BARRHEAD - It was a tough weekend for the Barrhead Bombers, losing all three games and extending their losing streak to five.
On Jan. 26 and 27, the Bombers had a close set of games in a home-and-home series to the Canadian-American Junior Hockey League (CAJHL) leaders, the Hinton Timberwolves, a 5-4 loss on the road and 4-2 loss at home followed by a 5-2 loss to the Vegreville Vipers at the Agrena on Jan. 28 on Seniors' Day.
However, Bombers captain Cade Bohn said following the loss against Vegreville that despite the slide, the team's spirits remain high.
Bohn, a 17-year-old forward from Nipiwan, Sask, is in his second year with the Bombers.
"We had a good week of practice," he said. "We are doing our best to ensure that despite some of the hardships we've faced and our record is not where we would like it to be, we stay positive and keep our love for the game. We especially had fun during our practice on the outside rink."
He also noted that the Bombers could have come away with some points with a little more puck luck and a bounce or two going their way.
Bohn noted that in all three of their last games, the Bombers outshot their rivals 52-30 in the first game against Hinton, 49-40 in the second, including by a 17-8 margin in the third period and 45-30 against the Vipers.
"All three games were hard-fought battles," he said. "We tried to bounce on some of the rebounds the [Viper goaltender] was letting out, but unfortunately, they just wouldn't stick to our sticks."
Bohn also noted that the game against the Vipers was especially physical, especially in the early going.
The game saw several big hits initiated from both sides, along with two Barrhead players being hit from behind. Regrettably, for the Bombers, the resulting melee after one of those hits caused a Bomber player to take a retaliatory cross-check by Ryder Bohn, resulting in a game misconduct, which may mean the team will lose the defenceman for the next game to a possible suspension.
Barrhead also lost starting goaltender John Zeise to a knee injury about midway through the second period and is questionable for their next game.
"We have some scrapes and bruises, including a guy with a shoulder injury who will be going for an ultrasound, so we may be down two or three players for our next game, but that is something we are used to. All we can do is make sure we prepare the best we can for next week and hope everyone is back so we can start getting more Ws," Bohn said.
The Bombers' final game before the CAJHL All-Star Weekend is Friday, Feb. 2, at the Barrhead Agrena against the Hinton Timberwolves. Puck drop is 8:30 p.m.
The CAJHL All-Star weekend is Feb. 9 and 10 in Edmonton. Cade and teammates Christopher Vinck, Jordan Martens, Michael Cannings, Riley Doerkson, Coby St. Arnaud, Marcus Stoby and John Zeise will represent the Bombers.
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
