Taber Golden Suns look to begin November with wins

Posted on November 9, 2023 by Taber Times

By Cole Parkinson
For Taber Times

It’s November and the South Central Alberta Hockey League season is in full swing. All three Taber Golden Suns teams were on the ice this past weekend as they looked to climb up the standings.

U13

There was a single game on tap this past weekend for the U13 Suns as the team hit the road on Saturday to take on the Okotoks Oilers.

The first period saw the Suns jump out to a 2-0 lead thanks to a pair of goals from Hudson Stenger with Marcus Schwartz drawing a single assist. The home team would battle back in the second and score four straight as they carried a 4-2 lead into the final frame. The third saw the Oilers extend that lead with another single. While Taber would add a pair late in the period, it wasn’t enough as they fell 5-4. Ben Van Der Linde had the Taber goals while Stenger added an assist. Cale Campbell got the start in net and made 24 saves on 29 shots.

Next weekend is a full slate for the U13 Suns as they have three road games upcoming. On Friday night, the team takes on the Olds Grizzlys while Saturday sees the Suns play the Central Alberta Selects. The weekend wraps up with an early game against Red Deer Wesco.

Taber currently sits in sixth place in the South Conference with a 2-8 record and four points.

U15

Two games were on tap this past weekend for the U15 Suns as the team hosted Foothills and Wheatland.

Friday night saw the Bisons come to town as the Suns looked to put another win on the board.

The first was all Suns as Taber jumped out to a 3-0 lead thanks to some quick-strike offence. Nixen Miller had a pair of goals while Foster Weatherhead had the other. Heston Hansen, Myles Matisho, Ryker Orsten, Raider Koizumi, and Brooke Dyck had a single assist each.

The Suns would add to that lead late in the second period thanks to a power play goal from Nixen, who completed the hat trick. Nash Broerson and Dyck had the assists. Weatherhead would extend the lead to 5 early in the period on the power play and that’s where things would end as Taber took the game 5-0. Hansen and Blaise Odland had the assists on the final goal of the game. Dakota Hurst was perfect between the pipes as the netminder made 27 saves.

The Suns looked to end the weekend 2-0 but the Wheatland Warriors were in their way on Saturday evening. The visitors came out firing as they were able to score three unanswered as the buzzer rang. The second started the same as Wheatland would score three early ones and take a 6-0 lead. The Suns would see Tony King answer back shortly after as Orsten and Liam Okell had the assists. At the midway point of the period, the Warriors would add another and that would be all the scoring for either team as Wheatland carried a 7-0 lead into the third. Late in the period, the Suns would add another thanks to Dyck, but it was too little too late as the Suns fell 7-2. King had the lone assist on the final Taber marker. Griffin Stenger was tested early and often in the crease as the goalie made nine saves on 15 shots. Hurst would come in, in relief in the second and made 23 saves on 24 shots.

The U15 Suns also have a three-game road trip upcoming this weekend as they play Olds on Friday, Red Deer on Saturday, and Central Alberta on Sunday. The U15 Suns currently sit in last place in the South Conference with a 2-6-2 record and six points.

U18

After a lengthy break, the U18 Suns were back on the ice this past weekend for a pair of games.

Friday saw the Suns hit the road for a matchup against the East Kootenay Avalanche. The home team would score two in the second and a single in the third en route to a 3-0 victory. Keegan Stenger was in net for Taber and was busy as the netminder turned away 43 of 46 shots.

Saturday saw the team return home for a game against CRAA Blue. Unfortunately for the Suns, the visitors were unruly as they skated to an 8-2 win. Tage Jensen and Hayden Span had the Taber goals while Hayden Smith and Evan Koizumi had an assist each. Kahil Wright got the start in net and made 34 saves on 42 shots.

Three games come this weekend for the Suns as they hit the road for all three. Saturday sees them take on the West Central Tigers and Red Deer Elks. They wrap things up against Olds on Sunday. The U18 Suns currently sit in sixth in the South Division with a 2-6 record and four points.