Northstars shine over Bisons

Tyler Lowey
Times Reporter

 

The holiday break might have come at the perfect time for the CFR Chemicals Bisons.
The Bisons fell in their final Alberta Midget Hockey League game of 2016 to the Calgary Northstars 5-4 Dec. 21 at the Max Bell Centre.
“We are a little fatigued right now,” said Bisons head coach Sandy Henry. “This is a tough, competitive league and teams come at us every game. Hopefully, a little family time this Christmas with some time off following the Mac’s (AAA Midget Hockey Tournament) and we come back recharged.”
The Herd came out strong in the first with a trio of goals, and depending who you ask, maybe should have had one more.
Up 1-0 following Tyler Petrie’s first of two on the evening 2:25 into the first, the Northstars (11-11-2) tied it on a goal that appeared to hit the post and bounce out. Shortly after, the Bisons felt like the found the back of the net, but it was waved off for a dislodged net.
“That was a little bit of a tough stretch,” said Henry. “They scored a goal that we thought didn’t count and then we had one that we thought was good, that got reversed. It was a little bit of a game-changer in bit of a tough stretch, but our guys battled through.”
Airdrie product Brandon Machado took over in the first period following the goal controversies.
He netted an unassisted marker with 8:06 remaining, and then another from linemates Tarun Fizer and captain Brett Trentham.
Machado is picking up his play as of late, the 16-year-old now scoring in back-to-back games.
“As with all young guys, he went through a bit of a learning curve at the start of the year,” said Henry. “He’s learning how and when to use his wheels — whether it’s skating in his line or turning on the jets to get out on a break. He’s got great skill and he’s going to be a good goal scorer for us.”
Machado sits sixth on the Bisons (18-3-3) with nine goals and 21 points. Last season as a member of the Edge School Elite 15s, he racked up 26 goals and 78 points in 35 games.
“I’ve just been sticking to my game plan. Playing with guys like Fizer and Brett (Trentham) has made it easy. We have gotten to know each other on and off the ice this year and we are getting the bounces now,” said Machado.
The Bisons were unable to sustain their first-period pressure through the remaining two stanzas despite Petire adding his tied-for-team-leading 12th goal from Joel Krahenbil.
“We just didn’t have a great night in our own end,” said Henry. “Everyone, the forwards, defensemen and goalie, didn’t play well. Maybe we weren’t aggressive enough and we got outplayed in the third period. We gotta learn from this and try and get our focus level back.”
Up 4-2 late in the second, the Northstars cut within one when Jarret Timmerman found the back of the net with 23 seconds left.
Then, in the third period, the Bisons outshot the Northstars 15-11, but the Northstars put two in the back of the net, including the winner from affiliated player Blake Stevenson.
The Bisons now move to 1-2-1 against Calgary-based teams this year and 1-3-1 in their past five games.
Hopefully the Mac’s tournament creates some enthusiasm and regenerates us coming back from the break.
The Bisons skated to a 3-3 tie with the Hungarian National U18 squad Dec. 23 at Pason Centennial Arena as an exhibition warm up for the tournament.
After rocking the puck off a pair of crossbars last weekend, Cole Clayton netted the lone goal in the opening period as the Bisons took a 1-0 lead on 12 shots. Tyler Strath and Tyson Scott picked up assists.
The Bisons picked up a pair of goals in the second stanza from Liam Belcourt and alternate captain Kaden Hanas. Registering assists was affiliated player Mark Zachary and Tarun Fizer.
The Hungarian team tied it at three while on the two-man advantage 5:10 into the third period.
The goaltending duty was split equally between Hunter Young and Ben Laidlaw. Laidlaw started, stopping 19 of 20 shots, and Young took over at the 10:17 mark of the second, allowing two goals on 14 shots.
The Herd resumes their AMHL season Jan. 8 (3:45 p.m.) when they take on the Calgary Royals at Stu Peppard Arena. Their next home game goes Jan. 13 when the Bisons welcome the Calgary Flames (15-7-1) to the Strathmore Family Centre.
The Bisons and Royals (14-5-4) skated to a 3-3 tie back on Dec. 9 and the Bisons disposed of the Flames 7-2 Oct. 30.