Wild win at home
Men’s hockey team beats Pronghorns in shootout
KERRI WOLOSZYN STAFF
PHOTO:Chris Shay
In a game mired by penalties, the Manitoba Bisons men’s hockey team was able to extend their current winning streak to four games. The decision came in a shootout where the Herd beat the visiting University of Lethbridge Pronghorns 4-3. The Bisons have now improved their record to 6-7-0.
In the first period the Bisons were able to hold the Pronghorns to a few shots and capitalized on the powerplay. Midway through the first, the Bisons’ Robin Allison did some hard work in the corner to feed the puck to Joshua Belair near the net. Belair then roofed the puck above the Pronghorns’ goalie, Brandon Highton, to put the Herd up 1-0.
Later in the first, with Lethbridge player Chad Rideout in the box for interference, the Herd’s Nick Cowan raced down the ice for a breakaway chance but was hauled down by Lethbridge defenceman Devin Featherstone, who was called for slashing. The Bisons, now on a two-man advantage, were able to set up a dominant power play as Chris Falloon received the puck from a pretty set up by Dustin Hughes and Stewart Theissen. Falloon took a hard slapshot from the point and beat Highton stick-side to make the score 2-0.
Late in the first, with the Pronghorns on a powerplay this time, Feathstone took a hard shot from the point but was robbed by the quick glove of Bisons goalie Steve Christie. Seconds later, the Bisons took a delayof- game penalty resulting in a twoman advantage for the Pronghorns. Lethbridge defenceman Justin Cruse took a shot from the point that beat Christie high glove-side. The score at the end of the first period was 2-1 in favour of the Bisons.
The Bisons came out of the gates quickly in the second period and scored a goal early in yet another twoman advantage. The Herd put the pressure on and just missed on a pass through the crease. The pass resulted in Falloon recovering the puck at the point and taking a hard slapshot through some traffic that beat Highton. Falloon, with his second goal of the night, put the Bisons up 3-1.
At the end of the second period there was a flurry of action in the Lethbridge end, causing both teams to take penalties. A scrum at the very end of the second resulted in more offsetting minor penalties after the buzzer had sounded.
Lethbridge started the third period with a 4-on-3 situation and the promise of a two-man advantage a few seconds later. With one man out of the box, Lethbridge was able to score a goal and cut the lead to 3-2. With eight seconds left on the two-man advantage, Lethbridge’s Featherstone took a shot from the point that beat Christie stick-side.
Midway through the third period there was some exciting end-to-end action and big saves by both goalies.
Late in the period, on the powerplay, Lethbridge’s Steve Zmudczynski set up Mark Shefchyk with a highlight-reel behind-theback pass. Shefchyk was able to beat Christie low on the glove side to tie the game at 3-3. Shefchyk leads his team with 11 goals this season.
Despite action on both ends of the rink in overtime, each goalie provided their teams with big saves that resulted in the game going to a shootout.
With a lively crowd behind them (including a number of Bisons football players) the Herd proved skillfull in both net-minding and scoring. First up in the shootout was the Pronghorns’ Jarret Parkyn who tried to go five-hole on Christie but was stopped. Next, the Bison’s Falloon was able to fake out Highton and put the puck in the net when the goalie was down. Christie then faced the Pronghorn’s Jay Langager and was able to make a toe save on the shot. Finally, the Herd’s Nolan Waker shot the puck through the legs of Highton, ending the game, and making the final score 4-3.
On a two-game homestand, the Bison faced the Pronghorns again on Saturday night. With goals coming from Jamie Dowhayko, Travis Kornelson, Dustin Hughes, Chris Falloon, and Stewart Thiessen, as well as some terrific goaltending from Krister Toews, the Bions swept the weekend series with a 5-2 victory.
The two wins push the Bisons’ winning streak to five games. The team will look to continue their streak this Friday and Saturday, as they travel to Regina for a two-game set with the Regina Cougars.
