INNISFAIL - The Birds of Innisfail are proving to be a force to reckon with this season.
The Eagles came away with three of four points this weekend after back-to-back games.
They earned a 5-4 victory over Fort Saskatchewan on Friday (Oct. 26), a contest during which the home team Eagles honoured local veterans in a pre-game ceremony for this year's Remembrance Day.
The Eagles lost 3-2 in a shootout to the Lacombe Generals on Saturday.
After five games this season, the Birds currently sit in fourth place in the five-team Allan Cup Hockey West League with five points. Rosetown and Stony Plain are both tied for first place with eight points and Lacombe is in third place with seven points.
Despite the shootout loss Saturday, the Eagles outshot their close rival 48 to 39 through five periods of hockey. Thanks to strong goaltending by Innisfail’s Chris Holden, Lacombe’s 3-2 victory was decided by a single goal in the shootout.
The Eagles also outshot the Fort Saskatchewan Chiefs 47 to 32, Friday at home.
"We did a lot of good things tonight and we deserved to win," said Brian Sutter, head coach.
"It was a game where we had a number of chances to score. Fort Saskatchewan's got a very skilled team and they showed it, just like Stony Plain, just like Lacombe,” he added.
Innisfail opened the scoring early with a goal from Riley Simpson, just three and a half minutes into the first period. Innisfail’s Chad Robinson made it 2-0 with a power-play marker near the end of the frame, but the Chiefs netted a goal with a man advantage themselves with less than a minute in the period to make it 2-1 after 20 minutes.
Despite taking several penalties in the game, special teams, both the penalty kill and the power play, were factors in the Birds' victory Friday.
"You got to respect who you're playing against and (the game) shows why,” said Sutter.
Innisfail’s Taylor Mulder scored twice less than two minutes apart at the end of the second period.
"My linemates fed me (the puck) pretty good and my brother assisted on both of my goals too," said Mulder of his two markers. "It's a big win tonight to get the weekend started."
Innisfail's Pete Vandermeer scored the game-winner, making it 5-2 for the Birds early in the third frame.
He noted his team’s strong goaltending and hard work ethic that’s contributing to their early success this season.
"We brought in a good, young goalie here that's really helping us quite a bit and making a big difference," said Vandermeer. "It's the same every year. We work as hard or harder than the other teams in the league.
"All in all we have a really good group here and it looks like we're getting the season started on a good foot," Vandermeer concluded.
