The Athabasca Aces exorcised some frustrating demons with a 5-4 win over the Devon Barons last Friday.
Going into the game in Devon, the Aces had lost numerous times to the Barons, including the weekend before in Athabasca. Getting the win in Devon on Friday, therefore, was a big confidence booster for the local team and sent a message to the league-leading Barons that they shouldn’t take the Aces for granted.
“We know we can beat every team in the league,” said Aces head coach Curtis Creaser. “Our confidence and momentum is really good.”
The Aces wasted no time getting out in front of the Barons on Friday, scoring first to go up 1-0. The Barons tied it up later in the first, setting the stage for a second period where the Aces took charge of the game.
“In the second, we put the pedal down,” said the coach, as Athabasca was up 4-3 by the time the third period rolled around. In that period, the Barons tied the game at 4-4 before the Aces ultimately scored the winning goal and held on for the victory.
“Our defense played extremely well as a unit moving the puck up the ice for the forwards. We were making good, crisp passes on the tape, and that was a big difference. We had puck possession a lot of the time, and when we have the puck, they can’t score.”
Chris Fraser scored two of the Aces goals, with defencemen accounting for the other three. Mike Mallard, Dane Olson and Travis Dupperon all lit the lamp, and the latter is still leading the team in scoring.
As they controlled the game, the Aces noted an achilles heel that may help them against the Barons in the future.
“They’re not used to being down. They got frustrated and took some stupid penalties,” said the coach. “We could sense that and we capitalized on their negative emotion.”
The biggest factor in the win, according to Creaser, was that the Aces played a full 60-minute game. Gone were the five to 10-minute breakdowns that opposing teams have jumped on.
If they can keep their focus going into the next slate of games in the new year, they’ll be on a roll.
