Game three in the best-of-seven Capital Junior B Hockey League semifinal resumes Sunday for the St. Albert Merchants in Wetaskiwin.
Puck drop is 6:30 p.m. against the Icemen.
Game two was played Friday in St. Albert but the score was unavailable at press time.
The Merchants lost the series opener 7-2 Wednesday in Wetaskiwin.
The Icemen closed out the contest with five unanswered goals in the third period, including an empty netter with 1:27 remaining and a pair in the last minute of play.
The Merchants opened the scoring on captain Dan Rombough’s power-play marker in the first and the Icemen replied before the period ended.
The Icemen made it 2-1 in the second on the power play and Brendan Passek tied it at two at 6:59 of the third.
The Icemen regained the lead on goals at 7:13 and 11:12 before icing the win into the empty net.
The Merchants were outshot 22-11 in the third and 60-31 overall.
In net was Ty Clelland (5-3, 4.07 GAA) of the Merchants and Joey Desrosiers (3-2, 2.69) of the Icemen.
Game four is 8 p.m. Wednesday at Akinsdale Arena.
If needed, game five is 7:30 p.m. Friday in Wetaskiwin, game six is 8 p.m. March 13 in St. Albert and game seven is 7:30 p.m. March 16 in Wetaskiwin.
The series winner advances to the best-of-five Founders Cup final against the defending champion North Edmonton Red Wings or Fort Saskatchewan Hawks.
The two finalists will represent the CJHL at provincials, March 31 to April 3 in Red Deer.
The winner of the Russ Barnes Trophy is the Alberta rep at the Keystone Cup western championship, hosted by the Regina Capitals, April 14 to 17.
The Red Wings won provincials and lost the Keystone Cup final to the Campbell River Storm in Cold Lake last year.
In league play, the Icemen (24-10-4) tied for first in the east and the Merchants (24-12-2) placed third in the west. The Merchants beat the Icemen 3-2 Nov. 1 in Wetaskiwin and 2-1 on Rombough’s overtime goal Jan. 21 in St. Albert.
Matt Murray of St. Albert is this year’s recipient of the Friends of AJHL Trophy as the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s top netminder.
Murray, 18, is 22-4-0 with three shutouts, 2.67 GAA and .909 save percentage in his second season with the Saints.
The former bantam AAA Sabre and midget 15 Flyer also backstopped Team Canada West to the gold medal at the 2015 World Junior A Challenge with a 27-save performance in the 2-1 win over Russia in the final in Cobourg, Ont. He finished 4-0 in the tournament, with a 2.75 GAA and .912 save percentage for the undefeated Team Canada West lineup that featured 11 AJHL players.
Murray was also one of two AJHL players selected to participate in the CJHL Prospects Game in January. He was identified in the NHL Central Scouting midterm rankings and was listed 27th out of 30 North American netminders.
Murray played a major role in the Saints winning their second consecutive AJHL championship last season. He also shared the Top Goaltenders Award, which is presented to the AJHL team with the lowest GAA.
Murray has committed to the University of Massachusetts Minutemen, an NCAA Division I team in the Hockey East Association.
The last game for the St. Albert lady Raiders in the Alberta Major Bantam Female Hockey League before the provincial qualifying playoffs is Sunday against the Lloydminster IceCats.
Face-off is 1:30 p.m. at Go Auto Arena.
The IceCats (16-9-3) are one point behind the third-place Raiders (16-9-4) in the north division with a game in hand.
Last weekend in the Border City, the Raiders lost 4-1 and scored a 3-2 shootout decision against the Ice Cats to finish 5-3 in February.
The provincial qualifier starts next week and the top two teams in the north and south standings receive byes in the best-of-three opening round.
The Raiders host the five-team AMBFHL provincials, March 24 to 27.
The St. Albert Hit will defend their Hockey Alberta championship next week as the host team for the peewee A female provincials.
The eight-team tournament starts Thursday and ends Sunday with the semifinals at 9:30 and 9:45 a.m. at Servus Credit Union Place and the final is 3:15 p.m. at Go Auto Arena.
In pool A, the Hit plays Thursday against the Calgary Jets at 6:30 p.m. at Mark Messier Arena, Friday against the Lloydminster Blazers at 11:45 a.m. at Mark Messier and Grande Prairie Knights at 6:30 p.m. at Go Auto and Saturday against the Strathcona Stars at 4:15 p.m. at Mark Messier.
Pool B consists of the Okotoks Oilers, Red Deer Chiefs, Sherwood Park Force and Calgary Kaos.
The Hit’s overall record, as listed on the team’s SAMHA website, is 22-7-4.
