CANMORE – Rookie goalie Hudson Sedo had every reason to be smiling ear-to-ear after a 39-save, shutout performance in his season debut with the Canmore Eagles on Saturday (Sept. 21).
The Eagles (3-1-0-0) bounced back from Friday’s 5-2 loss to the Drayton Valley Thunder by blanking the Lloydminster Bobcats, 1-0, at the Canmore Recreation Centre.
Having only played three games in total in the Alberta Junior Hockey League, the 18-year-old Sedo has shown he can be a brick wall when called on, with already two shutout credits to his name.
Though Sedo laughed off any potential “Mr. Shutout” nickname enquiries like he was deflecting pucks away from Bobcats shooters, he said his teammates locked it down when they needed to.
“I don’t want to jinx it, but we’re going to keep trying to build from this,” said Sedo. “For me, this is my first game of the season and it’s only going to get harder as it goes on and I know that and the team knows that. This is a start for me and I hope that there’s lots more to come.”
Cohen Daoust scored the game-winner with five minutes remaining in the game when the forward’s wrist shot trickled past Bobcats goalie Anders Miller and over the goal line.
— Canmore Eagles (@canmoreeagles) September 22, 2024
Following the first loss of the season, a game in which lessons were learned, said head coach and general manager Andrew Milne, there was some weight on the Eagles to come out flying in the back-to-back.
“It was a tough pressure game after [Friday] night’s probably poor effort for the entire team, to respond with the way [Sedo] responded was huge,” said Milne.
A big part of the Eagles’ strategy early in the season is being game ready from the get-go. A poor start to last year's campaign led to a nauseating road schedule during the 2023-24 playoffs when the hometown crew's average travel distance was approximately 650 kilometres, one-way, over three series.
“We felt we learned a lot last year going all the way to game seven of the semis,” said Milne. “I think this is going to be part of that is to understand is we want to play right through to May, so we’re gauging this as we want to play in May and we want our guys to be psychologically ready to play in May so it’s going to take some time to have some gaps in the season.”
Next up for the Eagles is the highly-scouted AJHL Showcase at the Max Bell Centre in Calgary on Wednesday (Sept. 25) against the Bobcats and Friday (Sept. 27) against the Grande Prairie Storm. Puck drop for both games is at 4:30 p.m.
Games announced for Hockey Day in Canada in Canmore
The games schedule at the Canmore Nordic Centre is up for Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada in Canmore on Saturday, January 18, 2025.
Starting at noon, the Airdrie CFR Bisons take on the Calgary NW Flames of the U18 AAA Alberta Elite Hockey League.
At 3:30 p.m., USport women take centre ice as the Mount Royal University Cougars challenge MacEwan University Griffins.
At 7 p.m., the Canmore Eagles will go to work against the visiting Drumheller Dragons.
The event, celebrating 25 years, will feature a kick-off concert, fan festival, and a Sportsnet broadcast, featuring Ron MacLean, special guests and tours of the mountain community. That night, all seven Canadian NHL teams will be in action.
More information, including ticket sales, will be available in the coming months.
