The Sicamous Eagles handed the 100 Mile House Wranglers a brutal 11-1 defeat on home ice Wednesday (Feb. 7).
While the team’s no-quit mentality was still on full display, its defense and goal-tending proved unable to stand up to the Eagles’ offense. This loss comes as the Wranglers are slipping in the standings with the Chase Heat in a position to take their playoff spot with their next victory.
Wednesday night’s game started poorly for the Wranglers with the Eagles scoring four goals within the first 10 minutes of the game against Wrangler goalie Ivan Tolsma, who was pulled in favour of Owen Peppitas for the rest of the game. Wrangler Ethan Davey was able to answer the Eagles with a goal of his own in the back half of the first period, keeping the Wranglers in the fight.
Throughout the second period however a combination of penalties and dropped passes plagued the Wranglers. The Eagles took advantage of this disarray and scored another two goals, one of which was on a powerplay.
In the third period, the game truly got away from the Wranglers with further penalties leading to another five goals by the Eagles. The end result was decisive as it was disheartening for Wrangler Nation.
On Saturday the Wranglers put up a more respectable resistance against the Kamloops Storm, though ultimately losing 5-2. The game began with two early goals by the Storm, with Wrangler defenceman Ethan Hofstand answering with a goal of his own before Kamloops scored a third goal.
Throughout the second period the Wranglers held the Storm in check with Kelton Shinde managing to bring the Wranglers within one point of tying. However, in the third period the sheer number of Storm shots on net, 50 in total by the game’s end, and penalties led to another two goals being scored on the home team.
The 100 Mile House Wranglers are currently tied with the Chase Heat for the final playoff spot in their division. To make playoffs the Wranglers will have to win an away game against the Chase Heat on Friday, Feb. 16. Failing that, they will likely be eliminated from the running.
The Wranglers’ final home game of the regular season is a rematch against the Storm on Saturday, Feb. 17.
