The season ended sooner than expected for the St. Albert Raiders.
The Leduc Oil Kings edged the Raiders 3-2 in double overtime Friday at Akinsdale Arena in the fifth and deciding game in the north division semifinal in the Alberta Midget AAA Hockey League. It was the third game in the series to be decided in extra periods, all of which Leduc won.
In game five the Raiders let a 2-1 lead slip away with two minutes remaining. While on the power play they took a penalty and Leduc scored against Brad Miller.
“We played pretty well but they got a fortunate goal with just under two minutes to play to tie it up. We missed our man on the D-zone coverage and left a guy open,” said head coach Sandro Pisani.
It didn't help that defender Nick Walters was lost to a major and a game misconduct and the Raiders were already down to five defencemen heading into the contest.
“In the third period we stuck to the game plan and did a lot of things well,” Pisani said. “We were a bit unfortunate with that penalty, which I thought really turned the game around.”
The Raiders seemed poised to define the series in game one with a four-goal shutout, but Leduc battled back in double OT with a 4-3 game two win. The next game they pushed the Raiders to the brink with a 3-2 win in sudden death. The Raiders battled back in game four with a 5-2 decision.
Pisani said it could have been anybody's series but felt Leduc benefited from the better bounces.
“The first overtime, we hit a crossbar and had a breakaway that we missed and they got two power plays. We killed the first one but couldn't kill the second in the second overtime with a couple minutes left,” he said. “If we get a break, we're not sitting in this situation, as cheesy as it sounds. I just don't think we got that bounce. When [Troy] Bourke tips it in overtime, instead of hitting the crossbar and down and out, it's down and in and we're getting ready for Lloydminster [in the north final].”
Pisani was proud with the Raiders’ effort, although he would have liked to see more consistent grit. As an example, he pointed towards Leduc's three goals in game five and most of the goals in the series.
“I can't say any of their goals were pretty. They worked hard for their goals and at times we didn't want to pay the same price. Their goaltending was very good too,” he said. “You can't question the effort that we put forth. We dominated the play at times, but sometimes you have to pay the price and get real dirty to score some ugly goals.”
In league play the Raiders and the Lloydminster Bobcats finished tied for first place in the north as the league leaders at 23-6-6. Leduc was third at 16-11-8.
“We were a very tight team,” Pisani said. “We did a pretty good job of working with individual personalities and getting them to buy into a team concept. That's always difficult when you're bringing 21 young men together.”
ICE CHIPS: Spencer Galbraith, Jayden Hart and Kevin Lacroix led the Raiders in playoff scoring with four points apiece. Galbraith and Hart both had two goals. Garth Wallin, Dustin Beairsto and Brady Goebel each had three points.
Miller (1-1, 2.08 GAA and 144 MP) and Liam Liston (1-2, 2.01 GAA and 209 MP and one shutout) split time in net.
