Bisons bounce back with blowout

Tyler Lowey
Times Reporter

 

The CFR Chemicals Bisons responded to their first dose of adversity by erupting for seven goals in what turned out to be a bit of a laugher Dec. 16 at the Strathmore Family Centre.
After seeing their 19-game unbeaten streak snapped, the Bisons endured a three-game winless streak before dumping the last place Knights of Columbus Pats 7-1.
The Pats (6-15-2) leading scorer, Seattle Thunderbirds prospect Graeme Bryks, banked one from behind the net off Bisons netminder Hunter Young to jump to an early 1-0 lead.
The Bisons, who were shut out in their last outing for the first time this season, took the lid off their offense with seven-straight goals, sparked by their defense.
Cole Clayton leads the Bisons defensive unit with seven points and kick started the rout with a pair of Duncan Keith-ian passes.
From behind his own net, he set Jackson Salt up with a pass that would have been illegal if the two-line pass rule was still enforced. Salt sprinted in on Pats netminder Braedan Stephen, unleashing a quick snap shot from in tight.
“I was feeling pretty good coming into tonight,” said Clayton. “We knew this was a beatable team, so I tried a couple new things and they worked out.”
While he might not have picked up an assist on the winner, Clayton certainly put the play in motion with another great outlet pass to Tarun Fizer, who set up Brandon Machado for a breakaway. Machado, one of the Bisons fastest skaters, was off, shooting and burying his seventh goal.
“His panic threshold is the highest I’ve ever seen. He sees the ice better than anyone and makes passes that make you say, ‘holy cow, how did he see that?’” said Bisons assistant coach Mike Langen.
Clayton nearly added a pair of snipes, but pounded point blasts off the crossbar twice.
The Herd carried a 3-1 lead into the first break when another defenseman, Liam Belcourt, joined the rush 24 seconds after Machado’s marker, and stuffed his second on the season past Stephen.
The Bisons (18-2-3) were scoring goals in bunches in what was their final home game before the holiday break.
In the second period, while on the power play, a point shot from Tyler Petrie was knocked down in front; Blake Wells’ rebound attempt saw the puck squirt over to Joel Krahenbil, who tapped in a backhander on the doorstep for his fifth goal.
Off the ensuing faceoff, Payton Krebs, who was amidst a mini-slump – only one point in his previous four games – came roaring back down the ice 52 seconds later with Salt and Cayde Augustine, chipping in his 11th marker.
Krebs was reunited with Salt on the top line as they welcomed affiliated player Jaevon Bushlen to form the all-Okotoks line. Buschlen seemed to fit in nicely, having played with Krebs in peewee and bantam.
“He has a great hockey sense. He might not be the biggest or fastest, but he knows where to go to be successful, and that’s only going to help him out going forward,” said Krebs about Buschlen, who has six goals and 15 points in 17 games for the Rockyview Raiders minor midget AAA.
Zach Huber made his debut for the Okotoks Oilers of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, clearing a spot for Buschlen.
With Landon Melzer and Kaden Hanas resting lower-body injuries, Luke Jensen (Airdrie Lightning midget AA) and Ethan Strang (AC Avalanche minor midget AAA) made their debuts for the Herd.
Following the Krebs goal, the Pats called a timeout.
Whatever coach Brennan Menard drew up didn’t set in, as nine seconds later, it was Fizer off the draw, taking the puck deep and driving home his 11th of the season as he moves up to seventh in league scoring with 11 goals and 26 points.
Wells added his team-leading 12th snipe from Krahenbil with 1:38 remaining in the third, as the Bisons collectively exhaled a feeling of relief to be back in the win column.
For Young, it was an important start in net. Giving up the behind-the-net goal early, and almost kicking in another rebound, he looked solid between the pipes for his first win since Nov. 25, where he recorded 15 saves in a 2-1 win over the MLAC Beverly Optimists on home ice. It was his first win in three starts as he continues to work his way back from missing seven games with an upper body injury. His 14 saves earned him his sixth win.
“It was tough for him to miss a big chunk of games and practices,” said Langen. “When he finally came back, he picked up a couple losses, so it was nice for him to get the win. We are going to need him down the stretch.”
With the win, the Bisons have clinched their 15th-straight playoff berth.
“It’s nice to know that we clinched, but our goal now is to earn that first-round bye and avoid the best-of-three series in the opening round,” said Langen. “It will also provide us with a week off, which would be nice.”
The Bisons final regular season game before the holiday break went Dec. 21 at the Max Bell Centre when they took on the Calgary Northstars (10-11-2).
In preparation for the Mac’s AAA Midget Hockey Tournament, the Bisons took on the Hungarian National U18 squad Dec. 23 at Pason Centennial Arena in Okotoks in an exhibition match.
The Bisons return to AMHL action Jan. 13 (8 p.m.), when they host the Calgary Flames (14-7-1) at the Strathmore Family Centre.