The Whitecourt Wolverines and Canmore Eagles played games five and six of the second round of the 2024 Alberta Junior Hockey League playoffs on Friday, April 5, and Sunday, April 7.
On Friday, the Wolverines hosted the Eagles at JDA place for game five, winning 4-0.
Joey Melo opened the scoring for the Wolverines with his second goal of the postseason scored at 7:46. Evan Johnson and Nathaniel Bannister were credited with the assists.
Wolverines forward Jalen Bianchet then scored an unassisted goal at 14:57 for his third goal of the postseason.
The Whitecourt Wolverines outshot the Canmore Eagles 15-2 in the first period, and took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
No goals were scored in the second period as the Wolverines outshot the Eagles 15-12.
Colby Browne scored a powerplay goal for the Wolverines just 2:30 into the third period. Browne’s fifth goal of the playoffs was assisted by Travis Verbeek and Joey Melo to make it 3-0.
Spencer Rheaume scored the final goal of the game at 3:41 with an assist from Jarred Feist. Rheaume’s fifth goal of the postseason secured the 4-0 victory for the Wolverines.
The Whitecourt Wolverines outshot the Canmore Eagles 13-9 in the third period.
Eagle’s goaltender Matthew Malin made 39 saves on 43 shots, while Wolverine’s goaltender Nicholas Avakyan made 23 saves on 23 shots for his first shutout of the postseason.
With this win, the Whitecourt Wolverines took a 3-2 series lead.
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On Sunday, the Wolverines had a chance to eliminate the Canmore Eagles from the 2024 Alberta Junior Hockey League playoffs as they took to the ice at the Canmore Recreation Centre. However, the Eagles were not going down without a fight.
Emanuel Hudson scored the first goal of the game for the Eagles at 0:10 into the first period. Rhett Dekowny and Tyler Loughman were credited with the assists on Hudson’s fourth goal of the postseason.
Ethan Look added the insurance goal for the Eagles at 13:10. Look’s third goal of the postseason was assisted by Logan Ziegler.
The Canmore Eagles outshot the Whitecourt Wolverines 11-2 in the first period and took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
In the second period, the Wolverines outshot the Eagles 9-8 but neither team was able to score a goal.
Shots on net in the third period were even at 10-10, and once again, neither team was able to score a goal, leading to a 2-0 victory for the Canmore Eagles.
Whitecourt Wolverines goaltender Nicholas Avakyan made 27 saves on 29 shots.
Canmore Eagles goaltender Matthew Malin made 21 saves on 21 shots for his third shutout of the playoffs.
With this win, the Canmore Eagles tied the series 3-3.
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Game seven will be played on Tuesday, April 9, at JDA Place. Puck drop is at 7:00 p.m., You can catch all the action LIVE on XM105FM.