Rebels Iced In Shootout

For fans of the Red Deer Rebels, there are two ways to look at last night's 2-1 shootout loss to the Kootenay Ice at the Enmax Centrium.

The good way... the Rebels have now earned points in three straight games.

The bad way... the Reb still haven't won back-to-back games in two full months (Nov. 11 in Kamloops and Nov. 12 in Victoria)

Both goaltenders were sparkling in keeping this a low scoring affair. Deven Dubyk made 29 saves in 65 minutes for Red Deer. Nathan Lieuwen made 34 saves for Kootenay, plus three more in the shootout.

Alex Petrovic was the best skater on the ice by far. Not only did he score his fourth goal of the season for the Rebels, he also had a great scoring chance early in the third period only to be thwarted by Lieuwen. He did manage to blast one past Lieuwen in the dying minutes of the third but rang it off the goal post.

Dylen McKinlay scored for Kootenay in regulation time. Max Reinhart scored the shootout winner with a perfectly executed one-handed 'Forsberg-esque' deke on Dubyk.

Following the game, Rebels GM/HC Jesse Wallin felt his team didn't do a good enough job of generating quality scoring chances. He was especially disappointed with his team's play through much of the second period.

The end result of last night's action is that the Rebels now sit five points behind Brandon for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Wheat Kings were blanked 2-0 last night by Saskatoon so the Rebels were able to close the gap by one point... but it definitely could have been two.

And, wouldn't you know it... the Rebels left Red Deer immediately following last night's game to head to Brandon to battle the Wheaties tomorrow night. The Rebels likely need to win this game in regulation time to have a realistic chance of chasing down a playoff berth. Cam Moon has the broadcast on 106.7 The Drive starting at 6:20pm Alberta time. The Rebels visit the Swift Current Broncos on Saturday. Tuesday, they return home to battle the Calgary Hitmen.

NOTABLES...

- Justin Weller told me on-air last night that he will undergo a second surgery on his broken wrist. Weller consulted with a specialist in Calgary yesterday following his initial surgery Saturday night. Justin says he could spend 10-12 weeks in a cast as a result... which unfortunately means his on-ice Rebels career has all but come to an end.

- Mason Burr was the only 'healthy' scratch for the Rebels last night.

- Molson Cup Three Stars for last night's game...
1. Petrovic RD 2. Lieuwen KOOT 3. Dubyk RD

- NHL Central Scouting has released its midterm rankings for the 2012 Entry Draft. Mathew Dumba is 7th among North American skaters. Patrik Bartosak is 10th among North American goaltenders.