League: Edmonton Federation Hockey League

Sherwood Park Saints at Beaumont Braves 701

The Saints close out their regular season with a road game against BE701. The Saints won their previous meeting Beaumont and need a win or a tie to secure the second playoff seed. This would provide a bye for the first playoff week. The Saints get on the board midway though the first to take a 1-0 lead. The Saints score again to take a 2-0 lead with just over a minute left in the period . The Saints out shoot Beaumont 15-7 and lead 2-0 after the first period of play.

The Saints score from the right face off dot area to go up 3-0. Beaumont then gets a power play opportunity to get on the board. The Saints control most of a somewhat sloppy second period out shooting Beaumont 12-6. They lead 3-0 after two periods of play.

Beaumont rattles one of the post midway through the third. Beaumont gets on the board shortly after to close the gap to 3-1. The Saints get a power play opportunity to try and extend the lead. Beaumont scores with roughly 3 1/2 minutes left in the third to make it an interesting last few minutes. The Saints answer with a late goal of their own to make it 4-2. The Saints out shoot Beaumont 10-7 in the third and 27-20 overall. The 4-2 win gives the Saints the second seed for playoffs and a bye in the first round.

Leaders after the regular season:

Points = 30 Dominic Amyotte-Lorenson

Goals = 18 Bryson Oleksyn

PM = 73 Bryson Oleksyn

Wins = 14 Ben Kraiger

Save % = .892 Ben Kraiger

Defense:

Points = 13 Connor Cyca

Goals = 7 Ryan Clark

PM = 47 Brenden Bullick

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Game photos by John K. White and Bill Clark.

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Knights of Columbus 702 at Sherwood Park Saints

This is the final home game of the regular season for the Saints as they have a rematch with KC702 from last weekend. The Saints won that game 9-4 and are looking to sweep this weekend’s two games to ensure a bye in the first round of the playoffs. This is the final U18 home game for graduating players: Nathan Yasinko, Dominic Amyotte-Lorenson, Ryan Clark, Bryson Oleksyn, and Connor Kreiser. A power play gives KC a chance to get on the board first midway through the first period. The Saints kill off the penalty to keep the game tied at zero. A fairly even, but sloppy at times first period saw the Saints outshoot KC 14-10. The score remains tied 0-0.

A four minutes power play for KC early in the second period gives them another chance to get on the board first. It turns into a five on three with a minute left in the original penalty. The Saints successfully kill off all penalty time. KC scores on its ninth shot of the period to take a 1-0 lead. The Saints score right after killing off another penalty to tie the game 1-1. The Saints score again on a two on one to take the lead 2-1. KC responds with a goal of their own to ties the game at two. KC out shoots the Saints 15-7 in the second period mostly due to power play time. The score remains tied at two after two.

The Saints go up 3-2 on a lucky bounce on the the boards right to David Fleming in the slot. The Saints finally get a power play opportunity with just over 13 minutes remaining in the third period. A late penalty by the Saints gives KC a chance to tie the game. The Saints kill off the penalty and immediately take another one. KC pulls the goalie to give them a two man advantage. Shots were even at 9 in the third period and 34-30 overall for KC.   A solid game by goaltender Ben Kraiger lets the Saints hang on for a 3-2 victory.

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Knights of Columbus 702 at Sherwood Park Saints

This is the second meeting of the regular season between these two teams. The Saints were down a number of regulars the last time they played KC and lost 7-6. A full lineup will help for this game. The Saints score on their first shot of the game less than a minute into the first period. The Saints score again to take a 2-0 barely over two minutes into the game. A breakaway goal makes it 3-0 less than four minutes into the game. The Saints score again on the power play to go up 4-0. The Saints dominate the first period out shooting KC 11-5 and lead 4-0 after one period of play.

The Saints score early again to extend the lead to 5-0. KC gets on the board to make it 5-1. KC strike again to start to make it a game at 5-2. The Saints respond with a goal to make it 6-2. The two goals by KC seemed to wake up the Saints again. They score again to lead 7-2. A goalie change by the Saints with the shots 19-14 for the home team. KC capitalizes quickly to make it 7-3. The Saints respond quickly to make it 8-3. The Saints out shoot KC 13-12 in the second period and hold a 8-3 lead heading into period three. Callum Hein making his goaltending debut as an affiliate for the Saints. Dawson MacMillan with the hat trick after two periods of play.

An early power play gives KC a chance to cut into the lead. KC scores on a breakaway to make it 8-4. The Saints add to the lead to make it 9-4. The Saints let off the gas a bit in the third period and allow KC to tie the game shots at 31 a piece. Callum with a strong performance in net in relief stopping 15 of 17 shots.  The Saints win the game 9-4. A rematch between these teams will happen next weekend.

