On a brisk Thanksgiving Sunday, the Halifax Mooseheads played host to the Sherbrooke Phoenix. While the Mooseheads are dealing with a handful of injuries, including captain Brady Schultz and one of their top point producers Antoine Fontiane, they had a healthy Jan Sprynar in the lineup.
The Mooseheads came out of the gate fast and physical and had a really nice rebound after a string of three straight losses.
Sprynar, who is 19 years old, missed the start of the regular season for the Mooseheads as he suffered an injury after taking a fall in training camp. His return is slightly sooner than expected, and just as impactful as many could have hoped for.
"I cant really describe it. It was amazing. To be honest I couldn't even fall asleep last night. It was amazing, and even better after the W"@HFXMooseheads Jan Sprynar on returning to the lineup today. #Mooseheads
— Jacob Billington (@JacobBillingt10) October 13, 2024
Braeden MacPhee opened the scoring for the Mooseheads early in the first period, and just three minutes later, Sprynar scored his first goal of the season. Offensive pressure from Sprynar led directly to a turnover from the Phoenix defender, and he wired a shot in over the left shoulder of Linards Feldbergs in the Phoenix crease.
“It was a pretty good spot for me to put it in the net. I don’t want to say it was easy or common for me but…”
Mooseheads winger Jan Sprynar on his first period goal
Jack Milner Plays Strong in Crease
The Mooseheads’ starter is without a doubt Mathis Rousseau, but Jack Milner had a great bounce-back game after dropping his first start of the season against the Charlottetown Islanders. Milner finished tonight with 31 saves and two goals against, earning the first star of the game. One goal against was a great shot and the other was a redirection off of a leg in front.
Hugo Primeau and Florent Houle scored the two goals for Sherbrooke, but Milner’s performance was good enough to hang on to the victory.
Related: Halifax Mooseheads With a Strong Start to the 2024-25 Season
The most notable thing about his play was his demeanor. Outside of the first shift of the game where he bobbled the puck behind his net, he was very confident, remained calm, and was very tactile with his movement. He didn’t slide around the crease a lot, he used quick, controlled slides across the crease, and overall had an impressive performance.
Mooseheads Record Set At 6-3-1 Through 10 Games
The Mooseheads had a very hot start to the season, and while they went on a bit of a slide lately, they dominated much of the game on Oct. 13, despite being outshot. The third line of Sprynar, MacPhee, and Lou Levesque had great tempo, were scoring, and had some outstanding looks.
When asked about the chemistry between the three players, Sprynar said “First game we played together and we played good. The chemistry worked out. We should play the whole game, 60 minutes together”
It was evident that that line was being trusted quite a bit, and rightfully so. The trio hadn’t played together up to that point, but there will likely be some more time spent together in the lineup down the road.
It wasn’t only that line buzzing though, as Jack Martin played a strong game on defense, and Shawn Carrier and Logan Crosby both had great games alongside Liam Kilfoil on the top line.
The Mooseheads recently fell out of the Canadian Hockey League’s Top 10 list, but prior to their three-game skid, they were the sixth-ranked team in the league. Having a strong bounce-back is crucial for the team, and they will look to get another winning streak going.
The Mooseheads have a five-day break before their next game at home against the Cape Breton Eagles, but they will look to carry this momentum into that game.
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