The Whitecourt Wolverines are in a playoff pickle

After sweeping the Grande Prairie Storm in the first round of the AJHL playoffs, the Whitecourt Wolverines knew round two would be more challenging for them. Taking on the Bonnyville Pontiacs, the Wolverines needed to dig deep, put their previous series behind them and focus squarely on facing the Pontiacs head-on.

Game one occurred on Friday, March 24, at the Scott Safety Centre. With 660 fans in attendance, Wolverine goalie Ben Charette skated to his net and got himself into the zone, mentally preparing for the task before him.

In the first period, the Pontiacs were caught tripping a Wolverine, giving the home team a chance on the man advantage. Flanked by Chase Broda and Tanner Komzak, Colby Browne took full advantage, scoring thirty-three seconds into the powerplay. The Whitecourt fans went wild!

A couple of minutes later, at 5:51 of the period, the Pontiacs tied things up, making it 1-1. The Pontiacs took three penalties in the first period, while the Wolverines had one. Staying out of the penalty box was likely a topic of discussion in Bonnyville’s dressing room during the first intermission.

In the second, Dylan Leslie scored his third goal of the playoffs, assisted by Cooper Smyl, who snagged his fifth assist. Not even a minute later, Colby Browne scored his second of the night, and his seventh goal of the postseason, assisted by Spencer Rheaume, his fifth assist. The Wolverines found themselves with a quick lead, 3-1. Still in the second, Bonnyville managed to pot one in behind Charette’s pads, coming to within one. The score after two periods was 3-2.

Early in the third, Bonnyville tied things up. The Wolverines worked hard to steal back their lead, but after the final horn blast, the teams were still knotted up with three apiece. In overtime, Bonnyville found the back of the net and grabbed the most important lead of the night. Wolverines’ fans were crushed as their team dropped game one of the series.

The Saturday game brought just over 500 fans to the Scott Safety Centre to cheer on the two rivals. In the first period, there were five penalties, three of which were against the Wolverines. The Pontiacs didn’t score on their first two opportunities on the man advantage but did on the third. With just over two minutes left in the period, the visitors scored, making it 1-0.

In the second, it was more of the same, except this time, it was Bonnyville with three penalties. There were several moments where fans loudly disagreed with the call, or lack of call, on the ice as they impatiently waited for the Wolverines to get on the board. Unfortunately, the Wolverines couldn’t capitalize on any of their powerplays. Plenty of great plays led to great shot attempts, but they couldn’t surpass the Bonnyville goalie. Fortunately for Bonnyville, they added another number to their side of the scoreboard, making it 2-0 after the second.

In the final period, the Whitecourt Wolverines came out flying. They were in a hole and had to dig their way out. At the eight-minute mark, Tanner Klimpke pushed a little too hard and received a two-minute penalty for a blow to the head and a ten-minute misconduct. After pulling the goalie in the final few minutes, the Wolverines pushed, trying desperately to score. A Pontiac player riffled the puck into the empty net, solidifying their team’s win.

The Whitecourt Wolverines are behind 2-0 in the series. Will the home team claw back and play at home for fans this weekend? Here’s hoping! To catch up on this week’s road games and get a breakdown of the action, visit www.whitecourtwolverines.ca.