Merchants game
Sunday the St. Albert Merchants square off against the Beverly Warriors in the Capital Junior B Hockey League.Faceoff is 8 p.m. at Clareview Arena.
The last game against Beverly (17-7), the 2018 CJHL playoff finalist and provincial bronze medallist, was the 8-2 road loss Dec. 2.
The Merchants are coming off Friday’s tilt with the Morinville Jets (12-9-1) at Akinsdale Arena. The score was unavailable at press time.
The Merchants were 5-2-3 in 10 games after Wednesday’s 4-3 decision against the west division-leading North Edmonton Red Wings (17-4-2) at Londonderry Arena.
The short-staffed Merchants with 14 skaters grabbed control of the contest with three consecutive goals in the middle frame after the Red Wings jumped ahead 2-1 with 18 seconds gone in the second.
Ryan Cooper tallied twice in the period and also assisted on Jack Langenhahn’s power-play marker to put the Merchants up 3-2.
Cooper’s second goal and 10th of the season was an unassisted effort to make it 4-2 with 7:56 left in the second.
Jack Lastwika’s first of the season opened the scoring.
Marco Runco and Matt Holzer finished the night with two assists apiece.
The second power-play goal for the Red Wings came with 15:24 to play.
Shots were 20-9 in the third and 49-29 overall for the Red Wings as Brandon Boughen (5-9, 4.29 GAA) backstopped the Merchants to their fifth victory in seven games.
The Merchants wrap up 2018 with Friday’s home game against the Fort Saskatchewan Hawks (12-12) at 8 p.m.
Slash marks
The midget AAA St. Albert Slash close out the December portion of the Alberta Female Hockey League schedule this weekend on the road.Games times are 4:15 p.m. today against the Calgary Fire (11-5-1) at Max Bell Centre and 4:45 p.m. Sunday against the Rocky Mountain Raiders (4-13-1) at DeWinton.
The Slash (13-1-1), back-to-back Esso Cup national champions, are one point behind the first-place Lloydminster Steelers (14-3-1) with three games in hand.
Madison Willan, a third-year Slash forward, leads the AFHL in goals (15), power-play goals (five), assists (14), and points (29) in 15 games.
Slash newcomer Holly Borrett (7-0, 0.71 GAA, three shutouts) and third-year Brianna Sank (6-1, 0.75 GAA, four shutouts) are the AFHL’s top netminders.
The Slash roster includes three forwards with the U18 provincial team for the 2019 Canada Winter Games: third-year Isabelle Lajoie, second-year Jaden Bodgen and newcomer Brooklyn Schroeder.
Meanwhile, the fifth annual Slash Alumni Game is on tap Thursday at 5:15 p.m. at Go Auto Arena.
The motto for the alumni game, sponsored by the 2011 Esso Cup Legacy Fund, is Tradition Never Graduates.
Last year the alumni won 8-3 against a Slash lineup missing five players.
Flyers update
The last home game before the Christmas break for the St. Albert Flyers is tonight against the Lloydminster Bobcats in the Alberta Minor Midget AAA Hockey League.Puck drop is 8 p.m. at Akinsdale Arena.
The midget 15 Flyers (13-3-2) and Bobcats (12-6) are third and fourth, respectively, in the north standings.
The Flyers are 7-2 on home ice after last weekend’s 4-2 loss to the NWCAA Bruins (8-12) of Calgary that snapped a nine-game undefeated streak of eight wins and one tie.
Sunday the Flyers face off against the second-place PAC Saints (14-1-1) at 5:15 p.m. at Grant Fuhr Arena.
The Flyers trail the Saints by one point and are two back of the division-leading Leduc Oil Kings (14-4-2).
Ethan Sundar leads the AMMHL in power-play goals with eight while netting 19 in 17 games and his 37 points ranks second overall in league scoring.
Bantam AA teams
The three St. Albert teams in the Edmonton Rural Bantam AA Hockey League are the visitors in Sunday’s games.The Comets (2-11-5), winless in four games, and Sherwood Park Sabres (7-7-3) hook up at 5:15 p.m.
Liam Fitzgerald is the top scorer for the Comets with 11 goals and 24 points in 18 games.
The Elite Pro Marketing Blues (8-7-2) are in Ardrossan to play the Strathcona Warriors (7-8-1) at 7:30 p.m.
The Blues are led offensively by Tyler Fitka’s seven goals and 12 points in 17 games.
The Bears (10-5-2), winners of three of the last five games, and the MLAC Alumni tangle at 8:15 p.m. at Millwoods Arena.
Adam Browton leads the Bears with nine goals and 16 points in 17 games.
In the blue division of the ERBHL’s metro conference, the Bears are two points behind the first-place Sherwood Park Leafs (11-3-2), the Blues are third and the Comets are seventh.
Meanwhile, the Dec. 23 game between the Bears and Blues is also a fundraiser for the St. Albert Food Bank.
Puck drop is 1:15 p.m. at Akinsdale Arena and a food bank box will be on site for donations.
Hunter, the Edmonton Oilers’ mascot, will also be in attendance.
Organizers have reached out to St. Albert novice and atom teams to attend the game and assist the food bank.
The Bears and Blues skated to a 1-1 draw Oct. 3.
