Thunder offence can't find the net

The Langley Thunder were on the short end of a 8-6 final score in BC Junior Tier 1 Lacrosse League action at Langley Events Centre on May 28. Gary Ahuja photo

You can’t score if you don’t hit the net: that is what a sport like lacrosse boils down and that is what plagued the Langley Thunder on Tuesday night.

Hosting the Port Coquitlam Saints in BC Junior Tier 1 Lacrosse League action at Langley Events Centre, the Thunder held their opponent to eight goals, which on most nights, should be enough to secure a victory.

The problem was, the Thunder themselves managed just six goals, falling 8-6.

“Our offence just didn’t get it done tonight. Six is not enough,” said coach Darren Buchan. “It is a race to 10 and we held them to eight, so we should have got there.”

The problem – aside from being two goals behind their competitor – was while the Saints had 50 shots on goal, Langley was well behind with just 36 on target.

“We are not moving our feet enough. So many got blocked. We are just not getting into that right shooting angle, getting into that spot where a defender can’t get to it,” Buchan said.

Langley had a solid opening 20 minutes, leading 2-0 until Port Coquitlam struck for a pair of their own ahead of the intermission. The teams then traded goals to open the middle frame, each scoring twice before the Saints tallied twice more for their first lead of the game. The Thunder cut the deficit to 6-5 and pulled even at six with 15:33 to play. However, it would Port Coquitlam finding the back of the net for the final two goals and the win.

The Thunder did have opportunities – including a two-man advantage for a full two minutes, but their offence came up empty.

“Offensively, we can’t be down a goal after the second and only score one. Our offence just didn’t get it done tonight. Six isn’t enough,” Buchan said.

Brayden Longacre (2-2), Jake Newby (1-3) and Mac Timms (1-3) all had four-point games with Connyr Welch (1-1) and Cashton Hemsworth (1-0) scoring once each. Goaltender Jackson Hastings was stellar in the Thunder net, turning aside 42 of 50 shots, an .840 save percentage.

Buchan said Hastings play between the pipes masked some of his team’s defensive deficiencies in the contest.

The Saints’ offence was led by one goal and three assists from Jordan Rekunyk and two goals courtesy of Hudson Kennedy as Port Coquitlam improved to 6-3-1.

Langley – which saw its record fall to 3-5 – was looking for their first two-game winning streak following a 10-8 win in Burnaby over the Lakers on May 26. That victory snapped a three-game losing streak.

Up next for Langley is their third game in four days as they travel to Richmond’s Minoru Arena to face the Roadrunners on May 29. It is the start of a home-and-home series between the two clubs with the return engagement set for June 4 Langley Events Centre with a 7:30pm start.

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