So far this season, the Grande Prairie Storm's “special teams” have been anything but special. Saturday night, it cost them the game in Spruce Grove.
Saints scoring on the powerplay in each of the first two periods to open up a 2-0 lead and go on to down the Storm 3-1. Overall, the home side was 2-for-6 with the man advantage, while Grande Prairie once again failed to generate anything with the powerplay, on three chances.
Ryan Baskerville, who scored the overtime winner Friday in Whitecourt, tallied with about eight minutes left in the third to make things interesting. The Saints, however, sealed the deal with an empty netter with just seven seconds left.
The loss spoiled a brilliant effort between the pipes for goalie Nick Kulmanovsky. He blocked 36 of the 38 shots he faced, as the Storm were outshot 39-17 overall.
With a 1-2 record on their three-game road trip, the Storm are now 3-2 on the year. They return home this Friday and Saturday for games against the Lloydminster Bobcats. Game time each night is 7:30.
– Story by Don Whiteford of www.PeaceCountrySports.com.