The Junior Canucks are in Slave Lake this Saturday to face the Wolves, a team that has had the Canucks number all season.
Dawson Creek is 0-3 versus their North West Junior Hockey League rivals, and the two teams are deadlocked at 7-7 in league standings. The last loss came on Oct. 27 when the Wolves defeated the Canucks 6-4 at Memorial Arena, in a game where the Canucks outplayed their opponents, but the scoreboard said otherwise.
If the Canucks have any hopes of passing the Wolves in the standings they will need a better effort than their performance last Saturday against the Fairview Flyers. The Canucks allowed three-unanswered goals before scoring twice to close the gap; only to fall 4-2 to the Flyers who trail the Canucks by two spots in the NWJHL standings.
Following the loss on Saturday, assistant coach Ashley Rude said the Canucks have to play better no matter the team, or their record.
“We have to have the same effort every night, it doesn’t matter what team we are playing against,” said Rude. “You have setbacks they are going to happen, it is what it is, we just have to come out and bust our butt in the next one and continue on.”
A win over the Wolves would move the Canucks into third spot of the NWJHL, behind second place North Peace Navigators (10-3), and the undefeated Grande Prairie Kings (12-0).
No team has come close to dethroning the Kings who have outscored opponents 105-30 in just 12 games, but the Canucks have proven they can contend with North Peace after handing the Navs a 4-3 loss on Nov. 9.
Slave Lake on the other hand has yet to challenge the Navigators, and in their last meeting lost 7-4 to North Peace.
The Canucks are on the road for two more games before returning to home ice Nov. 30 to play the Sexsmith Vipers. Dawson Creek is 1-1 against the Vipers.
Next Saturday the Canucks visit Beaverlodge to take on the Blades, and in a rare weekday match travel to Grande Prairie to meet the Kings on Tuesday, Nov. 27.
