The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Kelly Carrington Staff Writer The Flin Flon Bombers went down 3-1 in the conference semifinals following a 4-3 loss to the La Ronge Ice Wolves last Wednesday night at the Whitney Forum. Coming out with a strong effort, the Bombers were hot on the trail of the Ice Wolves with hopes of tying the series 2-2. Flin Flon started the scoring as Devon Stillar lit the lantern at 16:11, with help from Andrew Johnston, on a power play. Leading 1-0 after the first period, the Bombers reemerged from their dressing room a different team for the second. Head coach and GM Mike Reagan called it a "terrible effort" as the Bombers were down 4-1 at the end of the second. "We put ourselves in a real tough position," said Reagan, after Wednesday's game. "We were close, but not close enough," he said, as the Bombers gave up their chance to tie the series. Unanswered The second period hurt the Bombers as the visitors scored four unanswered goals. Still, the Bombers put forth a strong effort in both the first and the third. Reagan says it's frustrating to lose a game like that. "...we were the better team for two periods, but we end up losing the hockey game because of one bad period. That's really tough," he said. In the third period, the Maroon and White turned their fire back on as they scored two more goals to get back into the game. Johnston scored Flin Flon's second goal, making it 4-2 for La Ronge. Johnston's marker came with help from Tanner Korchinski and Tanner Clark on a power play just five minutes into the period. Chances came and went, but it was Corey Tyrell who followed through with the Bombers' third goal against La Ronge goalie Adam Bartko. With six minutes left on the clock, the Bombers were confident and feeling good. "I thought...we've got six minutes to push this into overtime," said Reagan. "I really thought we were going to do it." The Bombers kept the shots coming on Bartko, with quality chances, but were unable to notch one last goal to even things up. "On the bench it was really positive. The guys were jacked up and I really thought that we were going to score, tie it up and we were going to take it to overtime," Reagan said. When the final buzzer sounded, the Bombers were down 4-3 in the game and 3-1 in the series. "There is a huge difference between 2-2 and 3-1," said Reagan. "I really though that if we could pull this one out, we would be in a very good situation heading into La Ronge, knowing that we're coming back to Flin Flon for game six." Instead, the Bombers headed to La Ronge on Friday for game five, after The Reminder went to press. With their backs against the wall, the Bombers needed a win to bring game six back to the Whitney Forum yesterday. A team painted into the corner, as Reagan mentioned in the series against the Battlefords North Stars, can often be unpredictable. "...we [said] that we would see their best effort," Reagan said of the North Stars, "and we did. "Now, we've got to put our best foot forward and I think these guys are real capable of doing that. It just comes down to us being smart about it." In the dressing room following Wednesday's game, the coach gave the players a talk in hopes of getting their spirits back up. See 'We've...' on pg. 5 Continued from pg. 4 "I told them we've got to forget about this game. I told the boys that it's over and we've got to move on," he said. As always, Reagan made it clear that the next game needed to be the focus. "We can't sit here and feel sorry for ourselves, mope and whine," he said. "We've got a job to do and that's to make sure we come back to play in the Whitney Forum on Sunday." Support Support for the Bombers has at times wavered this season as some fans count the team out before they even start. In the Elimination Series, Reagan said the team used that as motivation. "We're in a situation where we know we can do this. It's going to take a lot of hard work," he said. "If our guys put their minds to it, we can do it. "We'll find out Friday night if the guys want to play Sunday." Looking ahead, past the semifinals, Reagan said he would "love" to play the Melfort Mustangs in the conference finals. "I would love that. I think we're close. I don't think we're that far off," he said, with a smile. As of last Thursday morning, the Melfort Mustangs led the Humboldt Broncos 2-1 in their series. Game four was scheduled for that night with game five being played on Saturday. In the Sherwood Conference, the Yorkton Terriers led the Estevan Bruins 3-0. Game four was scheduled for Friday, with game five the next night Ð if needed. After four games, the Kindersley Klippers led the Weyburn Red Wings 3-1. Game five was scheduled for Friday.
