After three weekends of Fishing Lake Hockey League play, there is one incredible trend emerging. There are no longer any games that can be taken for granted, as parity seems to be the overwhelming factor so far.
The Canora Cobras entered this past weekend with a perfect 2-0 record. However, the Cobra offence which was red-hot at the start of the year went stone-cold during the weekend and the Cobras dropped a pair of games to even their record to 2-2.
On Saturday night, the defending champion Kelliher Komets brought their 0-3 record to town. It took awhile for the Cobras to find their legs again after a two week break and the Komets capitalized with an early 2-0 lead. The lead was extended to 3-0 after an early second period goal. The Cobra offence finally awoke, when Graham Lamb fired home a shot from the point on the power play to give the Cobras some life. Shortly after, Sean Kolodzjieski narrowed the deficit to one goal when he drove hard to the net and scored on a rebound after Ryan Kitchen and Tanner Denesowych were stopped on a two on one break. Zack Woloshyn tied the game for the Cobras early in the third period, when he redirected a shot from the point from Ryan Hauber.
However, the lead was short-lived as the Komets netted two quick goals to take a 5-3 lead. The Cobras were unable to generate any more success in the final 9 minutes and the Cobras lost their first game of the season. In the meantime, the Komets picked up their first victory.
On Sunday night, the Cobras welcomed the new-look Theodore Buffaloes to town. The Buffs returned to the Fishing Lake Hockey League after a one season absence. Prior to the game, the Cobras paid tribute to long-time volunteer and goal judge, Ivan Fylshtan, who passed away this summer. After the Cobras gave up the first goal, Daniel Lamb pounced on a rebound to tie up the game. The Buffs immediately came back to take the lead, but the Cobras kept on pressing. Graham Lamb walked in all alone from the point on a 2 man power play and rifled a shot into the top corner to tie the game again. Unfortunately, that was all the offence the Cobras could generate. The Buffs scored twice in the second and once more in the third to win the game, 5-2.
This weekend was a harsh wakeup call for the Cobra squad. To all those in attendance, it is apparent that the Cobras have an amazing collection of talent on the team right now. From an individual standpoint, there is no other team in the league that has more talent then the Cobras. But, from a team standpoint, there might not be a worse team in the league right now. The Cobras spent a lot of time in the penalty box and couldn’t generate any momentum while killing penalties. While on the power play, the Cobras failed to create many scoring opportunities. The team played way too complacent on the weekend and we need to get our edge back. Right now, we all need to be better teammates!
The Cobras will head to Foam Lake on Friday night, before returning home and taking on the first-place Theodore Buffalo squad on Saturday night. Game time in Canora on Saturday is at 8:00.
