By Brett Richter
Kam River Road Game Oct 1 –
No one likes to lose. But when it comes to losing, there are few people who dislike losing more than Ironwood Lumberjacks Head Coach Doug Lein. After a two-loss weekend in Sioux Lookout on September 26 and 27, Coach Lein laid a few specific hockey challenges at the feet of the Ironwood roster and asked the team to prove they were worthy of playing Junior A level hockey. The proof would come in a rare midweek road game against the Kam River Fighting Walleye on Wednesday, October 1.
Bucking the trend of being a slow starting team, the Ironwood Lumberjacks played a scoreless first period against the defending league champion, Kam River Fighting Walleye. The usual first period penalties plagued the Lumberjacks but a strong focus on the penalty kill allowed the Jacks to end the period at 0-0. Goalkeeper Gavin Covrig had an outstanding first period with 20 saves. Although being outshot, there were positive indications at the end of twenty minutes. During the first intermission, Head Coach Doug Lein reemphasized urgency and simplification of play telling the team, “Don’t overthink it. Make smart plays and just play the game. Be strong on the puck and do the little things.”
The start of the second period found the Jacks taking coaches words to heart and skating with more focus and determination. But the second period was rarely played at five on five with both teams serving several penalties during the middle 20 minutes. (#16) Colin Dorsey-Burdick scored first on a great wrist shot from the left face-off dot beating the Kam River goalie high on the blocker side. (#24) Tim Hanulik had the lone assist on the goal giving the Jacks the lead, 1-0. But less than a minute later, Kam River found the back of the Lumberjack net to tie the game. As penalties persisted, the Jacks found themselves on a power play, when (#25) Jack Carruthers displayed his shooting prowess ripping a shot past the Kam River net minder to give the Jacks a 2-1 lead. (#24) Ryland Elsenpeter and (#4) Logan Carey were credited with assists on the Carruthers goal.
The third period began with both teams shorthanded, but the Kam River Walleye pushing the play. While the Lumberjacks met the resistance with vigor, two lackluster mid period shifts in a row allowed the Walleye to score two goals 18 seconds apart to take a 3-2 lead. The Fighting Walleye tightened the defensive end of the rink and the Lumberjacks failed to tally an equalizer before the 60-minute horn sounded. After a strong team effort, the Lumberjacks locker room agonized over leaving two points on the table in Kam River.
While addressing the team with post-game comments, Coach Lein told the players, “No one hates losing more than me. No one. But there was a lot of good in tonight’s effort. We have come miles in the last 96 hours, both as individuals and as a team. I am happy with 90% of what I saw. We talked about playing for 60 minutes and we played for 59 ½ minutes. But that 30 seconds cost us the game. We got better, but we still need more.”
The Lumberjacks travel for another rare midweek one-night game against the Thunder Bay North Stars on Tuesday, October 7 before returning home for a two game weekend series on October 10 and 11 against the Red Lake Miners. With four forwards and one defenseman out with injuries, the Lumberjacks are hoping the extra days will allow a full roster for the two-game set against the Miners. Puck drops at 7 pm Oct 10 and 11 at the Pat O’Donnell Civic Center on the campus of GCC. Stop out and support your Lumberjack players.