Hitmen kill Blades momentum in home loss

Just one night prior the Saskatoon Blades came back from two goals down for a 4-3 win in Moose Jaw. On Wednesday the late comeback was a goal short in a 4-3 loss to Calgary.

The Blades started out on the right foot, with a pair of goals to open the scoring in the first. Libor Hajek shot home his first goal of the season on the powerplay. Jesse Shynkaruk (9) pushed the puck home during a goal mouth scramble for a 2-0 lead for Saskatoon.

Calgary would score four unanswered goals spread out over three periods to lead 4-2 late in the game. A perfectly placed wrist shot by Braylon Shmyr got the Blades within one late, but that was all they could manage.

“I think we ran out of steam a little bit and couldn’t sustain the momentum we created in the first ten minutes,” said Blades head coach Dean Brockman. Saskatoon played with only ten forwards for the game.

“It’s a tired group with back to back games and a short bench but they showed a lot of character.”

Logan Flodell made 21 saves in the loss and spent the final 2:17 of the game on the bench. A late flurry from the Blades tried to find a goal to send it to overtime.

“We had to battle through it with two days off we had nothing to save it for,” said Blades centre Jesse Shynkaruk.

Those in attendance at SaskTel Centre would have noticed a new face for the Blades, albeit covered by a cage. 2016 second overall draft pick Kirby Dach made his home ice debut in the loss.

“He didn’t show any nerves and created chances doing a lot of things really well,” said head coach Dean Brockman.

The shorthanded Blades will get a couple days of rest before their next game. Saskatoon is on the road to face the top-ranked Regina Pats on Saturday Dec. 10 at the Brandt Centre.