A dominant regular season gave little reward to the Estevan Apex midget AA Bruins in their playoff opener.
The first-place Bruins lost 3-2 to the eighth-place Notre Dame Hounds in the first game of the teams’ best-of-five opening round series of the South Saskatchewan Minor Hockey League playoffs at Affinity Place on Monday. The Hounds played strong defensively throughout limiting the Bruins chances in close while also setting the pace offensively by controlling the play for stretches of time in Estevan’s zone.
“We just weren’t prepared to play,” said Bruins head coach Blake Jamieson.
Hounds defenceman Danton L’Heureux got his team off to a solid start 3:39 into the first period by picking up a rebound at the top of Bruins goalie Ethan Veroba’s crease and poking the puck into the low corner of the net. A couple of Hounds penalties early in the second period helped the Bruins to gain some momentum resulting in a Liam Rutten marker off a cross-crease pass from Hunter Piche just over nine minutes in.
Bruins right wing Jared Fornwald made the score 2-1 one minute later on a tip at the top of the crease that fooled Hounds goaltender Aaron Lachance.
Aiden Strangeway tied the match with 5:21 to play in the second period by one-timing a Zachary Kayton pass out front past Veroba with the Hounds enjoying a man advantage. The Hounds high-scoring forward notched his second of the evening about 20 minutes later on a similar power play opportunity where he whacked home a Brayden Clark cross-crease pass into an open side.
The Bruins headed to Wilcox’s Duncan McNeil Arena for Game 2 on Feb. 21 with the third contest scheduled for Saturday at Affinity Place. The fourth and fifth games, if needed, go Sunday at Notre Dame and March 1 at Affinity Place.
“We outscored them 12-3 in the regular season in three games,” said Jamieson. “It’s playoff hockey. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing, so (we just have to) be prepared to play.”
