The St. Albert Merchants fell short of a comeback victory Sunday against the Beverley Warriors.
Playing their first game of the season in Clareview Arena, the Merchants quickly found themselves in a significant hole after a flurry of goals resulted in a 3-0 deficit after the end of the first period.
Head coach Wes Werhun didn’t want to make excuses for the team’s performance in the 4-3 loss but noted the less then desirable beginning could be related to unfamiliarity with the playing surface.
“We had a little bit of a sluggish start and as the game went on we had to adjust to the large ice surface. We got better as the game went along,” said Werhun.
The Merchants had a chance to compose themselves during intermission, but the slump continued in the second with a power play goal by Kyle Smart, his second of the game.
A late altercation in the period that sent three players from each squad to the penalty box with roughing minors seemingly gave the Merchants the momentum they were looking for as Chris Clarke scored an unassisted goal.
Heading into the intermission with a tally on the scoreboard was the motivation the Merchants needed to start a comeback, according to Werhun.
“We never quit. The boys started to believe in themselves and regained confidence in their game,” he said. “We dropped a couple but we are still seeing success for the most part.”
The Merchants would go on to score unanswered goals by Curtis Mostowich and Nicholas Addessi in the third, but would ultimately fall short of the important two point gain in the standings.
While one of the Merchant’s goals was scored on the power play, Werhun would still like to see an improvement in the area.
“It’s a work in progress out there. We are trying to find some chemistry,” he said. “We just need to know when we are in shooting lanes, we need to get guys in front of the goalie and create some rebounds.”
With the loss the Merchants are now 6-9, which places them in sixth in the west division. The Warriors (12-2-0-1) are currently in first place with a commanding 13-point lead over St. Albert.
Werhun is confident the team’s positioning will improve with the growth of some work habits.
“Sometimes players don’t want to get to the dirty areas on the ice but as coaches we really don’t care how the goal is scored as long as it crosses the goal line,” he said.
Tonight at 8 p.m. the Merchants play the second-place North Edmonton Red Wings (9-5-0-1) at Clareview. On Friday night they visit the last-place Stony Plain Flyers (1-13-0-1) at 8:30 p.m.
The next home game is Sunday versus the fifth-place Edmonton Mustangs (6-7-0-2) at 8 p.m. at Akinsdale Arena.
The Merchants improved to 5-3 on home ice in Friday’s 7-3 win over the Strathcona Bruins (10-5-0-1), ranked third in the east division.
