Lucas Punkari
Fort Frances Lakers’ head coach Wayne Strachan will be looking for the same effort from his players tonight in Dryden when they try to even their best-of-seven semi-final series with the Ice Dogs.
After losing the first two games on home ice on the weekend, the Lakers got back into the series with a 3-2 road win Tuesday night.
“I don’t think we have to change a lot, especially if the guys have the same mentality that they showed on Tuesday,” Strachan noted.
“The guys were happy that they were able to come back and get a win after those two losses at home, and they just need to remember that feeling again tonight,” he reasoned.
“If we can have the same work ethic, stick to the game plan, and stay disciplined, we should put ourselves in good shape to tie the series.”
Byron Katapaytuk, Cody Hasbargen, and Henry Gutierrez netted first-period goals in Tuesday night’s win.
“Our goal was to come out to a much better start than we did in the first two games,” Strachan said.
“It was a must-win situation for us, and our whole attitude and perspective was a lot different as a result, which led to the guys coming out with a strong attention to detail when it came down to our game plan,” he noted.
Tuesday’s setback was the Ice Dogs’ first this post-season, and also marked the first time the squad had lost since Feb. 18, when they dropped a 3-2 decision to the eventual regular-season champion Wisconsin Wilderness.
“At some point we knew the bubble had to burst, especially when you get to this time of year because you never expect to sweep your way through the playoffs,” Ice Dogs’ coach Clint Mylymok reasoned.
“Sometimes, though, you need a loss like that to wake up some of those guys who might be thinking, ‘Hey, we’re on a roll here and it’s just going to keep on going.’
“It would have been ridiculous to think that we would have swept them [Lakers] as we know how good of a team they are, plus they ranked in the top-20 nationally this year for a reason,” Mylymok added.
Both coaches expect their lineups to stay status quo for the most part tonight, with no major injury setbacks on either side.
The Lakers, however, are expected to have forward Jace Baldwin back in action after he served a one-game suspension Tuesday due to being ejected from Sunday night’s 3-2 loss in Game 2 here.
The series switches back to the Ice For Kids Arena for Game 5 tomorrow, with the face-off set for 7:30 p.m.
Game 6, if necessary, would be in Dryden on Monday (March 28), with a Game 7 (if needed) back here the following night.
In the other semi-final series, the Wilderness hold a 2-0 lead on the Thunder Bay North Stars, with Game 3 set for tonight at the Fort William Gardens.
