By Jeff D'Andrea

Chase is on the case

Friedt-Mohr takes matters into his own hands in comeback OT win over top-ranked Blazers

Nov 19, 2019 | 10:15 PM

It didn’t look too good for the Prince Albert Mintos.

They came into Tuesday’s game having lost their previous three games, and were down 3-1 with five minutes remaining to the Saskatoon Blazers—the top-ranked team in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League.

That’s when Mintos captain Chase Friedt-Mohr, who almost didn’t play because of illness, stepped up and took the game over.

He got an assist on Gage Helm’s goal with 4:50 remaining to make it a 3-2 Blazers’ lead, then tied the game up with 3:04 left with a point shot to force overtime at 3-3. But Freidt-Mohr saved his best moment for the extra frame, cutting into the slot and put in a backhanded goal past Blazers goaltender Zane Winter to give the Mintos a 4-3 overtime victory.

“To be able to lead the guys like that and come through like that personally and individually, leading by example too, it’s infectious when guys play like that,” Mintos head coach Danton Danielson said of his captain. “He’s been a great leader for us all year, in the room and on the ice. It’s great to see him get rewarded on the scoresheet, too.”

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Like a true captain, Friedt-Mohr deflected the praise onto the rest of his team. It was a “full-team effort,” and “it’s not just me, it’s the team.”

While that may be true, Friedt-Mohr is still selling himself a little short. Despite being a defenceman, Friedt-Mohr leads the Mintos in scoring with 19 points in 18 games. That’s also tied for the SMAAAHL league lead in points among blueliners alongside Saskatoon Contact Riley Heidt and Moose Jaw Warrior Wyatt Wilson (all of which have five goals and 14 assists, oddly enough).

At the end of the day, the Mintos needed their big players to step up and Friedt-Mohr answered the call at a crucial time.

“I wanted our group to get a win and start rolling,” Friedt-Mohr said. “Me as the leader, I wanted to set the spark for that and continue that going in the Mac’s Tournament here.”

For the Mintos, they’ve been the only team to get multiple wins against the Blazers. The Mintos have defeated the Blazers three times already this season, 3-2 at the Warman Showcase on Sept. 27, 6-3 at the Rod Hamm Arena on Oct. 9 and now 4-3 in overtime at the Art Hauser Centre.

“We just knocked off the number one team. We know now we can play against anybody in the league,” Friedt-Mohr added. “That’s 3-0 against the top team in the league. We know we can go out and we can get a win on a regular basis against anybody in the league.”

Mintos rookie Dallyn Peekeekoot, who’s a drafted prospect of the Prince Albert Raiders, scored his first goal since returning from a collarbone injury. He scored the Mintos’ first goal on the power play, with 33 seconds left in the first period. Helm’s goal was his first of the year. Joel Favreau made 26 saves in the Mintos’ victory, including some showstoppers in overtime.

The Blazers got goals from Tyson Wouters, Logan McCutcheon and Alec Saretzsky. Zane Winter made 27 saves in the defeat.

In the first period, Mintos forward Josh Peppler hammered from behind into the boards by Blazers defender Ryan Conlon. Conlon was assessed a five-minute major for boarding and a game misconduct for the offence. Although Peppler was visibly shaken up, he returned to the game after a few shifts and finished with an assist.

The Mintos (12-6) will take on the second-ranked Saskatoon Contacts (13-4-1) for their next game, Thursday, 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre.

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Jeff.dandrea@jpbg.ca