'Jackets Lose 3-1

SPECIAL TEAMS DOOM 'JACKETS

A year ago when the 'Jackets hosted St. Thomas in the season's second game, it was special teams that doomed them. They allowed the Tommies to score twice on the power play en route to a 3-0 victory.

Fast forward to this season. The game was much the same, with the exception of the setting and the 'Jackets actually getting a goal. Again, the Tommies scored twice on the power play and the 'Jackets were kept of the board with the man advantage, as they suffered their first loss of the season, 3-1 at the St. Thomas Ice Arena.

The 'Jackets special teams, which were fantastic in the season's first two games, picked an unfortunate time to go on hiatus. After opening the season 4-7 on the power play (57.1%) and a perfect 8-8 on the penalty kill, the 'Jackets went 0-8 on the power play and only functioned at 71% on the kill.

The Tommies opened the scoring and provided themselves with the winning margin late in the first period. Tom Knutson scored at 16:09 and Parker Burgess scored at 14:41 to give them a 2-0 lead after one period.

The 'Jackets scored the lone goal of the second period, as Logan Isley (So. Bonnyville, Alberta) scored his first goal of the season at 7:15. Chris Wilson (Jr. Prince Albert, Saskatchewan) and Art Clark (Jr. Bloomington, Minnesota) assisted on the play.

The Tommies closed out the scoring in the third period. With Dane Bushey (Jr. Duluth, Minnesota) in the penalty box, Adam Davis scored at 8:12 to make the final margin 3-1.

The 'Jackets carried the play when they stayed out of the penalty box and played five-on-five and outshot the Tommies 27-18. Chad Beiswenger (Sr. Moorhead, Minnesota) made 15 saves in his third straight start to open the season. Tyler Chestnut made 26 saves for St. Thomas.

The 'Jackets (2-1-0) will look to bounce back as they close out the road trip on Saturday night against St. Mary's. The Cardinals were thumped by St. Scholastica on Friday night by a 9-1 score. Game time on Saturday, November 1 is 7:05 p.m. from the SMU Ice Arena. The game can be heard live locally on KUWS 91.3 FM, beginning with the pre-game show at 6:45 p.m. If you are outside the local listening area, you can tune in via the Internet at www.kuws.fm. John Munson will have the call.