LAC LA BICHE – The odds were against them from the start – a depleted lineup, guys playing out of position out of necessity and a tough opponent. And yet, just like the man honoured before the game, they never gave up. On a night when the scorekeeper's box at the Performance Arena in the Bold Center was dedicated in honour of longtime hockey and big-hearted community volunteer Mark Froehler – who passed away last July – the Voyageurs played a spirited game and showed lots of heart that made their coaches proud. They battled the first-place NAIT Ooks to the final whistle Friday night before succumbing 3-1.

Despite the loss, Voyageurs Assistant Coach Mark Ziobro found lots of positives to take from the game, particularly considering the team was missing several key players.

"I think that everyone in the room is playing hard, battling for each other," he said. "We've got guys away for practicum and guys sick right now with the way the world's going so to have a shortened lineup from 27 guys down to just 20 guys, just enough to make a lineup and play really well, we're really impressed."

The entertaining contest had a little bit of everything: great goaltending, thundering body checks, end-to-end action and even a first period penalty shot (with Portage goalie Jacob Gnidziejko stopping NAIT's Brandon Lawson).

The turning point came midway through the third period., with NAIT nursing a 1-0 lead. After several scoring chances, the Voyageurs' Ty Budai finally put one past Ooks' goalie Jordan Papirny on the powerplay. Before the goal could be announced, however, NAIT re-took the lead, with Tyler Robertson finding the back of the net a mere 14 seconds after the Voyageurs had tied the score.

Ziobro said that the goal was the result of the Voyageurs getting a little too cute in their own zone. "Sometimes guys try to be creative out there and we like to see that. But at the same time, they just have to recognize that when we're in close games to keep it simple. That just means to move pucks north and then east to west when we're in the offensive zone."

The Voyageurs will have another crack at the Ooks on Saturday night in Edmonton, before starting a home-and-home series with Augustana next Friday and Saturday. Ziobro believes that it's just a matter of time before his players taste victory.

"We're in games, one goal away from beating teams," he said. "So I think if we just keep our heads high and keep this program going forward, only good things will happen from now on."

Players of the Game

• NAIT: Tyler Robertson (1 goal, 1 assist)
• Portage: Ty Budai (1 goal)