Legionnaires miss playoffs at Mac’s Tournament
The Swift Current Home Hardware Legionnaires narrowly missed the playoffs for a second straight year at the Mac’s AAA Midget Hockey World Invitational Tournament over the holiday break.
The Legionnaires finished with one win, one loss, and two ties to place third in their five-team robin group. They were edged out in their final game on Sunday to miss the playoffs.
The Legionnaires tied their opening game 3-3 against the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Boxing Day to open the 25-team event. Joe Arntsen, Christian Albertson, and Boston Bird all scored for the Legionnaires.
Maguire Scheidt, Logan Linklater, 306-778-0668 Reed Jacobson, and Mason Strutt added assists. Ethan Hein made 21 saves on 24 shots.
The Legionnaires were unbeaten after two games at the Mac’s after a 10-1 win over the Brampton 45’s on Thursday.
The Legionnaires scored 10 goals on 31 shots and finished six-for-nine on the power play. Jacobson notched a hat trick, Strutt registered two goals and one assist, and Hendrik de Klerk added a goal and two assists.
Kersey Reich, Hunter Larocque, and Albertson all added a goal and an assist. Arntsen, Lucas Ochitwa, Riley Dekowny, and Jaxon Martens added two assists apiece. Rhett Evjen also scored, while Kalan Lind, Bird, and Blake Rasmuson all added single helpers. Jacob Herman earned the win with 15 saves on 16 shots.
They tied the Calgary Flames 2-2 on Friday to move to 1-0-2 in the round robin. Jacobson and Rasmuson scored for the Legionnaires. Bird, Arntsen, Martens, and Reich all added assists. Hein made 29 saves as the Legionnaires were outshot 31-19.
Sunday, needing a win to advance to the quarter-finals, the Legionnaires lost 3-2 to the Caribou Cougars. Reich and Strutt scored in the loss.
The Legionnaires were awarded the Team Sportsmanship Award and rookie defenseman Joe Arntsen was named to the Second All-star Team.
The Legionnaires are currently third in the 12-team Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League with a 19-7-1-0 record. They will resume their league schedule on Jan. 8 when they visit the sixth-place Notre Dame Hounds (13-8-2-1).