LAC LA BICHE – The Lac La Biche Lakers had two wins and one loss over the March 7 weekend as they faced off against the High Prairie Red Wings in the first round of the National Junior Hockey League (NJHL) playoffs.
The Lakers celebrated a 4-3 overtime victory against the Red Wings during the first of the playoff games, which took place at the Bold Centre on March 7. While the team lost 5-3 on the road the following day, they made up for this loss on March 9 at home, defeating the Red Wings 4-2.
Minutes into the first period of the March 7 game, Lakers forward Regan Anderson, unassisted, scored a goal that gave his team a 1-0 lead going into the second period.
Lac La Biche picked up another goal when team captain Larry Flett, assisted by Zach Mazurenao, got the puck past Red Wings goaltender Joseph Isaac.
As the game continued, High Prairie managed to get three consecutive goals, turning the tables on the Lakers and giving the Red Wings a 3-2 lead.
Mazurenao, with assistance from Jero Rossi, helped Lac La Biche even the scoreboard before the game went into overtime.
Just a few minutes into overtime, Lac La Biche’s Eli Quinney, assisted by Flett and Caleb Kornelson, scored the goal that provided the Lakers with their first playoff win.
The Lakers didn’t have as much luck during the second game of the series, which took place in High River on March 8 and concluded with the Red Wings defeating their visiting NJHL North Division rivals 5-3.
High Prairie’s Noah Cunningham scored the opening goal of that game.
Kaden Cardinal, assisted by Quinney and Kornelson, matched this goal a few minutes later, bringing the scoreboard to 1-1.
The Lakers and Red Wings would get one more goal apiece before first period wrapped up. It was during the second period when the Red Wings managed to acquire three consecutive goals to give them a commanding lead and determine the outcome of the playoff match.
While Lac La Biche’s Ethan Christian was able to get his team’s third goal near the halfway mark of the third period, it wasn’t enough to secure a victory.
Large crowd on Sunday
A large hometown crowd gathered on the evening of March 9 to watch the Lakers take down High Prairie 4-2.
While the Lakers were victorious on home ice, the first goal of the game was scored by High Prairie’s Raiden Perkins just minutes into the first period.
It didn’t take the Lakers long to get into playing mode, and Ethan Christian shot the puck past High Prairie’s defenses. However, before the first period ended, the number on the scoreboard would rise in favour of the Red Wings when Kaden Desjarlais scored on Lac La Biche.
Determined to end the night with a win, the Lakers launched continuous attacks on High Prairie’s net, all while defending their own zone.
This hard work paid off, and the Lakers dominated the scoreboard throughout the second and third periods, with Regan Anderson acquiring two goals and Larry Flett getting one in the dying seconds of the game.
The Lakers are on the road on March 11 for a fourth meeting with the Red Wings. The playoff series continues on March 12 as the Lakers host High Prairie at the Bold Centre. Gametime for that match is 7:30 p.m.
