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The NEBC Midget Trackers won their sixth game in seven starts on Saturday afternoon (January 22), beating the Peace River Royals 7-3.
Ethan Hofstrand, who had three points in the game (1 goal, 2 assists) opened the scoring on the power play at 6:12 of the first quarter, and it was just Trackers from then on.
Hofstrand’s goal, in fact, would be the first of three consecutive games in 5:41 for the Trackers which would see them lead 3-0 after 20 minutes.
“It’s something we struggle to come out of the gates strong with,” head coach Gerard Dicaire said when asked about the fast start. “We’ve tackled that here in the last two weeks of training.”
The club’s last game dates back to January 9, a 7-5 win at Beaumont.
Even with the big gap between games, Dicaire wasn’t surprised by his side’s leap.
“We got used to it. We’ve had a lot of weekends off the schedule this year,” Dicaire said. “We had a good week of training. We really push them to stay active, to stay focused.”
The win improves the Trackers’ record to 15-3-3 and an eleven point lead over Whitecourt in the Milltech Group Division.
The club’s next game will host Grande Prairie on Saturday, February 5.
The puck drop is at 12:30 p.m. at the Pomeroy Sports Center.
Bantam Trackers Tie
Trackers forward Brody Mickey (1 goal, 2 assists) scored with just 37 seconds left in the game as the Bantams came from behind to earn a 4-4 draw with the Sherwood Park Rangers in of a later game at the Pomeroy Sports Centre.
Tristan Simpson, Trey Stokes and Chase Wiens added the others for the local club.
All four of the Trackers’ goals came on the power play.
The Trackers dotted Rangers keeper Cade Lewis with 41 shots in the game.
Saturday’s tie brings the team record to 17-2-3 and a nine-point lead over second-placed Whitecourt.
The club will play its next four games on the road starting with a three-game road trip on Friday at Camrose.
Like the midget team, they will be back at home on February 5 against GPAC Higson. (The showdown is at 5 p.m.)