Mitch Calvert
Time to get back to the drawing board.
The Fort Frances Lakers showed all the elements of an inexperienced team in a 6-3 loss to the Dryden Ice Dogs before 535 paying customers at the Ice For Kids Arena here Friday night.
The hosts trailed 3-1 after one, battled to get it back to 3-3 thanks to two goals by captain Colton Kennedy in the second, but then the wheels fell off in the third.
“You can’t play 20 minutes of hockey and expect to win at this level,” Lakers’ head coach Wayne Strachan stressed.
“In the first, we watched them work, move the puck, and skate all over us.
“The second period we played good hockey, worked hard, competed, and capitalized on our chances,” Strachan added.
“We played simple hockey, were smart in our own end, got the puck out, got the puck deep in their end, and forced hard to create turnovers.
“We worked hard to get back in the game and should’ve been flying for the third period,” he remarked.
“[But in] the third, we went back to sleep, let them do whatever they wanted, and didn’t help one another out,” Strachan lamented.
“And our goaltending wasn’t up to par in the period either; some very weak goals went in.”
Garrett Nystedt and Kevin Burton had two goals apiece for the Ice Dogs, who improved to 2-0 on the season.
Matthew Caulfield and Kyle Heck added singles while Brendan Muise netted the only other goal for the Lakers (1-3).
Zac McMichael allowed six goals on 37 shots to take the loss while Dryden’s Curtis Barker earned the victory.
The Lakers next welcome the Sioux Lookout Flyers (2-3) to the Ice For Kids Arena tomorrow at 7:30 p.m.
