When Cache Doolaege took a slashing minor with 1:51 left in game five, with the Airdrie Thunder down by a goal, he knew he’d be watching the final moments of his junior hockey career from inside the penalty box.
The play took away a breakaway chance from the Three Hills Thrashers and gave Airdrie one last comeback opportunity, but the Junior B team couldn’t convert and lost the decisive game of the best-of-five series 5-4 at the Three Hills Centennial Arena, Feb. 28.
“I had to watch – and it was probably the toughest thing I’ve done in my five years,” said Doolaege, the 21-year-old veteran Airdrie captain, following the game. “It definitely feels better losing in five than it does three straight, but getting that close definitely makes it tough.”
The first-round playoff loss marks the end of the Thunder’s rollercoaster season – one the squad began with a 10W-0L record, but soon turned erratic following the resignation of head coach Darryl Einarson in January and the cancer diagnosis of returning coach Art Krusel three weeks ago.
Former trainer, turned assistant coach Gareth Barley was left to take over the team for its final four games, and ensuing playoff series, and he said he was impressed with the team’s resolve during the chaotic period.
“The guys never gave up; they really showed that today,” he said.
Airdrie was down 4-1, and being outshot 21-12, heading into the third period of game five, but Alex Hustad provided the team a spark 4:30 into the final frame when he tapped in a fast-paced tape-to-tape pass from Alex Diduch. Three Hills restored its three-goal lead three minutes later, however, when Michael Stoetzel walked out from behind the net and roofed the puck over Thunder netminder Logan Marlow.
Stoetzel also took a misconduct penalty on the play and Diduch responded by finding the net moments later to bring the Thunder back within two. Mark Pippard made it 5-4, with 5:49 remaining and Airdrie back on the power play, when he completed a passing play from Travis Wallan and Kristian Petit.
But that was as close as the Thunder would get, as Doolaege’s penalty proved costly and the team couldn’t beat Three Hills’ netminder Devon Dell.
“It was do or die and we obviously should have made that push earlier, but we battled right to the end and almost had them,” Doolaege said.
“I’m upset we didn’t go farther, but I’m really happy with the team and they definitely left it all out on the ice,” said Thunder general manager Frank McEvoy.
Airdrie played its final game without several key players, including leading scorer Andrew Bergmann, who left game one after tweaking his knee in the second period.
“It was really hard,” Bergmann said. “You go through the whole season fighting for playoffs and then the first game comes around and you get injured.”
“We missed Bergmann’s scoring during the playoffs after the first game,” Barley added. “I’m sure if we had him in the last four games, it would have been a lot different of a series. We also played most of the final game with four d-men, as we had one hurt (Taylor Crossley) and one suspended (Doug Fraser, for a third man in penalty during game four). Key injuries at wrong times – we were undermanned all series, but we came out and played and didn’t let it affect us.”
Although the Thunder’s year is now over, McEvoy said there is already reason to be optimistic for next season as Airdrie can return up to 22 of its 23 players for 2011-12.
“Cache is the only one we really lose technically,” he said. “He’s the only 21-year-old we have, as we have one of the youngest teams in the league. We had 14 guys 18 or under, so it bears well for us. I know some of them will give Junior A a run, but for the most part, these guys are coming back – they’ve already indicated they are.”
“We’ll have a good core of the guys back and I think teams will have to watch out,” Barley said.
But for Doolaege, whose five-year stint with the Thunder has now ended, the feeling sunk in immediately after the game.
“Disappointing, I think is the best word to describe it,” he said. “It was a young team that had lots of adversity after a great start. But we never really regained the momentum. I think if we would have won this series we could have got rolling. But it was a hell of a career and some of the best years of my life for sure.”
