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(rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)
Returning home

Rebels held winless in six-game U.S. road trip after shutout loss in Spokane

Nov 16, 2024 | 10:01 PM

It’s been tough sledding for the Red Deer Rebels.

On Saturday night they fell 3-0 to the Spokane Chiefs to lose their sixth-consecutive contest in front of 10,372 fans at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena.

The setback also means Red Deer was unable to pickup a victory on the six-game road trip through the U.S. Division that began back on Nov. 8 in Wenatchee.

The Rebels outshot their opponents 35-28 but goaltender Dawson Cowan stood tall between the pipes for the Chiefs to hold onto the shutout. Rebels netminder Chase Wutzke also played well stopping 25 of 27 shots faced.

After a scoreless first period, the Chiefs broke through on the powerplay with 14:41 remaining in the middle frame.

Swedish forward Rasmus Ekström fired a shot past Wutzke from the right slot.

Red Deer nearly found the equalizer early in the third period when the Chiefs goalie lost sight of the puck in the crease but the Rebels were unable to bury it.

Not long after, the Chiefs sealed the deal with an insurance goal from forward Shea Van Olm with just over 12 minutes left in the game.

The Chiefs fed off an electric home crowd in the final frame but a fight between Jaxon Fuder and Brayden Crampton took the energy to another level.

Minutes later, five players were put in the box for roughing, including Red Deer’s Samuel Drancak and Derek Thurston, following a scrum near the net.

As a result, the Rebels were awarded their first and only powerplay of the game but were unable to capitalize.

Red Deer pulled the goalie late in the period to try to buy a goal but Chiefs Sam Oremba stole the puck from captain Ollie Josephson to score the empty netter.

Red Deer now posts a 9-8-1-2 record and has fallen to seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings. They’ve also dropped to fourth in the Central Division.

They’ll return home tomorrow to prepare for their first home game in two weeks set for next Friday against the Victoria Royals at 7 p.m. at the Centrium.

All Rebels games can be listened to on the air waves at 106.7 Rewind Radio.