Thunderbirds drop to 9-6 with loss to Roughnecks
Apr 9, 2022
(CALGARY) April 9, 2022 – A trip out West didn't turn out as the Halifax Thunderbirds (9-6) had hoped, as the Calgary Roughnecks (7-7) were able to take home a 13-8 victory at Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday night.
The game started off on the right foot for the Thunderbirds, as the team snagged the first two goals of the contest right off the hop. Tyson Bell and Clarke Petterson connected for a quick transition goal before Cody Jamieson powered a twister from distance past Christian Del Bianco.
However, the first quarter – and half as a whole – were back and forth. Calgary scored three of the final four goals of the opening frame. Dan Taylor got the hosts on the board first, and he was followed by Jesse King and Tyler Pace, who capped the quarter with a power-play marker. Shawn Evans scored on an amazing one-handed scoop shot to split the Calgary goals, making it a 3-3 tie after one quarter.
The teams continued going on their respective runs in the second. King added his second before Tanner Cook gave Calgary a two-goal lead in the first five minutes of the second. Halifax quickly chipped away at that with goals from Jamieson and Dawson Theede just 1:27 apart. Taylor’s second of the night put the Roughnecks back out in front.
Calgary thought they’d doubled it on another effort from Cook, however, after a challenge from Thunderbirds head coach Mike Accursi, the goal came off the board. Calgary took a 6-5 lead into the half.
In the third, the game began to slant towards the Roughnecks, who scored three goals in the first 2:55 of the third quarter to widen their lead to 9-5. Goals from Eric Fannell and Stephen Keogh were answered by another pair from Calgary, making it an 11-7 game heading into the final stanza.
Halifax only managed a single goal in the fourth, while Shane Simpson, Curtis Dickson, and Cook sealed the deal for the Roughnecks, who went on to take their fourth win in five contests.
The Thunderbirds will look to bounce back next weekend, as they travel to Hamilton, Ontario for their third and final showdown of the regular season with the Toronto Rock.