Yaks Attack Saints

7-2 win for the hometown boys at the RJ

The Bonnyville Jr A Pontiacs impressed the home crowd, and some scouts, on Tuesday evening, as they secured another two points and the second spot in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL), with a 7-2 win over the Spruce Grove Saints.

The game had the typical Yaks versus Saints flare, high energy and loads of speed. The Saints opened up the game with tick on the clock from Josh Harris at 6:49 in the first. The cellie was cut short when  Isaac Saniga tied it up from Trygve Many Guns and Derek Brown. PJ Marrocco with the help of Brendan Holterhus advanced the game to 2-1 Pontiacs before the close of the first.

The atmosphere has a lot to do with success, Marrocco says of the club, “it’s a lot more fun,” than other clubs he’s played for. Having played for the Saints in the past, Marrocco says, with a boyish chuckle, he was motivated, “to shoot it back into my old team’s face.” He’d get another opportunity to display what they’re missing later in the game.

Onto the second, Jake Gresh fired away on the power play and was successful thanks to team mates Brandon Whistle and Brown. Despite the scouts in the crowd, Gresh says he stays focused and maintains his game, “I don’t worry about what’s outside the bubble. I just try to focus on my game.”

Over a minute later, Spruce Grove’s Sean Comrie got an unassisted goal, followed up by one of the AJHL’s finest, Brown from Saniga and Mitchell Oliver, to close the period 4-2 Bonnyville. “I’m just moving my feet and doing what I’m doing, using my line mates to make it happen,” Brown says a lot of his success goes back to the players on his team.

The Pontiacs were 2 for 3 on the power play Tuesday evening, in part thanks to Many Guns who started the third off with a goal from Gresh and Ryan Symington. “We were struggling in the D-zone for a couple of periods, so that’s where we put our efforts in the third,” explains the massive left winger, Many Guns. “We did better and it showed, we were in the offensive zone the whole time.”

Following up Many Guns goal was a beauty from Power, with the assist from Ryan Piche and Marrocco got the last goal in second before the closing bell from Oliver and Piche.

The Pontiacs have a nice three game home stretch, starting Friday against the Calgary Canucks. WIN tickets on LCN!