Three up, three down.
Three games into the 2011-12 North Central Hockey League season, the Athabasca Aces remain undefeated. And they’re winning convincingly. Their first game was a 9-4 thumping of the Legal Vipers on Oct. 15 (their first win in Legal in franchise history).
This past weekend they played a pair of home games at the Athabasca Regional Multiplex. First up was a rematch with the Vipers on Friday night, a game they won 3-2 in overtime. The Aces, who had only beaten Legal once in their first three seasons in the league, had suddenly beaten them twice in less than a week.
As if they were out to prove that the first two games weren’t a fluke, the Aces then picked apart the visiting Edson Ice on Saturday night, walking away with a decisive 8-2 victory.
To say the results pleased head coach Tony Kiselyk would be an understatement.
“How can you ask for anything more than that? A 3-0 start is awesome,” said the coach.
It’s still early in the season, of course, and there’s plenty of time for the team to start struggling. But the coach and his players are currently enjoying their best start in the team’s four-year existence. And in a short hockey season, a hot start can make all the difference towards making the playoffs, and securing a favorable spot.
The Aces clearly had no trouble scoring goals in their first three games. Kiselyk also pointed to strong efforts from goaltender Jeff Creaser and the defense in front of him for allowing only four goals in two games last weekend.
He was also happy to see his team taking fewer penalties, as discipline was an issue at times last year.
Put it all together and you get a three-game winning streak right out of the gate; no easy feat in any league.
“There are no gimme’s. You’ve got to work for these games,” said the coach.
Kiselyk was confident the Aces had improved with additions made over the summer, and he got the proof he was looking for last weekend.
“We added some scoring punch and we’re a little stronger on defense. We have some real good team speed, and when we use it it really shows.”
The one negative about being a top team is that the rest of the teams start gunning for you, and the coach knows the Aces have now lost the element of surprise.
“Now teams are going to be waiting for us.”
First up will be the Hinton Heat this Saturday. The Aces will then play Edson on Sunday. They’ll return to the Multiplex Friday, Nov. 4 to take on the Slave Lake Winterhawks at 8:45 p.m.
