Mitch Calvert
The Fort Frances Jr. Sabres keep defying the odds.
Despite a depleted lineup due to several suspensions and injuries, the Sabres got a big goal from Mitch Cain in overtime last night to pull out a 4-3 victory over the host Schreiber Diesels.
After returning from a month-long absence for last weekend’s road series against the Fort William North Stars, Colton Kennedy once back was on the shelf last night with his ankle ailment while Dan Usiski and Logan McDonell both were serving suspensions for incidents from Saturday night’s game with the Stars.
The Sabres (20-9-2) once again led late in the game before the Diesels (17-13-3) struck to tie the score with just 14 seconds left in regulation.
“We couldn’t get the puck out,” Sabres’ coach Wayne Strachan said. “[Ryan] Faragher made the first save and then right onto the guy’s [Jared Saunders] tape to tie.”
The game nearly didn’t go to overtime as Cain was sent in on a breakaway in the dying seconds but was stopped by Josh Baker.
Cain got the last laugh, however, by scoring the winner in the final seconds of overtime to avoid a shootout.
The Sabres had opened the scoring early on a goal by Brendan Baumgartner, but the Diesels led 2-1 midway through the second before a power-play goal by Graham Dyck knotted the score.
Patrick Bobczynski then put the Sabres in front in the third before Saunders’ eventual game-tying goal with the Diesels’ net empty.
“We had a good first shift in the first,” noted Strachan. “Cain’s line [with Will Morriseau and Kyle Turgeon] kind of set the tone and we went from there.”
The Sabres dressed only 14 skaters last night, and likely will be in the same boat tonight when they face the first of two versus the host Thunder Bay Bearcats as a pair of players are questionable after injuries suffered against Schreiber.
To make matters worse, the forward the Sabres thought they had acquired in Sterling Bear, from the OCN Blizzard of the MJHL, now has decided not to report.
“We still have four player cards, and we’re looking to fill them all [before the Feb. 10 deadline],” Strachan remarked.
In related news, Fort Frances native Tyler Miller was named the SIJHL’s Player of the Month for December on Wednesday.
Miller has appeared in 10 games for the Bearcats, scoring 14 goals and registering 13 assists since being acquired from the Port Hope Predators of the OJHL.
“Tonight’s [game] is a huge one for us, and if we can squeak one out, you never know, [and then] we’ll see what happens tomorrow,” Strachan said of the two-game series in Thunder Bay.
“We gained two [points] on them last night, so these games are huge for us.”
The Sabres sit three points back of the Bearcats (20-7-5) with one game in hand, and could vault into second place with back-to-back wins tonight and tomorrow.
