Southern Express skate away with season-opening victory

The Southern Express U18 AA female squad kicked off the Alberta Female Hockey League season with a 3-2 overtime victory against the Rocky Mountain Raiders on Saturday in Okotoks.

The Southern Express — a program that hosts female hockey players from across southern Alberta, including Medicine Hat, Brooks, Vauxhall, Bassano, Lethbridge, Coutts and Picture Butte — rallied to the sudden-death victory on the strength of Brittney Kambeitz’s game-winner.

Rocky Mountain’s Hailee Easton opened the scoring early in the second period, but Ashlee Glubish answered back to even things up after 40 minutes.

Amy Craig finished off a play set up by Jayel Dovichak to put the Express out in front late in the third, but Gracie Page pushed back for Rocky Mountain 34 seconds later to force overtime and set the stage for Kambeitz’s winner.

Hayley Whelen turned away 34 shots to secure the Southern victory, while Ellen Poelzer stopped 12 and Tara Den Hoed added 11 in sharing the goaltending duties for Rocky.

The Southern Express U18s return to the ice for a rematch with the Raiders on Friday at Nicholas Sheran Leisure Centre in Lethbridge.

U15 Express win big

The Southern Express’s U15 AA squad was also victorious in its AFHL season opener, cruising to an 8-2 victory on Friday in Lethbridge.

Brianna Finke led the Southern offence with three goals and an assist, while Keira Grant and Riley Gramlich both had one of each and Keyana Bert added a pair of helpers.

Gramlich and Finke opened the scoring in the first. Rocky answered back with an early goal from Madison Berven to kick off the second, but the Express stormed back with goals from Finke, Jayda Becker and Grant to carry a five-goal lead into the third.

The Raiders again struck for an early tally in the final frame, this time from Megan Kirkpatrick, but it was met with another three-goal outburst from the Express. Ava Caputo snapped one back just nine seconds after Kirkpatrick’s marker, then Julie Barlow added another for good measure before Finke finished off the hat trick.

Maddy Ferguson started the game in net for the Express and logged 11 saves on 12 shots before handing the crease over to Taya Christie, who stopped 15 of 16 down the stretch.

Rocky’s Katie Fost allowed eight goals on 27 shots before Ericka Finney took over halfway through the third and stopped seven to close out the game.

The Southern Express U15s will look for another win against the Raiders on Saturday in Okotoks.

SEAC U16s drop a pair

The South East Athletic Club’s U16 AAA Tigers opened the Alberta Elite Hockey League season with a pair of losses to the Lethbridge Headwater Hurricanes this weekend at Hockey Hounds Recreation Centre.

After falling just short in a 3-2 nailbiter Saturday, the Tigers came out on the wrong end of a 7-4 barnburner Sunday.

SEAC’s Jesse Arendt opened the scoring in Saturday’s contest, but Riley Preachuk answered back to even things up after 20.

Zach Herman restored SEAC’s lead with a power play goal midway through the second, but again the Hurricanes responded in kind with Matteo Blasetti knotting things up on a shorthanded tally late in the frame.

Preachuk then struck again to secure the victory in the third.

Silas Currie stopped 35 shots for SEAC in the loss, while Ryan DeKok took the victory with 26 saves.

SEAC was right in the thick of Sunday’s rematch before Lethbridge broke open a 4-4 tie in the third with three straight goals from Jayden Schwindt, Trey Schofield and Ashton Angle.

Jayden Richards gave the Tigers an early lead with a first-period tally, then Cole

Unger and Hayden King added goals in the second. But Lethbridge struck for four in the middle frame, with two from Jordan Campbell and individual tallies out of Brett Hudey and Preachuk.

Gavin Smith set things back even early in the third period, but Lethbridge’s late push secured the result.

SEAC’s Tyler Wakelam took the loss with 22 saves, while Lethbridge’s Thomas MacLean stopped 15 in the victory.

The Tigers and Hurricanes meet again Saturday in Lethbridge to close out a threegame set.

U18 Hounds fall to Chiefs in exhibition

The Medicine Hat Hounds U18 AA squad battled to a 3-1 loss in exhibition play against the Wheatland Chiefs on the road Sunday.

Callen Prosofsky scored halfway through the third period to break a shutout and bring the Hounds to within a goal, but Wheatland’s Joel Romano ended any hope for a comeback with a goal in the dying minutes of regulation.

Brandon McGillivray opened the scoring for Wheatland six minutes into the first, then Ryder Many Grey Horses added a shorthanded insurance marker midway through the second.

Kaiden Morin stopped 25 shots for Medicine Hat in the loss. Corey Ross collected a 13-save win for the Chiefs.

The Hounds will host the Chiefs to open the SCAHL season on Nov. 13 at the Kinplex.