CANORA - The season may be over for the Canora Cobras after a 6-3 loss in Game 3 of the first-round playoff series to the Swan Valley Axeman on Feb. 19, but Cobras fans who were at Game 2 in Canora on Feb. 17 will likely remember what happened in that wild 9-8 victory for a long time.
With the way the first two periods went in Game 2, it seemed like a pretty safe bet that Swan Valley would sweep the best-of-three first round series and no deciding game would be needed.
By the middle of the first period, the Cobras were down 2-0.
“I think it was nerves,” said Cobras Coach Darren Schwartz. “It was the most focused I’ve seen our players all year. We had a great crowd behind us, took a lot of shots, but they were mostly from the perimeter. Swan Valley had a few Grade A chances and they capitalized, they have guys among the top goal scorers in the league.”
Swan Valley’s lead grew to 4-1 after the Axemen scored a shorthanded goal on a four-minute Canora power play midway through the second period.
“That was tough for us,” said Schwartz. “I called a timeout and made a goaltending change. I felt we needed a change, a spark, but then they got a breakaway and scored again.”
The Axemen led 6-2 after the second, period, when Schwartz had a chat with his team.
“I told them, ‘Let’s play the last 20 minutes and play with class, don’t ever quit. I don’t see any quitters in this room.’”
Early in the third period, Colby Jacob of the Cobras got in a fight with Swan Valley’s Carter Cockburn. Even though the Axemen stretched their lead to 7-2 shortly thereafter, Schwartz said this was a turning point in the comeback.
“Somehow that seemed to lift us,” said Schwartz. “Even after it was 7-2, we got a couple of key goals, the resiliency of our players was unbelieveable!”
With the fans getting louder and louder, the Cobras scored a remarkable six goals in the final 15 minutes of the third period to force overtime.
“Before overtime I told them, ‘You got here, don’t change a thing. You’ve got the momentum, it’s just another period,’” said Schwartz.
The winning goal by Skyler Hladun came on a 5-on-3 power play for the Cobras, which was a welcome sight for the coach.
“The power play can win games, especially in the playoffs,” said Schwartz. “It was unbelievable to finish the comeback. I’ve been involved in hockey for a long time and I’ve never seen a game like that. It was so special to see these guys win. They played hard and it was well-deserved.”
Schwartz credited the over 300 noisy fans at the game for playing a major role in the nearly impossible victory.
“Even in the warmup, the stands were full. It’s great to coach in front of that kind of a crowd. They stuck with us all night. Even when we were behind, they were still behind us and kept cheering big hits.”
One of the keys to the big win was a balanced scoring attack for the Cobra. In addition to Hladun’s game winner, Kody Rock of Canora scored a pair of goals, with singles coming from the sticks of Mathew Wilgosh of Canora, Kolt Konan, Cole Rathgeber, Austin Severson, Tanner Mak and Troy Zulyniak. Hladun and Zulyniak each added a pair of assists to their night’s work. Vaughn Wilgosh of Canora was the top playmaker with three helpers.
Two nights later, the Cobras travelled across the border to Minitonas to face the Axeman in the third and deciding game of the series.
Once again, the Cobras gave up the first two goals of the game in the first period.
“We started slow, so I had a chat with them after the first period, and it seemed to make a difference,” said Schwartz.
Nine minutes into the second period, Canora had tied the game 3-3 and it looked like victory was within reach.
“But then we had a bad call go against us, and they scored a power play goal to take the lead,” said Schwartz.
Swan Valley added two more goals to make the final score 6-3, and end the season for the Cobras.
“Our power play has been subpar for us all year, and it lost the series for us,” assessed Schwartz. “Five-on-five, I think we played Swan Valley even throughout the series.”
In Game 3, Canora went scoreless in six power play opportunities and Swan Valley scored three times with the man advantage, which was the margin of victory in the game.
Even though the ending to the season was disappointing, Schwartz said he was pleased with his first season as the coach of the Cobras.
“Our guys had lots to learn. They learned and battled hard every game. After coaching against them last year, I could see that they improved a lot this year. We won a playoff game, which as a first for a lot of these guys. For next season, we need to find more consistency.”
Schwartz is grateful for the support the team received in Canora throughout the season.
“I want to thank the Cobras for giving me the chance to coach this year, and the volunteers for helping to keep things running smoothly. The fans turned out consistently and were loud, which makes it really fun to coach.”
Cobras General Manager Cal Homeniuk stated that, overall, the Cobras had a successful season.
“We had our ups and downs, but we were competitive in every game we played,” said Homeniuk. “The player commitment was a lot better this year. We have a great core group to build around for years to come”
Homeniuk attributes a good deal of the improvement in the Cobras this season to the presence of Coach Schwartz.
“He showed the players how to play to our strengths, and different systems for each team we played. Darren is very knowledgeable about the game and I believe he made our players better. Hopefully we can lock him up for next year.”
Homeniuk said he was appreciative of the fan support and the hard work of Cobras volunteers.
“The fan support this year was great to see, not only from Canora but from the Parkland area. I believe we have the best fan support in the whole league, hats off to them for coming out and supporting the team.
“The heartbeat of the team is our volunteers,” continued Homeniuk. “If not for them, there would be no team. From the gate workers, bar workers, 50 /50 workers, clock and game sheet workers, to our executive, for all their hard work behind the scene. Biggest thanks is to our sponsors, thank you for your support."
In order to keep the Cobras momentum going into the upcoming 2023/24 season, Homeniuk expects to have a busy offseason.
“We will have a meeting to review the year, see where we are sitting financially and personnel-wise. For next season, I believe we have to recruit four players; a couple of high-end forwards and a couple of high-end defencemen. Then. I believe we will have a great shot at winning the league championship. We will be looking for some fundraising ideas in addition to our annual golf tournament this summer,” said Homeniuk.
“The Cobras will be out in the community in the summer for functions. Have a great summer and see you at the Civic Centre in the fall.”
