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Chiefs need to take command
Benjamin Proulx
Dec 05, 2012 • December 5, 2012 • 2 minute read
The Fort Saskatchewan Chiefs are slowly sliding down the ladder of standings, falling into third place in the five-team league following a fruitless weekend of two games.
The weekend started out on the wrong foot for the Chiefs (5-4-0), who were sunk by the Sylvan Lake Admirals (3-7-0) in a 5-4 loss in Fort Saskatchewan on Saturday.
"I just think our effort was pretty low," Chiefs head coach Scott Chartrand said. "Going in there with 13 guys didn't really help either, but I just think that our effort wasn't there. We lost a lot of battles and they made us pay for it."
One shining star on the night may have come out of poor defensive play for the Chiefs, as goalie Darren Douglas stopped 52 Admiral shots on net. The problem was that he faced 57.
"Darren stood on his head, taking close to 60 shots," Chartrand said. "He was great for us. If we didn't have him in net, it would have been worse."
One other peak on the Chiefs' heart monitor came from Kyle Pess, who scored two goals on the night — one shorthanded and one unassisted.
"He's doing great," Chartrand said of Pess. "He's a great penalty killer, he got a shorthanded goal and he's got a lot of speed. For him, the guys he's with have got to be going. He just can't be a one-man show. He played alright, but like I said, the rest of his linemates have to start picking up their game."
The other two Chiefs goals came from Joshua Garneau and Brett Rock, who spent last season playing Junior A hockey with the Sherwood Park Crusaders.
Sunday night wasn't much kinder to the Fort Saskatchewan men, as they fell 4-2 to the Stony Plain Eagles (1-7-0), handing the birds their first win of the season.
The local boys' only goals came from Brett Holmberg and Brian Woolger.
The issue, in Chartrand's mind, couldn't be narrowed down to one mistake, but he did say one of the biggest problems was the amount of penalties the Chiefs suffered.
"We tried playing a little bit more of a physical game and I think maybe some of the guys just stepped over the line a little bit, as far as that extra hit or that extra shove," he said. "Things like that cost us a bit, but once again, we just couldn't get any momentum on our side. We would have two or three good shifts, and then all of the sudden, we'd have two or three bad ones back to back.
"We just couldn't maintain a consistent intensity. Once again, we went down 3-1 and it's tough to keep coming from behind."
The local Senior AAA team's next matchup won't be any easier, as they take on the league-leading Bentley Generals (8-1-0) on Saturday.
"You hope that your players realize the level they're going to have to play at to be successful against them," Chartrand said.
He continued, adding that this game is a must-win for his team, as they are on the losing side of a three-game streak.
The Chiefs and Generals will battle it out in Bentley on Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. The Fort's next home game at the Jubilee Recreation Centre will be against the Innisfail Eagles on Dec. 15.
ben.proulx@sunmedia.ca
twitter.com/Ben_Proulx
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