by Mike Isola,
Staff Writer
The Blue Devils haven't found the win column in two weeks. They tied Park Rapids Area on Jan. 23 and lost 4-1 to the Icebreakers from St. Cloud Apollo on Saturday to fall to 8-9-3 on the season.
Blue Devils coach Ryan Hanson said it's difficult for teams to meet up three times in a season, much less win all three games. The winless Panthers came into this game hungry to pick up their first win after dropping 17 straight.
At 11:17 of the first period, it was the Blue Devils who drew first blood. Cassie Behl scored with Kayla Bjorge and Jackie Zaic assisting. It would be all the scoring the Blue Devils could muster in the period despite holding the 16-5 shot advantage.
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With the lead 1-0, the Blue Devils turned up the intensity in the second and third periods but were denied by the Panther defense and goaltender Cassandra Thelen.
With 3:04 left to play, Panther Leeza Tostenson was able to slip the puck past Blue Devil netminder Kayla Guck for the neutralizer.
In overtime, the Blue Devils' defense held up when the Panthers had a power-play chance, settling for the 1-1 tie. Guck finished with 21 saves as the Blue Devils out-shot the Panthers 35-22.
Again, the Blue Devils saw an early lead disappear in the 4-1 loss to the Icebreakers on Saturday in Long Prairie. Zaic scored 3:49 into the first period but St. Cloud Apollo responded less than a minute later on a goal from Lindsey Johnson to tie it at 1-1.
The Icebreakers scored three unanswered goals in the second period to put the game out of reach, building their lead to 4-1 on goals from Anne Schleper, Anna Hall and Lauren Unger. Schleper scored 34 seconds into the period while Unger capped the scoring frenzy with 36 seconds left.
The Blue Devils were out-shot 45-7 and Guck finished with 41 saves in the losing effort.
On Saturday, the Blue Devils head to East Grand Forks for the regular season finale with the Green Wave.
Blue Devils at Park Rapids on Jan. 23
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Blue Devils 1, Panthers 1
BD 1 0 0 0 1
PR 0 0 1 0 1
First Period
BD-Cassie Behl (Kayla Bjorge, Jackie Zaic) 11:17
Second Period
No scoring
Third Period
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PR-Leeza Tostenson (unassisted) 3:04
Overtime
No scoring
Shots on Goal: BD 16-9-7-2 34; PR 5-3-10-3 22
Goalie-Saves: BD-Kayla Guck 21; PR-Cassandra Thelen 33
St. Cloud Apollo at Blue Devils on Jan. 27 in Long Prairie
Icebreakers 4, Blue Devils 1
SCA 1 3 0-4
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BD 1 0 0-1
First Period
BD-Zaic (Alicia Gorka) 3:49
SCA-Lindsey Johnson (Anne Schleper, Greta Gray) 4:42
Second Period
SCA-Schleper (Gray) 0:34
SCA-Anna Hall (Michelle Bunnell) 13:04
SCA-Lauren Unger (Blair Curtis) 16:24
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Shots on Goal: BD 7: SCA 45
Goalie-Saves: BD-Guck 41; SCA-Jenna Traut 6
