoring opportunities 5-on-5, until we handed them all those powerplays. Then, after we fell behind, we stopped playing as a team, giving us no chance to pull even.”
Ryan Baskerville and Chase Thudium scored at even strength for the home side, while Jordan McTaggart had a short handed marker. As usual, the Storm powerplay struggled, going 0-for-5 on the evening.
Storm still lead Drayton Valley by four points for the final playoff spot in the North Division, but trail Bonnyville by two points for sixth. That's because the Pontiacs downed the Thunder 6-2 in their match-up.
Storm look to end their five game losing skid on Saturday night, as they play host to the Calgary Mustangs. Fans are reminded that it's Teddy Bear toss night on Saturday.
– Story by Don Whiteford of www.PeaceCountrySports.com.