Grande Prairie Storm huddled around Interim Head Coach Ryan Aasman. Photo Credit: Shane Clausing

By Shane Clausing

GP Storm

Storm begin playoff action in Spruce Grove

Mar 1, 2020 | 5:00 AM

After a disappointing finish to the regular season that saw the Grande Prairie Storm drop 15 straight games, the team is eager to flip the page and get ready for the playoffs.

The Storm’s first-round match-up is against the Spruce Grove Saints, a team that is one of the top teams in the league. Last year, the Saints made it to the AJHL Final but were swept by the Brooks Bandits.

This year the Saints finished second place in the AJHL North Division with 88 points, 10 points behind first-place Sherwood Park who received a first-round bye from finishing first.

In the regular season, the Storm lost the season series, but for the most part the games were close. They finished with a 2-2-1 record against the Saints, with their most recent string of victory coming back in November when they won two games in overtime on back to back nights.

Interim Head Coach Ryan Aasman says his team’s up for the challenge.

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“Excited for the challenge ahead and excited to play a team that we’ve had a little bit of success against in previous meetings, and a good team that’s going to teach us some stuff,” said Aasman. “I think it’s going to be exciting and a mentality shift for the fellas to get away from the regular season and get into a new season.”

Storm Captain Jackson Wozniak says his group is ready to turn the page and begin a new season.

“I think we’re starting to play how we want to play and that’s especially important coming into playoffs, we’re working every day and trying to get better as the weeks going on.”

In the playoffs, the schedule is more condensed than the regular season. Games one and two take place in Spruce Grove on Sunday and Monday, while the series picks up again in Grande Prairie on Wednesday for game three and Thursday for game four.

While the schedule is more condensed, Aasman says that his team should know what to expect.

“We’ve had a six in eight and four in five as of late, but it’s a grind. We should know what the grind is like now and just focus on game one and let game two happen when it comes,” said Aasman.

Both Lars Kaliel and Kaeden Lane split playing time during the regular season.

Coach Aasman says that Kaliel will start game one on Sunday, and they’ll see how the goaltending plays out from there.

On the injury side, both Will Schimek and Jackson Wozniak are currently listed day to day and could play in the series starting on Sunday. The team will see how they progress as game time nears closer.

Tonight’s game takes place at 7:00 p.m. at the Grant Fuhr Arena.

A full playoff schedule can be found here.