VIDEO: Aldergrove Kodiaks coach calls lopsided losses ‘horrible’

Aldergrove Kodiaks coach Ron Johnson didn’t mince words about his team’s recent asymmetrical defeats, a 6-0 loss to crosstown rival Langley Trappers on Sunday afternoon Oct. 9, followed by a 16-0 drubbing by Delta Ice Hawks on Tuesday, Oct. 11.

“We got slaughtered,” Johnson told the Langley Advance Times.

Johnson said the team was fatigued after a “ridiculous” schedule that had them playing four “really tough” games in five days, and as a result, reverted to old, bad habits and failed to work together as a team.

“We have a very low passing percentage, and we don’t communicate,” Johnson said.

“Our decision-making under pressure is horrible.”

Tuesday at the Ladner Leisure Centre, Ice Hawks Carson Merriman scored the first marker, that would prove to be the game-winner, at 8:04 of the first, with Delta going on to add 15 more unanswered goals before the game ended.

Delta outshot Aldergrove 65 to 14 on Tuesday, putting far more pressure on beleaguered Kodiaks netminder Rahul Sharma than his Delta counterpart Merick Erikson endured.

It was, he said, a “hard lesson” for the rookie players on the roster.

“If you don’t play as a team in hockey, you’re going to lose,” Johnson warned.

While the coach was anything but pleased, he still sees encouraging signs of improvement, and predicts the situation will get better as players learn to work together.

“We’ll get there,” he predicted.

“To me, this is a challenge.”

READ ALSO: VIDEO: Trappers win first battle of the Langleys, downing crosstown rival Kodiaks 6-0

On Sunday, Langley Trappers netminder Dylan Black stopped every shot for a shutout as the Cyclone Taylor Cup provincial junior “B” hockey champions blanked crosstown rival Kodiaks in their first regular season match before about 180 fans at George Preston arena.

After a scoreless first period, Trappers scored four times in just under 10 minutes to take the lead, and never looked back.

Dylan Wormald, with an assist from Cody Bathgate and Patrick Coopman, opened the scoring for Langley at 2:38 of the second period, with Hayden Yahn scoring at 3:22 with Jacob Zaurrini and Brock Mierzejewski helping. Then, Brock Mierzejewski scored at 10:04, assisted by Hayden Yahn and Dylan Wormald, and Cody Bathgate notched an unassisted goal at 11:43.

READ ALSO: VIDEO: Langley Trappers win Cyclone Taylor Cup

In the third period, Jacob Zaurrini, with Brock Mierzejewski and Hayden Yahn, made it 5-0 at 9:12, followed by Tyler Shaughnessy at 10:05 for the final goal of the game, with assists coming from Brock Mierzejewski and Jacob Zaurrini.

Langley netminder Dylan Black had the shutout, while Aldergrove’s Allen Gillis had a busy night, with Trappers outshooting the Kodiaks 44 to 19.

All three stars of the game were Langley players.

Last season, the Kodiaks were edged out of the Harold Brittain Conference division playoffs, while Trappers won the Stonehouse Cup, and went on to take gold in the provincial junior “B”championships.

Langley and Aldergrove will meet again in November, when the Kodiaks will host the Trappers on Sunday, Nov. 9 at the Aldergrove Credit Union Community Centre arena, 27032 Fraser Hwy, at 7:15 p.m.