Sarna goal earns Parkland one goal victory over Lightning
The Parkland Rangers welcomed 1462 fans to the CUP in Dauphin on Saturday night to celebrate the region's Ukrainian heritage and cheer on their hometown squad in Manitoba U18 AAA hockey action. Cam Sarna scored the game winning goal late in the second period and Chase Glover delivered a stellar performance between the pipes as the Rangers held off the talented Interlake Lightning 5-4 to send the massive crowd home happy. Sunday afternoon's rematch went in favour of the visitors by a final score of 4-1 despite Ethan Myhre's 30 saves.
Saturday night brought the highly anticipated Ukrainian Night to Credit Union Place and the Parkland region didn't disappoint as they filled the barn an hour before game time. There was a noticeable buzz in the air as the teams completed their off-ice warm-up routines and the vendors set up shop. The concourse was full of food, drinks, music and prize tables and the lobby filled with Cossacks on horseback, setting the tone for a spectacular night. After a spectacular pregame ceremony, the teams on the ice didn't disappoint. The Lightning got off to fast start, pressuring the Rangers and generating a handful of solid scoring chances in the opening five minutes. The pressure paid off when the Rangers were forced into a pair of penalties. Midway through the frame, Blake farthing carried the puck deep into the shorthanded Rangers zone a snapped a shot by Glover on the short side to stake the Lightning to an early 1-0 lead. The Rangers didn't stay down long however. Ethan Carnegie finished off a nice solo rush up the ice with a wraparound goal that ignited the crowd. Cash McCallum picked up the assist on the goal. The second frame started off much like the first, with Interlake looking a little sharper than the Rangers and Lucas Spencer eventually gave the guests a 2-1 lead with a seeing eye shot that sneaked past Glover. Much like the opening period, the Rangers slowly began to take charge of the game and Tavyn Boychuk leveled the scores with a quick shot from the slot off a broken play. Andrew Pidskalny and Cam Sarna were awarded assists on the power play goal. Unfortunately, Ian Buors would find himself free at the side of the Rangers' cage as a power play expired and he swept home a loose puck to give the Lightning their third lead of the game with just over seven minutes left to play in the second period. That goal sparked the home team who responded with ruthless efficiency, scoring three goals in just under four minutes. First, it was Hayden Seib who banked a puck in off of Lightning goalie Alex Myers from below the goal line. Ethan McMullan and Sam Swanton picked up assists on Seib's 13th goal of the season. Quinten Fisk was up next, hammering a one timer past Myers on a pass from Maddox Shindle after Seib's dazzling shorthanded rush up the ice. Just over a minute later, Sarna blew the roof off the CUP when he ripped a snapshot over Myers' glove to give the Rangers a 5-3 lead in the final minute of the frame. Boychuk and Cash Clarkson earned assists on Sarna's 10th goal of the season. The third period was all about defending the two goal lead. The plan came together despite an early Drew Russell goal for Interlake that halved the Rangers advantage. Glover was outstanding and the Rangers made dozens of second-effort plays to preserve the 5-4 victory and send the fans home happy.
The rematch on Sunday was less dramatic and the setting was certainly different, but both squads showed ready to play right from the drop of the puck. Myhre made his first start since he defeated Yellowhead in overtime on Tuesday night and delivered another solid performance between the pipes but Lightning goalie and Brandon Wheat Kings prospect Dylan McFadyen was spectacular on this occasion. McFadyen set the tone early with a scintillating save off a Boychuk one-timer in the opening minutes and kept things scoreless with a big save on Clarkson's partial breakaway midway through the period. Interlake finally broke the ice with a power play goal late in the frame on a scramble in the Rangers' crease. The lead grew to 2-0 early in the second period after some effective forechecking by the guests and was extended further late in the frame on a fortuitous deflection. Trailing 3-0 the Rangers played a solid third period, outshooting the guests 17-5 but Cash Clarkson's slapshot was the only puck that they could squeeze by McFadyen as the Lightning got one of their own and claimed a 4-1 win.
The split of the weekend games leaves the Rangers in 10th place, still fighting for their playoff lives as they head to Shoal Lake on Thursday for a massive game with the Yellowhead Chiefs.
