The Prince Albert Mintos staged a late comeback with two third period goals, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Warman Wildcats at the Art Hauser Centre of Saturday.
The Mintos got goals from Carter Cole and Evan Skoronski with less than 2:30 to play in the final frame, but Wildcats hung on for a 3-2 win. Saturday’s loss was Prince Albert’s second in a row. The club has now dropped five of its last six games.
“Ultimately we’re in a bit of a slump that all teams go through at some point in the year, and I’d rather go through it now than in February, March, or April,” Mintos coach Doan Smith said after the game. “It’s a lesson for our group that we need to stay consistent and stay on top of things. Again, good pushback late (in) the last five minutes, but we can’t wait that long into a game before pushing back.”
Penalties were a big factor in Saturday’s contest. The Mintos spent 36 minutes in the box, compared to just 10 for Warman. The Wildcats had nine power play opportunities, scoring one goal in the process.
Smith said the Mintos need to be much more disciplined going forward.
“Penalties have gotten us in trouble the last five-six games,” he said. “We’ll take penalties. I’m okay with some penalties, but the selfish ones, I think our group has to look in the mirror and discuss what’s a good penalty and what’s a bad penalty to take.
“(It’s) just to give ourselves more time five-on-five,” he added. “Killing penalties is tough and killing penalties is hard work, so when you have to do it so much it can get exhausting. Cleaning up that part (will) allow us more time five-on-five and more time offensively.”
The Wildcats led 3-0 heading into the final three minutes before Cole’s goal at 2:18 made it 3-1. The Mintos made it 3-2 when Skoronski scored on a short-handed breakaway with 27 seconds left in the game.
Smith said the club needs to continue that effort when the two teams meet again in Warman on Sunday.
“We know that we’re a better team than what we showed, so just give ourselves a chance by responding and starting early and showing that we have energy and pushback,” Smith said. “It’s part of being a resilient team. I think we are going to be a tough team to beat in the playoffs when you’ve got to win three out of five games. We’ve just got to show that, especially on back-to-backs like this.”
Dade Wotherspoon had two goals for Warman, including the eventual game winner at 10:33 of the third period. Declan Borthwick had the other goal, while netminder Seth Gutenberg made 36 stops for the win.
Kanyan Unger and Brock Kolibab chipped in with assists for Prince Albert, while Joshua Henry made 35 saves in goal.
The Wildcats and Mintos meet again on Sunday at the Warman Home Centre Communiplex. Puck drop is 2 p.m.
Saturday’s game was the last Minto home game before Christmas. They’re back at the Art Hauser Centre on Wednesday, Jan. 8 facing the Saskatoon Blazers. Puck drop is 7 p.m.
