The Peterborough Timbermen’s losing skid hit four games this weekend after a Saturday afternoon 13-11 loss to the Brampton Express. The Timbermen held the lead, behind a superb performance from goaltender Wyatt King, until a six-goal streak through the third and fourth quarters let the lead slip away.
The loss drops the Timbermen into fifth place in the Arena Lacrosse League standings at 5-6-0 with three games remaining in the regular season. All teams make the playoffs.
Neither Ethan Woods nor Thomas Kiazyk were available this weekend, so King, from Barrie, ON, made his first start for the Timbermen after playing a backup role the last two seasons. He made 64 saves in an effort his teammates lauded.
“Considering the fact he came in after two years, he stood on his head for us, honestly,” said captain Brine Rice. “We knew our starting goalies weren’t here so we had to step up for him and not leave him hanging. He held his ground and we’re all happy for him.”
King could hear the cheers from the bench every time he made a save, which helped ease any nerves that sprang up after hearing he’d be starting only about 15 minutes before the game began.
“I heard them the whole time,” he smiled. “It was a fun experience to be honest. I’m tired but I had fun. We played a solid team D but it just didn’t happen our way with the bounces.”
King was backed up by Peterborough Jr. A Lakers goaltender Jackson Hainer.
It was a heartbreaking loss because the team played so well in front of King, in what was their best defensive effort since their losing streak began.
“Wyatt stepped up. He played very strong in net,” head coach and general manager Joe Sullivan said. “Defensively, I thought we had some breakdowns. We let some of their key players get looks that we shouldn’t allow them to get. We have to be better that way, but overall, allowing 13 is probably 1 or 2 more than we would want to allow on an average, but it was a better output all around.”
The Timbermen led 1-0 after Spencer Corkery hit the quick stick just 33 seconds into the game. By the end of the opening quarter, the game was tied 2-2.
Peterborough built up a 7-4 lead in the second, although Brampton scored two late ones to get back within a goal at 7-6.
Fred Hartley and Cameron Simpson restored the Timbermen’s 3-goal lead early in the third, but that was when Brampton turned up the heat. Peterborough was held scoreless for 16 minutes.
They were missing top forwards Cole Hanrahan, Skkylar Thomas and Jared Downey, and defensive transition specialists Jake Gasperetti and Kaleb Bingley.
With the season coming down to crunch time, Sullivan is concerned the team’s slide could affect commitment levels.
“We’re at the stage of the game where we’ve said we’re going to be a championship team,” he stated. “You can’t be a championship team if you’ve got nobody committed to being here on a regular basis and you have a rotating lineup. There are a lot of things that need to be addressed and I can’t make that happen unless the guys decide they want to all be here. If they’re here, I think we can play with anybody in the league and that’s why I talk about a championship.”
Jake McNabb led the Express with six goals, while goaltender Cole Gervais, also a member of the Jr. A Lakers, made 50 saves.
Peterborough is back at Millbrook Arena again this coming Saturday, March 2 to host the sixth-place Toronto Monarchs (4-7). Tickets will be sold at the doors, which open at 1 p.m. while the game begins at 2 p.m.
TIMBERMEN SCORING:
Dylan Goddard (3-2)
Brine Rice (1-2)
Jack MacAlpine (1-2)
Blaze White (1-1)
Fred Hartley (1-1)
Holden Lowes (1-0)
Cameron Simpson (1-0)
Justin Bragg (1-0)
Spencer Corkery (1-0)
Cam Milligan (0-5)
Parker Sands (0-2)
Aaron Bradshaw (0-1)
Nathan Schultzkie (0-1)
Riley Curtis (0-1)
Ryan Patterson (0-1)
