Jamie Mountain
Home ice wasn’t exactly the kindest of confines for the Fort Frances Lakers over the last two days.
The squad lost both games at the SIJHL’s annual “Showcase,” which this year was held at the Ice For Kids Arena here.
Fort Frances was chosen to host the event for the first time in team history, which saw all six SIJHL teams play two games apiece over Tuesday and Wednesday in front of college, junior, and pro scouts.
Ian Tookenay scored twice, including the late game-tying goal, but it wasn’t enough as the Lakers fell 4-3 in a shootout to the second-place Dryden GM Ice Dogs last night.
After a lengthy injury delay for one of the on-ice officials, Tookenay opened the scoring when he broke in alone and fired a top-shelf wrist shot past Ice Dogs’ goalie Landon Pavlisin 11:08 into the first period.
Adam Withers then put the Lakers up by a pair when he also found some open ice and made no mistake at 15:09.
Jacen Bracko gave the visitors some life when he bulged the twine behind Lakers’ goalie Ismael Ralsten with 3:02 left in the second frame to cut it to 2-1.
Evan Walls evened it at 2-2 with a short-handed beauty just under three minutes into the third.
Malcolm Huemmert then gave the Ice Dogs their first lead at 7:49 when he finished off a cross-ice feed from Woody Galbraith and Dakotah Woods to make it 3-2.
But in the final minute, with pulled Ralsten in favour of an extra attacker, Tookenay busted to the right side of Pavlisin and directed home a set-play feed off a face-off to knot the score with just 47 seconds left and force overtime.
After the extra period solved nothing, the game went to the shootout.
Bracko and Matthew Pitchenese both made good on their attempts while Jaedin Ness and Noah Loveday were stoned on theirs as Dryden earned the extra point.
In the other games earlier yesterday, the Thunder Bay North Stars beat the English River Miners 5-2 while the Thief River Falls Norskies edged the Minnesota Iron Rangers 3-2.
On Tuesday night, the surging North Stars cruised to a 6-2 romp over the Lakers.
Once again it was the Lakers who got on the board first when Tookenay notched a power-play tally 3:45 into the first period, knocking in a loose puck that former Lakers’ goalie Brandon Bodnar couldn’t find.
Thunder Bay then netted the equalizer just past the 11-minute mark when Brendan Gillis netted his 16th goal of the season to knot it at 1-1.
Ness gave the Lakers a 2-1 lead 5:16 into the second frame with his 20th marker.
Owen Belisle evened it once again for the North Stars at the 14-minute mark, then Alex Leonidis tallied to put the visitors ahead 3-2 just moments later.
With the two clubs skating four aside early in the third, Thunder Bay worked the puck back to the right point, where Jake Behse snapped a shot through a maze that eluded Lakers’ goalie Brett Akins to push it to 4-2.
A Joe Newhouse power-play blast later pinballed off a couple of Lakers’ defenders and in before Troy Sherman’s double-deflection marker capped the scoring at 18:47.
The fifth-place Lakers (11-24-1-4 for 27 points) return to action tomorrow night when they face the host Norskies.
Fort Frances then will host the North Stars next Friday (Feb. 9) at 7:30 p.m. at the Ice For Kids Arena.
Thief River Falls (32-4-0-2) continues to lead the SIJHL with 66 points.
Dryden (28-3-6-1) is right behind with 63, with Thunder Bay (25-11-3-0) in third at 53.
English River (17-17-0-4) occupies fourth spot with 38 points while Minnesota (3-33-1-2) remains mired in the league basement with just nine.
