Rarely does a loss reassure a team that they're near the class of the league, but I think that was the case with Swan Valley's 3-2 loss to the Dauphin Kings on Wednesday.
It was clearly a measuring stick for the Stamps, who were right with the Kings for much of the contest, and while the Kings had the edge on the shot clock at 45-34, Swan Valley had their moments when they carried the play, especially in the first period.
Chris Ward made 42 saves in the loss, while Dauphin's Joe Caliguiri was also solid stopping 32, and got better after a bit of a shaky start.
Shane Luke (2) and Ryan Dreger scored for Dauphin, while Swan Valley's Ryan Marshall (12th) and Myles Stevens (6th) replied for Swan.
Penalties got the Stamps in trouble in the second period, when Luke scored his 9th and 10th goals of the year 4-on-4 and 5-on-3.
With Neepawa beating OCN 6-3 on Wednesday the Sherwood tightens up even more, and while I still don't think there's any question the Kings finish first, I think the division will be extremely competitive, and come playoff time, whichever 4 teams are on the Sherwood side of the bracket will make for an entertaining spring.
It was really nice to see the Stampeder fans give their club a nice ovation after a hard-fought effort. And for those people who still think games on the radio keep people at home... TWO local stations (us and Dauphin) did the game last night, and that was the fullest I've seen the Centennial Arena in 2 years.
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