Nobody in the Dinos locker room could be excited about coming out of the University of British Columbia with only two of the four points that were on the line this past weekend. The Dinos took the long trip to the coast to face off against a dismal squad from UBC, which prior to the weekend had only notched one win in their last ten games.
The Dinos looked like they shook off a pair of losses from the previous weekend with a convincing 3-1 win over the T-Birds Friday night. In Saturday’s rematch the Dinos thoroughly outplayed and outshot the Thunderbirds, yet their lack of scoring touch caused them to fall to their less than superior opposition 2-1. As demoralizing as the loss was, the worst part was the fact it snatched away Calgary’s ability to gain ground on the first place U of A Golden Bears, who also split their series against the flatland Saskatchewan Huskies.
The Dinos have been in a slump as of late, in large part due to their lack of offensive production. Trevor Segstro is the only Dino in the top twenty in scoring–compare that to the seven players from the
U of A who rank above him. This might account for the two teams heading in opposite directions in the standings.
“It’s really difficult to win when you don’t score,” said Head Coach Scott Atkinson. “We just need to score more.” While the offence has been struggling as of late, the coach has been pleased with his team’s discipline, work ethic, and overall team defence. The Dinos sit high in most statistical categories but their punchless powerplay ranks lower than Forest Gump’s IQ. Their 15.3 overall efficiency rating with the man advantage is the worst in the league, and although the Dinos struck twice on the powerplay
against UBC, more will be needed if they look to make a run at the National Championship.
The Dinos’ struggles have also coincided with the loss of starting netminder Aaron Baker to an ankle injury. Although Tyler Nilsson has stepped in and done an admirable job in net, the wins just haven’t came for him.
To add to the team’s recent troubles, it could be a long time until the Dinos see Baker back in the fold.
“He’s done for the semester, but we hope to have him back by Christmas,” said Atkinson.
Life won’t be getting any easier for the team this weekend as they host the U of S Huskies, who currently sit atop their division. Games are
7:00 p.m. Nov. 22-23 at Father David Bauer Arena.