When Calgary forward Braylon Shmyr scored the Bisonsí fifth goal of the game, Airdrie Xtreme captain Marshall Burr could only watch from the stands.
It proved to be the game-winning and series-clinching goal, as the Bisons beat Airdrie 6-4 in game three of its third-round Alberta Bantam Hockey League (AMBHL) playoff sweep, March 5 at the Max Bell Centre in Calgary.
ìItís the worst feeling in the world,î said Burr, whose recurring shoulder injury forced him out of action and will require surgery.
ìEspecially in playoffs, when you canít do anything to help your team out. It doesnít feel good, but nothing can be done. I told them to give it everything they had.î
ìIt was a big loss,î said Xtreme head coach Terry Keogh, adding that blueliner Adamu Tanaka was also out with a shoulder injury, thus limiting the defence corps.
ìMarshall is our captain and our leader on and off the ice. And Adamu has developed extremely well this year, so it was two big holes to fill.î
Shmyr opened the scoring 3:54 into the game when he used a penalty-shot deke to beat Xtreme netminder Ryan Ternes. Airdrie took three straight minor penalties, but was able to capitalize shorthanded on the third of them, as Chad Harrison took a pass from Ryan Barrow on a two-on-one and used a low blocker-side shot to beat Bisonsí goalie Logan Thompson.
The teams traded early second-period goals before Calgaryís Brayden Brown completed a tic-tac-toe passing play and beat Ternes, putting the Bisons up 3-2 with 5:18 remaining in the middle frame.
ìTheyíve got a very powerful offence and because theyíre so consistent, if you miss your assignment, theyíre going to score on you,î Keogh said.
Airdrie responded with two quick goals, to take a 4-3 lead into the second intermission, as Barrow tipped in a point shot and Zach Giroux scored on an unassisted breakaway after stripping Bisonsí defenceman Bradley Forrest of the puck.
Brown scored his second of the game for Calgary 3:41 into the third and Shmyr put the Bisons ahead for good on a wrist shot over Ternesí blocker less than four minutes later.
Nick Merkley added a late insurance marker.
Keogh said his team was upset, but that he was happy about how they responded after dropping the first two games, 3-2 in Calgary on Feb. 29 and 6-2 in Airdrie on March 3, and how they faced elimination.
ìWe used a bit of history to talk to the boys. We had a similar situation in í09, when we won the Westerns, where we went down two games to the Royals and came back. We told them, not only is it possible, itís been done by guys that have worn those jerseys,î he said.
ìWe made it to the final four in what is considered one of the top development leagues in North America, so that is something to be proud of.î
Although the Xtremeís quest for an Alberta Bantam title is over, the team will still keep playing.
It has accepted an invitation to the 44th annual Kamloops international Bantam Ice Hockey Tournament beginning April 4.
ìFor our second-year players, they also have Alberta Cup tryouts coming,î Keogh said. ìThere will still be a lot of hockey for these guys between now and Kamloops.î