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Stony Plain 701 at Sherwood Park Saints

The Saints take on Stony in a rematch from last weekends 8-4 loss in Stony Plain. They hope that home ice will allow for a better outcome this time. The Saints score an early power play goal to take the lead 1-0. They follow it up to go up 2-0. The Saints out shoot Stony 12-6 and lead 2-0 after one period of play.

The Saints score again to take a 3-0 lead. Stony registers their first shot on net in the second period with 12:28 left on the clock. Stony gets on the board with just under three minutes left in the second period. The Saints control most of the play in the first half of the period, but Stony pushes back in the second half of the period. Stony out shoots the Saints 10-7 in the second, but trail 3-1 on the scoresheet at the end of the period.

The Saints get in penalty trouble in the first half of the period allowing Stony to get some momentum going. Stony out shoots the Saints 15-4 in the third period, but falls 3-1 to the Saints. The win cuts into Stony’s points lead in the standings.

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Sherwood Park Saints at Stony Plain 701

This is the first regular season game between these two teams. The Saints beat Stony 4-1 in minor hockey week. The Saints next game will be a rematch between these two teams. The Saints score first with 14:39 left in the first period after killing off a penalty. Stony ties the game a minute later. Stony scores a late power play goal to go up 2-1. A sloppy first period saw the Saints out shoot Stony 15-9, but they trail 2-1 after one.

The Saints kill off the remainder of a penalty to start the second period. Bryson Oleksyn ties the game on a snipe to the top corner. Stony takes the lead back with a rebound goal. Stony scores another one shortly after to take a 4-2 lead. Way too many penalties to get a good flow going. Stony’s goalie misplays the puck behind his net and the Saints close the lead to 4-3. The Saints out shoot Stony 17-9 in the second period, but trail 4-3 on the scoreboard.

The officiating leaves a lot to be desired this game. An injury to a Stony player delays the game with 17:45 left in the third period and Stony on a power play. Stony scores on the power play to take a 5-3 lead. Stony scores another power play goal to go up 6-3. It seems that every time in this arena the team has to battle the opposition as well as the officials. Stony scores another goal to go up 7-3. The Saints score a late goal and it is now 7-4. Stony answers right back with a goal of their own. Stony out shoots the Saints 16-5 in the third and win 8-4.

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Sherwood Park Saints at Sturgeon 701

This is the sixth meeting of the year between these two teams. Sturgeon holds a 3-2 advantage on wins, but both the Saints victories were in minor hockey week including the final. A much better first period by the Saints, in the rematch from last week, saw Sturgeon out shoot the Saints 10-9 and the score remains knotted at 0.

Sturgeon gets an early power play to try and break the ice in this game. The Saints hold Sturgeon to one shot on the power play and successfully kill it off. A nice save by Ben Kraiger on a short handed breakaway keeps the game scoreless. The Saints score shortly after to take a 1-0 lead. The Saints follow that up with another quick goal to take a 2-0 lead. The Saints score a late power goal to go up 3-0. They follow it up with another quick goal to go up 4-0 with 43 seconds left in the second period. Another goal with 34 seconds left give the Saints a 5-0 lead. The second period ends with a 5-0 lead for the Saints. They had to play half of the period with 4 defensemen due to an injury and a misconduct. Shots were 15-6 for the Saints the second period.

The Saints score early to go to up 6-0 on a nice passing play. The Saints out shoot Sturgeon 12-10 in the third period and 36-26 overall. A solid bounce back game after losing 5-0 to Sturgeon last weekend.  A good shutout for Ben Kraiger in goal for the Saints.

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Sherwood Park Saints at Sturgeon 701

This will be the third meeting between these teams in the last three weeks. The Saints won both prior meetings in minor hockey week which included a 5-1 victory in the final. Both teams also meet next weekend. Sturgeon scores less than a minute into the game to take a 1-0 lead. The Saints get a 5 on three opportunity to tie the game. The Saints fail to take advantage and Sturgeon scores right after to go up 2-0. Sturgeon goes up 3-0 midway through the first Sturgeon adds another to go up 4-0. The Saints out shoot Sturgeon 12-10, but trail 4-0 after one period of play.

Sturgeon scores early to go up 5-0. Sturgeon out shoots the Saints 13-11 in the second period and continue to lead 5-0 after two periods of play.

The Saints start the third trying to kill off 2:52 of a penalty left over from the second period. It quickly turned into a 4 on 4 situation. Another penalty to Sturgeon makes it 4 on 3. The Saints get a let’s power play opportunity to try and break the shutout. The Saints hold an 11-4 shot advantage in the third period, but fall 5-0 to Sturgeon.

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Leduc 701 at Sherwood Park Saints

This is the second meeting of the year between these two teams. The first one saw the Saints take home the win in Leduc. The Saints score the first goal of the game on a nice tip in close to the net. The Saints score the next goal also with a tip in front of the net. The Saints dominate the first period out shooting Leduc 15-3. They hold a 2-0 lead after one period of play.

