It was a somewhat fitting end to the home portion of a miserable season for the Guelph Storm.
Not enough offence, too many mistakes and not enough skill to match their opponent: Friday’s 5-2 loss to the Owen Sound Attack in front of 4,500 at the Sleeman Centre was pretty much a microcosm of the Storm’s season.
They will wrap up the campaign with road games in Flint Saturday night and Sault Ste. Marie Sunday afternoon.
Monday they will clean out their lockers, hold exit meetings with the coaching staff and put an end to the team’s worst season in 24 years.
“Obviously it’s not what we play for,” said Storm veteran Garrett McFadden. “We don’t come to the rink every day, practice every day and work hard to come in last.
“It’s emotional that a season comes to an end and you’re not moving on into the playoffs … You learn a lot about who you are when you go through something like this,” McFadden said.
He had high praise for the team’s fans who stuck through them thick or thin this year.
“The big thing next year is showing these fans we care as much as they do,” McFadden said. “They fill this rink and they applaud us and they show us how much this city cares about us and how much they want us to succeed.”
The Attack scored twice in the first period Friday to establish a lead that was pretty much insurmountable for the offensively-challenged Storm.
After the Attack made it 3-0 early in the third, the Storm’s Luke Burghardt gave the home crowd something to cheer about when he made it 3-1. But Owen Sound matched that with a goal of its own with 17 seconds left in the second period and it was all over but the crying.
Givani Smith’s power play goal was the only bright spot of the third.
Storm coach Jarrod Skalde, whose future is up in the air after this season, said one of the positives to take out of this is that the team stuck together.
“I don’t think they quit on each other and as a group they didn’t turn on each other. There was no finger pointing in that room and I’m proud of them for that,” Skalde said.
“They’ve got to understand that you go through touch situations sometimes and you’re better for it.”
Prior to the game the Storm recognized graduating overage players Jake Harris and Michael Giugovaz with an on-ice ceremony.
Brock Philips didn’t dress Friday due to illness.
