The Carleton Place Canadians may go looking for some snipers if the team continues to struggle with finding the net.
Last week the team played three times and was shut out twice. The expansion team has impressed many fans and opponents alike, but an inability to score is starting to smart.
“Obviously we’re having some trouble scoring goals. If that continues, we’re going to have to make some changes,” Canadians coach Jason Clarke says. “We’ll have to find some offence within our organization or we might have to go outside our organization to find that offence we’re lacking.”
Apart from scoring, Clarke remains upbeat with the progress of his team that beat Hawkesbury 4-0, but fell 2-0 to Nepean and 4-0 to Ottawa.
After a disappointing game against Ottawa, Clarke says, the team had a good practice and answered with a convincing victory over Hawkesbury.
“And then on Sunday against Nepean,” he says, “both goals that Nepean scored went off our own guys. We scored both goals on our own net.”
Raiders 2, Canadians 0
The Canadians lost a close-fought battle Sunday night, falling 2-0 against the Nepean Raiders.
A power-play goal mid-way through the second period opened the scoring for the Raiders. The game winner came with a couple of minutes left in the same period.
While the scoring may have been scarce, penalties were in abundance.
The Canadians racked up 28 minutes to the Raiders’ 16. That included a bench minor for Clarke who was called for “abuse of officials” late in the third period.
Canadians 4, Hawks 0
A flurry of first-period goals gave the Canadians a shutout win against the Hawks Friday night.
After getting blanked 4-0 against the Ottawa Junior Senators a couple nights before, the win must have felt good for the Carleton Place squad.
“Right from the drop of the puck we were the better hockey club,” Clarke boasts. “We played a very good offensive, strategic hockey game, for sure.”
In Hawkesbury, goals by Tyler Kotlarz, Donovan Gardiner and a pair by Richard Stethem put the Canadians ahead 4-0 going into the first intermission.
Scott Shackell managed 38 saves on the night, earning the shut out.
Senators 4, Canadians 0
The Canadians started off the weekend with a 4-0 loss to the Ottawa Junior Senators on Sept. 30.
While the opening frame ended with the teams tied at zero, Ottawa managed to get three goals in about a five-minute span in the second period.
A tripping call against Carleton Place set up a third period Senators goal.
The Senators had a total of 22 penalty minutes compared to the Canadians’ six, but Carleton Place couldn’t get their power play to convert.
The Canadians are in Cornwall tonight (Oct. 8) and in Gloucester Friday.
The Canadians’ next home game is Oct. 11 versus the Brockville Braves. That’s a Sunday afternoon game with the puck dropping at 1:30 p.m.