The Wolves wrapped up their regular season at Oak Park against Birmingham Brother Rice Feb. 22 with a 6-1 loss to the Warriors. Clarkston finishes the regular season 7-14-3.
After a much-closer 3-2 loss last season, and victories over the Warriors for the three years prior, the Wolves have a better track record against Brother Rice.
‘We did okay, it was 3-0 going into the third period after a scoreless first period,? Clarkston Coach Bryan Krygier said.
‘We played them well, then we got in penalty trouble again.
‘We didn’t clear the puck well and we gave up a lot of turnovers in our defensive zone.?
Zack Lewy recorded 32 saves in net for the Wolves.
The Warriors (15-5-3) held a strong shooting advantage, 38-15.
?(Clarkston goalies) have gotten their shots-worth this season,? Krygier said.
‘I would like those shots down. Given the circumstances, they’ve done well for us.?
Clarkston penalties allowed the Warriors to score three power-play goals on the Wolves.
‘We can do better. We have to force them. We didn’t force them or put any pressure on them. That’s something we need to work on,? Krygier said.
The Warriors were the last in a handful of state power wielders the Wolves have faced this season.
The experience against the finest teams there are in the area should help the Wolves improve over time, Krygier said.
‘We get to see how hard those good teams work all year-round. Hopefully that gives us a little bit of experience in what we do,? he said.
On Feb. 21 at Farmington, Clarkston lost to the Falcons (11-9-3) 4-3. The Wolves led 2-0 after the first period, getting a power-play goal from Chris Salo and a shorthanded goal from Ryan Kenerson.
The Falcons battled back with three unanswered goals in the second period. Jeremy Voelker made the game 4-3 with 2:30 remaining in the contest and Clarkston pulled netminder Garrett Knappe with 0:50 left to try and secure the tying score to no avail.
Knappe had 30 saves for Clarkston and the Wolves were out-shot 34-24.
‘We had a couple of lapses. We applied lots of pressure and we had an opportunity to win or tie,? Krygier said.
His team’s power-play unit encouraged Krygier.
‘We moved the puck well, we’re focusing more on special teams here at the end of the season.?
Look for Clarkston’s results in the Wolves? pre-district match against Bloomfield United Tuesday at www.clarkstonnews.com.