The Crookston Pirate Boy’s Hockey team didn’t have an answer for the Warroad Warriors’ Grant Slukynsky on Saturday as Warroad defeated the Pirates 4-1 behind Slukynsky’s hat trick at the Crookston Sports Center.
Both teams came out of the gate cruising before Owen Meeker got a puck to Slukynsky racing up ice and he ripped a wrist shot past the Pirates’ Jack Ricord for a 1-0 lead with 10:23 to go in the first. Crookston’s Jack Doda would tie the game less than a minute later when Ty Hamre forced a neutral zone turnover and Brock Heppner fed Doda at the blue line. Doda skated down the left side low into the faceoff circle before sniping the back of the net past the Warroad goaltender to tie the game 1-1 with 9:40 to go in the period. “He just comes down the side there and fires one on the net and a big, big goal,” said Pirate coach Josh Hardy. “You put the puck on the net and good things happen and that’s something we have to do a better job of instead of trying to wait for the perfect shot.” After tying the game the Pirates would kill off two penalties during which Warroad had five shots, but no quality scoring opportunities. Warroad outshot Crookston 10-5 in the first, despite only being tied 1-1.
The Pirates came out flat in the second period and couldn’t carry the puck out of their own zone and had to resort to icing the puck several times before Slukynsky put Warroad ahead for good. The Pirates cleared the puck down the ice and with icing waved off Hunter Pelland picked up the puck to the right of his goal, turned and fired it up ice for Slukynsky. Slukynsky came down the right side and fired a hard wrist shot over the open glove of Ricord for a 2-1 lead with 12:10 to go in the second. “That’s maybe the most frustrating part, we looked good in the first then we came out in the second and looked like a completely different team,” said Hardy. “We need to be able to continue to ride that momentum right through the break, we didn’t have any jump, we were scared, we weren’t moving our feet and we were hoping someone else would do something. We have to take some ownership of our own game.” The Pirates would play stronger over the final 12 minutes, but couldn’t find the equalizer getting outshot 10-4 in the period.
In the third period, the Pirates came out stronger and had a couple of opportunities early in the period, but were unable to pull even. But Warroad used their experience, speed and size to tilt the ice back in there in there favor. “Kind of got after the boys between the second and third about working together as a team,” said Hardy. “We responded right away there but #27 is going to make you pay if you don’t take him all the way to the net.” Warroad kept the pressure on the Pirates until midway through the period when with Ricord pinned to the right post, Warroad’s Owen Meeker fired a puck wide that bounced out to the far side of the net away from Ricord and Slukynsky was there to tap it into an open net for a 3-1 lead with 9:36 to play. Slukynsky’s goal was his third of the night. The Pirates would have an opportunity late when Meeker was whistled for a high stick 185 feet from his own goal with 3:45. The Pirates had a hard time establishing possession of the puck in their own end during the first minute of the power play as Warroad’s Anthony Foster was a wrecking force on the forecheck creating multiple turnovers and short-handed opportunities. “We’re tired and over thinking and Warroad does a nice job bringing pressure on our guys,” said Hardy. “Our first unit was tired, the second unit struggled to get it out and then we got the first unit out they lost a draw and Warroad made them came up the length of the ice again when we kill a lot of time on the power play we don’t get an opportunity to shoot the puck.” Crookston was able to establish an offensive presence over the final minute of the penalty and pulled Ricord for a two-man advantage with 2:18 to play. After the penalty had expired the Pirates had an offensive zone faceoff win and Eric Delorme fired a shot on which Warroad’s Blake Norris sold out his body to block the shot. Meeker picked up the puck walked just across the red line and buried a puck into the empty net for an unassisted goal to finish the game with 29 seconds left making it 4-1. Warroad outshot Crookston 15-4 in the period.
The Pirates fall to 3-12-1 and will travel to Detroit Lakes for a 7:30 p.m. game on Tuesday. Warroad improves to 9-6.
| Scoring | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final |
| Warroad | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| CROOKSTON | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
1st Period
10:29 – Warroad – Grant Slukynsky (Sky Solig, Owen Meeker)
9:40 – Crookston – Jack Doda (3) (Ty Hamre, Brock Heppner)
2nd Period
12:10 – Warroad – Grant Slukynsky (Hunter Pelland)
3rd Period
9:36- Warroad – Grant Slukynsky (Hunter Pelland, Owen Meeker)
0:29 – Warroad – Owen Meeker (unassisted)(Empty Net)
| Saves | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Total |
| Zach Foster – Warroad | 4 | 4 | 4 | 12 |
| Jack Ricord – Crookston | 9 | 9 | 13 | 31 |
