Joey Payeur
Welcome home, Dylan Kooner.
One of two veteran forwards, along with Carter Chorney, announced Tuesday as having rejoined the team, Kooner wasted no time proving his worth.
His short-handed goal in the second period helped lift the Fort Frances Lakers (1-0) to a 5-3 win over the English River Miners (0-4) in their SIJHL regular-season opener that night in Ear Falls.
“Dylan’s return proved to be huge,” said Lakers’ head coach and general manager Wayne Strachan.
“I thought he was our strongest player through the game.
“We caused the turnover up at our blueline in our end and I believe it was [Robbie] Bonthron poking the puck to [Chorney], who hit Dylan with a pass through the neutral zone,” Strachan recalled.
“And his speed just blew by their defenceman and he put a nifty backhand to put the puck in the net.”
The goal was the second of three-straight in the middle frame by the Lakers, who had led 2-0 early on goals by David Pryde and Ryley Bosman.
But the Miners roared back to tie it up on markers by Brandon Schaber and Konnar Dechaine just 21 seconds apart late in the first.
“We thought it was interference off the face-off in our zone,” Strachan said about the Miners’ first goal.
“But it was just a mental mistake by our left-winger in not fighting through the pick to get to his man at the point.
“Then off the ensuing face-off, again mental errors where we followed the puck, leaving the most dangerous man open and giving him a perfect opportunity in the slot,” Strachan added.
“We let them into the game with the breakdowns we had.”
But Colton Spicer, one of seven returning players for the two-time defending SIJHL champs, righted the ship just 31 seconds into the second.
“It was huge to come out and regain control of the game,” Strachan stressed.
“We had just given them life and they had jump.
“We talked about getting out of the gates fast in the second and getting the momentum back,” he noted.
Kooner’s goal spelled the end of the night for Miners’ starting goalie Reid Kilburn, who gave up four goals on just 15 shots.
But replacement Korlan Vader was no match for the force of Christian Ripley, who finished off a set-up from Andrew Willner and Bonthron to make it 5-2 with just 41 seconds left in the period.
Matthew O’Neill’s power-play goal midway through the third pulled English River closer.
But Pierce Dushenko, the Lakers’ clear-cut No. 1 goalie after a terrific Dudley Hewitt Cup run this past spring, barred the door the rest of the way.
“Pierce wasn’t overly-tested and made some nice saves when we needed him to,” noted Strachan.
“But he probably would like the first goal back as, to me, it was soft from where the shot was taken.
“The second, we leave a man wide open, and the third is an unfortunate bounce that could have been prevented,” he added.
“All in all, he [Dushenko] did what he needed to allow us to have success.”
The Lakers next will host the Dryden GM Ice Dogs (2-0) in their regular-season home-opener tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. at the Ice For Kids Arena.
The squad also is tentatively scheduled to unveil its latest SIJHL championship banner during a pre-game ceremony.
“It will be huge,” Strachan said of the game. “It’s the first time I can remember opening at home versus Dryden in my coaching days.
“[The Ice Dogs] are excited about the team they have so we will need to be prepared and ready for a solid game against a tough rival,” he warned.
The Lakers then will face the Minnesota Iron Rangers here Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
