Dallyn Peekeekoot followed up an exhibition hat trick with the lone Mintos goal on Sunday night, but that was the lone bright spot as the Contacts triumped 8-1. (Jeff D'Andrea/paNOW Staff)

By Trevor Redden

Rough Start

Mintos knocked down by Contacts in season opener

Nov 2, 2020 | 12:00 PM

The Prince Albert Mintos got their first taste of live action Sunday night, but didn’t get the result they wanted as they fell 8-1 to the Saskatoon Contacts at the SaskTel Centre.

It was the much-awaited regular season opener, which had been pushed back from late September due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The venue was also different, as the Contacts were moved from Merlis Belsher Place to the SaskTel Centre as the former facility has been converted to a field hospital to handle the pandemic.

On the ice, the Contacts showcased a formidable offensive lineup that features three of the top six picks from the 2020 Western Hockey League bantam draft: Riley Heidt (2nd overall, Prince George Cougars), Brayden Yager (3rd overall, Moose Jaw Warriors), and Kalan Lind (6th overall, Red Deer Rebels).

The trio combined for 10 points, with Lind leading the way with two goals and two assists as the Contacts jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first period and never looked back.

Mintos Head Coach Danton Danielson said his club knew it was going to be a challenge, but he liked some things he saw.

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“They’re a great team, there’s no question about that. All throughout the lineup, a good mixture of young studs and really capable older players,” Danielson said. “We did have our chances and I think you could kind of see the nerves come through where the Contacts buried their chances. We had a couple nice chances early, and I think if we potted a couple of them maybe we settle down a little bit and we see that we’re fully capable of being there and competing with them, which I do think we are.”

Prince Albert Raiders draft pick Dallyn Peekeekoot got the Mintos on the board 7:44 into the second, picking up where he left off after scoring a hat trick in the final exhibition game against Tisdale. Kody Willick had the lone assist on Peekeekoot’s goal to make it 4-1 Contacts at the time.

“The combo so far of [Peekeekoot] and Willick working together has shown some promise here early on, and hopefully that can continue for those guys,” Danielson said.

That was the only blemish on Saskatoon goaltender Ethan Chadwick, who turned aside 28 of 29 shots on the night. At the other end, Mintos goaltender Kris Johnson played the full game, stopping 22 of 30 offerings.

Despite the difficult debut, Danielson acknowledged there is plenty of time to grow through the season.

“For us, it’s just continuing to cement what we want to be our new habits. Sometimes when you’re put into pressure situations, you revert to the level of your training. And part of that training is your habits from previous years. We’ve spent a long time here through the pre-season trying to build a structure and a system…we want to continue working on that to make sure we play how we want to together, and continuing to build those new habits.”

Prince Albert is back in action this weekend as they face Tisdale in a home-and-home set against the Trojans beginning Saturday night in Tisdale, returning to the Art Hauser Centre Sunday at 1:30 p.m.

In other North Division action on Sunday, the Saskatoon Blazers beat Tisdale 7-0, and the Battlefords Stars defeated the Warman Wildcats 4-0.

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trevor.redden@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @Trevor_Redden