The Calgary Roughnecks (12-6) scored early and often to take a 14-8 win over the Vancouver Stealth (4-14) Saturday night at the Langley Events Centre. The Roughnecks finish the season in second place in the West Division while the Stealth wind up in last, tied for the worst record in the NLL with the Minnesota Swarm.
The Roughnecks scored the first two goals of the game and never relinquished the lead after that, jumping ahead 4-1 after one quarter, extending to 8-4 at the half, and then continuing to extend the lead the rest of the way. Special teams play made all the difference on the night as Calgary picked up four power play goals and three shorthanded markers versus just a single power play goal by the Stealth.
Calgary’s Shawn Evans led all scorers with seven points (3 G, 4 A) while Jeff Shattler added six (2 G, 4 A) and Dane Dobbie contributed five (3 G, 2 A).
Mike Poulin made 33 saves for the win while Frankie Scigliano came in late in relief and logged three stops on four shots.
Tyler Digby (2 G, 1 A), Rhys Duch (2 G, 1 A) and Cody Bremner (1 G, 2 A) all notched three points for the Stealth. Matt Roik got the start in net for Vancouver and made 42 saves.
Vancouver now has the summer to retool for next year and figure out how to get back to the top of the standings after failing to make the postseason. It seems likely that big changes will be made to get this team back to a more competitive level.
Calgary, on the other hand, is going into the playoffs on a hot streak. They’ve won two in a row and six of their last seven to finish the season. Their opponents in the first round, the Colorado Mammoth, have also ended the season on a good note, winning their last three in a row, so this is shaping up to be a great matchup.
