Ooks 3, Kings 2
Griffins 3, Queens 2
The RDC Kings let a game slip away against the NAIT Ooks in Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference Men’s Hockey play.
After a disastrous 10-1 loss in Edmonton to the Ooks Friday, RDC allowed two third period goals in a 3-2 loss to NAIT at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre. Friday’s game was the Kings first since Nov. 24.
“(Friday), they had 24 shots from the home plate, 21 of them were in tight to our goalie. That was a big adjustment (Saturday),” said Kings assistant coach Cody Reynolds.
“And I think we did a good job limiting them to 10 shots or less in each period. I thought we did a really good job with that and that put us in a good position to get the win, unfortunately, it didn’t go that way.”
After allowing a goal 63 seconds into the first, Tyrell Mappin and Parker Smyth scored for RDC late in the period to open up a 2-1 lead that held through 40 minutes.
It was the third period that sunk the Kings.
The game-tying goal slipped in at 9:20 of the third, then the go-ahead goal came with just over two minutes to play on a weak shot from the point through a screen Troy Trombley wasn’t able to glove.
Overall, the poor third period from both the goaltender and the entire lineup cost the Kings two points.
“It was a really tight game going into the third period with a 2-1 lead, it’s right where we want to be,” Reynolds said. Outshooting them and, in my opinion, outplaying them. Then in the third, didn’t get the goaltending we would like. That’s the way it goes sometimes.”
Trombley finished the game with 30 saves, nine of which were in the third period. The Kings ended the game 0-for-8 on the power play, which proved costly for the home side.
RDC will host the University of Alberta-Augustana for a pair of games this weekend.
The Queens also fell Saturday, dropping a 3-2 game to the MacEwan University Griffins.
MacEwan opened up a 3-0 lead through 40 minutes, but the Queens showed some fight in the third.
Kaely McMurtry scored midway through the final frame and with 5:01 to play in the contest, Camryn Wallan buried the puck to cut the deficit to a goal.
Sandy Heim made 20 saves in the Griffins net, while Miranda Cook stood tall in the first start of her ACAC career. The Queens first-year puckstopper turned aside 32 shots in the loss Saturday.
RDC will next host SAIT Jan. 18.