Flyers roll over injury-depleted Regals

Falher’s Daniel Aubin, right, attempts to skate around High Prairie defenceman Craig Van de Ligt Nov. 20 at the Sports Palace. High Prairie evened the season series with Falher with an easy 7-3 win after being whipped 10-3 in Falher earlier this season.

Chris Clegg
South Peace News

When the powerhouse “AAA” Fort St. John Flyers rolled into town to play the High Prairie Regals Nov. 22, even the most loyal Regals fan knew the team wasn’t going to pull off a win. Coupled with a plethora of injuries, the result was predictable as the Flyers embarrassed the Regals 13-2. The Regals injury list reads like the Telus phone book. Tyler Shantz injured his shoulder and is expected out two weeks. T.J. Cunningham injured his knee against Falher while Rocky Collins is still sidelined with an upper body injury. Tim Cunningham is likely out for the season with another knee injury. Coupled with work commitments which is life in the North Peace Hockey League, the Regals iced a skeleton crew. Meanwhile, the Flyers, still smarting for an opening night loss, have rattled off six straight wins. The Flyers led 4-0 after one and 9-1 after two. They fired 73 shots on goal including 28 in the second period and 30 in the third. David Alexander scored four goals to lead the assault while all-star defenceman Kip Noble had two goals and four assists. Ian Munro added two goals and three assists, Jeff Shipton had two goals and an assist, Todd Alexander had a goal and three assists while Paul Wiens and Chris Ford added singles. Rollie Gladue and Cory Reid each had a goal and assist to lead the Regals while Lance Gauchier added two assists. Gladue was the lone bright spot for the Regals as he had several chances to score and was the lone physical presence this night. Starting goaltender Kyle Shantz was lifted after surrendering eight goals in 32:35 minutes. Cannon Cunningham finished and gave up five goals. Neither could be blamed for the loss. The news wasn’t all bad for the Regals last week as they gained a measure of revenge on the visiting Falher Pirates with a solid 7-2 win. Earlier this season, the Pirates whipped the Regals 10-3 with a first period blitz. This night, the Regals turned the tables and led 3-0 after one period and 5-1 after two. Although the Pirates were hammered, they did not quit and seemed to get stronger as the game progressed. However, Cunningham was solid in goal stopping 35 of 37 shots and was rightly named the game’s first star. Stan Auger had two goals and two assists in the win while Tyler Letendre had a goal and three helpers. Josh Halcrow, with his first NPHL goal, Gladue, Gauchier and Neil Laboucan added the others. Shantz was held scoreless for the first time this season but had two assists to push his league-leading point total to 38, six more than Spirit River’s Mike Lefley. The Regals enjoy a slim one-point lead over Falher after play last week but the Pirates enjoy three games in hand. The Regals get a much-needed week off to heal their wounds before the Hythe Mustangs come to town to conclude their three-game homestand. Game time is 8:30 p.m. Hythe has never lost to the Regals during the two years they were in the NPHL from 1998-2000 including 12-6 and 12-2 wins at the Sports Palace. Both teams are playing .500 hockey. The Mustangs, who play in the NPHL’s West Division, are in last place with a 3-3-0-0 record while the Regals are first in the East with a 4-4-1-0 record. West teams have an impressive 15-1 record against the East this season.

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