Glacier hangs tough at showcase

The Glacier Nationals are no stranger to road trips, but this past weekend, the Nationals went a little farther than usual, as in Blaine, Minnesota.

The Nationals were in Minnesota to take part in the annual North American Tier 3 Hockey League Showcase. It allows all the teams from the NA3HL to play teams from outside their division in a showcase for scouts.

The Nationals, who played three teams from the East Coast were competitive in the showcase but failed to come away with any wins. Glacier lost Friday night to the Lockport Express 5-2, then fell to the Maine Wild Saturday 3-1, before losing to East Coast Minutemen Sunday 9-1.

The Nationals’ best chance to win in the showcase, may have come Friday in their first game against Lockport. After falling behind 2-0, Glacier rallied, getting goals from Austin Moster and Gavin Cline in the second period to tie the score at 2-2 with 20 minutes to go.

However, in the final stanza, Lockport scored three times in the final five minutes to come away with the 5-2 victory. Adam Partridge got the win after stopping 14 of the 16 shots he faced, while Will Langstaff got the loss after allowing four goals on 26 shot attempts.

Saturday, against the Maine Wild, the Nationals had another promising chance to earn a positive result, after Cline scored in the second period, with Glacier trailing 1-0 to send the game into the third period tied at 1-1.

Yet, for the second straight night, the Nationals couldn’t seal the deal. The Wild scored with just over six minutes into the final frame and added another goal with just more than eight minutes left to wrap up the 3-1 victory.

After two competitive games, the Nationals had hopes of making Sunday’s game competitive, but unfortunately, despite a first-period goal from Matt Baerg, which tied the score at 1-1, the game wouldn’t end very close. East Coast, Glacier’s opponent, took a 2-1 lead into the second period, then scored five goals in the stanza, followed by two in the third period to cruise to the eight-goal win.

Kami Kortelainen notched a hat-trick in the win, scoring three goals for East Coast. Langstaff got the loss in net again for the Nationals after surrendering nine goals in the loss.

The Nationals will be off this week, but will play again in Havre Dec. 30 against the Great Falls Americans inside the Havre Ice Dome.