The streak is over. Eighteen straight regular season losses from last season, plus another to start this one, with a playoff sweep in between, broken at last in front of 546 fans at the Olds Sportsplex on Sept. 17.
For the Olds Grizzlys, winning feels good and it showed after goaltender Ben Giesbrecht made the final save in a 3-2 shootout victory over the Calgary Canucks.
Giesbrecht stopped 29 of 31 shots and denied all three Calgary skaters during the shootout. He was mobbed by his teammates afterward.
"It just gives us some confidence. We just have to put that behind us and look forward to the season ahead. This is just the start of hopefully a lot to come," Giesbrecht said about the win.
"I just put in my head, we're not going to take a loss today and I just did my best out there and it paid off."
The lone player to score in the shootout was rookie forward Owen Guenter. Chase Olsen and James Gaume scored in regulation.
It took a while for the Grizzlys offence to get started. The team trailed 2-0 into the third and was outshot 22-8 up to that point.
"We've only had two practices together as a team. We had a bit longer exhibition schedule this year. We're not quite gelled yet and that's OK. That's part of the process," said head coach Dana Lattery.
Though he was Lattery's backup last year, Giesbrecht played 34 games, more than expected due to injuries to starter Kurtis Chapman.
"I think last year I maybe appeared in 17 of 18 games or something like that. You just never really expect that. All it did was help me just get more experience in this league and hopefully it carries through into this season," he said.
Giesbrecht is in better shape this year, with the 19-year-old from Aldergrove, B.C. having lost about 30 pounds over the summer, thanks to a better diet.
"I was getting up, going to work and coming back and going to the gym and going to yoga. But most importantly, it was what I was putting in my body because how you fuel yourself is how you're going to perform," he said.
Lattery said the work Giesbrecht did to lose weight showed his commitment to the team. He's rewarded him with the starting job, for now.
"We've got Andrew Henderson backing him up, who's playing just as well so hopefully that can be a change from last season," he said.
"They'll push each other. We told them both, who's going, is going (in net). They have great camaraderie but they're pushing. Andrew wants to start and Ben wants to keep starting, so it's healthy."
"We've only had two practices together as a team. We had a bit longer exhibition schedule this year. We're not quite gelled yet and that's OK. That's part of the process."DANA LATTERYHEAD COACHOLDS GRIZZLYS
