The scoreboard at the Mayerthorpe Arena doesn’t report shots on goal.
With three games in the books for the Bantam Mustangs, their record reads 43 goals for and just two against. My guess is that the lights on their shot clock are just plain burned out.
Last weekend, the Jasper Bantam Bearcats travelled to Mayerthorpe to see if they could light up the clock against the Sturgeon-Pembina League crop.
The scoring started early for Mayerthorpe, eluding Jasper backstop Severin Golla three minutes into the match. In fact, the Mustangs would be up by three goals before Jasper got its first legitimate scoring chance eight minutes into the game, off the heels of a Hunter Zenner–Kolby Kongsrud passing combination that nonetheless ended up in the mitt of the Mustangs’ goalie. Golla would let two more through him before the first period would come to an end.
With a 5–0 hill to climb at the start of the second, Jasper didn’t do themselves any favours by apparently tipping the puck in their own net to give Mayerthorpe a six goal cushion. The Jasper blue line—led by veterans Crimson Derbrowka and
Brendan Auger sharing defensive duties, along with smooth skating Matthew Park and Kongsrud—didn’t actually get to grace the blue paint much in the second against the Mustangs onslaught. But when they did get the puck deep, the Bearcats were dangerous.
With three minutes left on the clock in the second, Jasper forward Hayden Hart got possession of the puck behind the Mayerthorpe net and fed Cooper Hilworth in front. It took three hacks at it, but Hilworth eventually buried the puck to the excited cheers from the bench. Small victories.
After 40 minutes, the scoreclock read 9–1 for Mayerthorpe.
In the third, it took every bit of discipline from the Jasper bench to keep things from getting goofy.
They were clearly outmatched on the ice, and the game was getting rough as the scoreclock kept ticking off the Mustangs’ markers. But you have to hand it to our Jasper kids, they kept their composure and continued to play their game against overwhelming odds.
Zenner was outstanding, moving the puck with confidence through the opposition ranks. Walter Ostrander, a physical presence on the ice, showed glimpses of offensive flair. And Jasper goaltender Golla smelled like burnt toast at the end of 60 minutes, but kept his head in the game. Indeed, at the end of the day, the scoresheet read 15 for Mayerthorpe and 1 for Jasper, improving the Mustangs’ goal percentage to 58 for versus 3 against after four games. These kids seem to be in a different league.
The Bearcats get this weekend off, but in two weeks’ time travel back to the Mayerthorpe barn to try their luck in another one-game road trip to the agricultural heartland.
Let’s hope they can repeat their classy performance, regardless of what the scoreclock says.
John Wilmshurst
Special to the Fitzhugh
