British Columbia boy Matthew Hikida can feel the cool fall air settling in Alberta, but the Lloydminster Bobcats’ forward is keeping the temperature hot on the ice.
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Hikida scored two goals, including the winner, as the junior A Bobcats ended a two-game losing streak Saturday night when they defeated the visiting Olds Grizzlys 6-3 in front of another big crowd at the Cenovus Energy Hub.
Lloyd might have bent, but didn’t break, as Olds regrouped and hung around. The Grizzlys are showing improvement after finishing last in the South Division last year.
“They’re looking quite good, because they definitely gave us a run for our money,” said Hikida, a third-year Bobcat from Richmond, B.C.
“Tough start in the second, just because I think we were trying to do too much, after a fine first period. We got away from keeping it simple and tried to be too fancy. They capitalized and made it a closer game than we wanted it to be. But we kept it simple in the third and had a strong period to come out with the win, which was nice.”
The nippy weather, though, isn’t as nice.
“It’s definitely colder,” Hikida, 19, said with a smile. “Even this morning, it’s getting chilly. Starting to put away the shorts and getting out the pants, the boots. It’s definitely hockey weather, but sometimes it’s a little bit too cold for my liking. Especially when, back home, minus-3 is as cold as it’ll get throughout the winter.”
John MacNeil – Meridian Source
With 1,524 fans watching the Bobcats’ first AJHL game in October, Lloyd set the tone in the first period, playing with speed and gaining a 2-0 lead on goals from Hikida and Jadon Iyogun, with his first as a Bobcat.
They weathered an Olds comeback as 16-year-old rising star Jordin St. Louis netted back-to-back goals in the second period, before Morgan Hackman’s first AJHL tally restored Lloydminster’s lead.
Jordan Wales pulled the Grizzlys even again two minutes into the final period, but Hikida answered with the winner just 32 seconds later.
The Bobcats padded that cushion the rest of the way on first AJHL goals from Quinn Smith and Raphael Messier, with an empty-netter.
Linemates Hikida (2-1), Messier (1-2) and Jack Ferguson (0-3) each contributed three-point nights as the Bobcats evened their record at 3-3, going into this Wednesday’s home game against the Devon Xtreme.
“Messier was unbelievable on draws tonight,” Hikida said. “It’s nice to start off with the puck, obviously, off a draw. It makes everything a little bit easier. And then, Ferguson on the right wing, I played with him last year quite often. I think we click quite a bit, just because he likes moving it up, and I’m always up.”
Saturday’s game was a warm welcome for new goaltender Matthew Kondro, who made 17 saves in his first start since joining the Bobcats full-time last week from the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels.
Corbin Sanderman faced 33 shots in the Olds net.
With the arrival of Kondro, the Bobcats released two young goaltenders — Kannen Kirkwood and Malakai Zwiers — and kept another in Sam Madgett. The 18-year-old Madgett had been the go-to goalie in the early going, while Lloyd management waited for word on Kondro’s status with Red Deer. Although he doesn’t turn 18 until December, Kondro already has a year of junior A experience under his belt. He played with the Drumheller Dragons last season.
“Unbelievable goaltender,” Hikida said of Kondro. “Went against him last year and he’s a tough guy to beat. It’s nice to have him.”
Bobcats coach Eric Labrosse echoed those sentiments.
“It’s huge for us,” he said. “He showed us what he could do last week (in a shootout win) at Drumheller, and he did the same again tonight. Because he didn’t get a lot of shots, but a lot of them were quality chances. And that’s what we want from a goaltender. If it’s a tight game, if you can make a few saves that’s going to keep us in there and give us a chance to win, which is exactly what he did tonight.
“On the flip side, we’ve got to make sure in front of him that we don’t give up those chances as often as we do. We’ve got to be better around our net.”
Kondro is from St. Albert, as is Dylan Karran, the 18-year-old defenceman released after playing just one game as a Bobcat. Last weekend, Karran made his debut with the Portage Terriers of the Manitoba league.
Battling inconsistency in previous weeks, the Bobcats were coming off what coach Labrosse described as their toughest week of practice.
“They responded really well and had a good week of practice,” he said. “It showed tonight. We gave up 20 shots over three periods (including just two in the first).
“Some guys showed up on the scoresheet a little more than others, but overall, I thought everyone chipped in really well. I rolled all lines and all the D pairings tonight and everyone overall played a good game. So, it’s always nice to see when everyone is contributing to team success.”
One of Olds’ greatest contributors, St. Louis, showed why he has five goals and six points after just four games, and why the Portland Winterhawks selected him in the first round of the 2024 WHL prospects draft, 20th overall.
St. Louis came close to netting a hat trick in Lloyd, pressing through to the end of the 2-5 Grizzlys’ first loss in three games.
“We got off to a slow start,” he said. “I thought we only played 40 minutes today. But overall, our last two periods were good. We came back and tied it up, which was good, and fought till the end. It just wasn’t the outcome we wanted.”
Olds is a stepping-stone to the WHL for the Airdrie, Alta., native.
“I know some of the (Grizzlys) staff and some of the players,” said St. Louis, just more than six feet and 165 pounds. “It’s close to home, too.
“It’s going to be a great organization this year. I just came here to do my best to help and do what I can.”
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