The Saints give up a breakaway goal and it is now 2-1. The Saints continue to dominate on the shot clock leading 30-12 after two. However, they only take a 2-1 lead into the third period.

The Saints give up another breakaway goal and the game is tied early in the third. The Saints retake the lead 3-2 shortly afterwards. The Saints out shoot Leduc 41-17 for the game and hang on to win 3-2.

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Beaumont Braves 701 at Sherwood Park Saints

This is the first meeting of the year between these two teams. The second game of the regular season between these teams will be February 23rd in Beaumont and it will be the last game of the regular season for both teams.

Beaumont scores a power play goal midway through the first to take a 1-0 lead. The Saints had been controlling the play up to that point. The Saints follow it up with deflection goal of their own to tie it at 1. The Saints go up 2-1 with just over two minutes left in the first period. The Saints out shoot Beaumont 19-6 in the first period.

The Saints start the second with one minute left in a power play opportunity. The Saints capitalize and take a 3-1 lead early in the second period. The Saints add to their lead by converting a nice 2 on 1. The Saints are out shooting Beaumont 30-12 midway through the game. Another close call as Bryson Oleksyn rings one off the post. A late power play opportunity gives Beaumont a chance to cut into the lead. The Saints kill off the penalty and out shoot Beaumont 16-11 in the second and take a 4-1 lead into the third period.

The Saints score on a breakaway to take a 5-1 lead. The Saints add another one to lead 6-1. The Saints add another on their 47th shot of the game, the hat trick goal for Bryson Oleksyn. The Saints have shifted some players between forward and defense for this period. The Saints out shoot Beaumont 13-7 in the third and 48-24 overall. The Saints win 7-1.

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Saints dominate in defensive gem to win Minor Hockey Week tourney

By John K. White

The Sherwood Park Saints jumped on the Sturgeon Mustangs early and delivered a defensive diamond to earn the U18 2025 Edmonton Minor Hockey Week gold medal Saturday night.

Looking back on the season series with the Mustangs, the Saints likely had a single line on the dressing room whiteboard: Just skate away.

In the first two meetings, the Saints found themselves shorthanded frequently, in several cases down two men. A tiering-round defeat was followed by another in the regular season as the Saints tallied 33 penalty minutes in the rematch.

They turned that around in their Minor Hockey Week meetings, dropping the Mustangs 4-1 Jan. 11 and 5-1 Jan. 18 in the trophy-hoisting win at the ever-bustling Booster Juice Recreation Centre in Terwillegar.

It may have been a frosty pre-game walk in the minus-40 air from the jammed parking lot to the arena for the players, but that chill was likely eased by the presence of gold medals around the necks on the return trek.

Easton Roy scored a pair of goals in the first seven minutes to stun the opposition, and he added two assists to lead the offence. Limemate Anraj Dhaliwal tallied a goal and two assists, with Ryan Clark and Bryson Oleksyn scoring singles. Nathan Yasinko, Dawson MacMillan and Blake Will also provided assists. Carsten Scheuer nearly landed the shutout, making 19 saves on 20 shots.

Easton Roy finds the back of the net early in the first period in one of his two goals on the night as the Sherwood Park Saints downed the Sturgeon Mustangs 5-1 to win the gold medal. | John K. White photo

Early lead key

With the early two-goal lead, the Saints shifted gears to focus on relentless defensive pressure and back support, stifling any thought of a Mustangs comeback as the seconds ticked away through the running-time periods. The deficit seemed to weigh more than normal on the Mustangs with the running time format.

Most of the Mustangs shots were delivered from the perimeter, though Scheuer came up big when needed in net, and only gave up the shutout bid on a laser from Mustangs standout forward Joseph Seguin late in the third.

A scary third-period injury to a Mustangs skater following a massive collision with two Saints players and the boards that took the air out of the building. Though he managed to slowly skate off of the ice with help from two team officials, the player was clearly struggling. Saints forward David Fleming received a boarding major and game misconduct after the play. The severity of penalization may have been partly to quell any notion of retaliation, as it was difficult to spot intent on the chaotic multi-player hit near the boards.

It is challenging enough to make a comeback in a key game in any circumstance, but the emotional stomach drop after that incident likely made it a taller ask for the Mustangs.

Despite what often happens when a teammate goes down and leaves a game, the Mustangs managed to focus most of their energy on evening the score on the clock, though their lone goal came too late to change momentum in a meaningful way.

Dominic Amyotte-Lorenson plays keep-away to burn the clock behind the opposition goal as Sturgeon Mutangs defenders attempt to pry the puck loose with no luck. | John K. White photo

Byfuglien would have been proud

Special mention should be given to forward Dominic Amyotte-Lorenson, who resembled a vintage Dustin Byfuglien by playing keep-away against three Mustangs defenders behind the opposition net, killing nearly two minutes off of the clock in the waning minutes.

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Game photos by Kurtis Fray, John K. White and Bill Clark

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