Palmer steals a shutout despite defensemen deficit
In Tyler Palmer's second shutout of the season, the Bears saw the return of Adam Hall and the absence of Joel Sexsmith (and penalties).

From only drawing two penalties, to outshooting the , and finally, a shutout — you couldn’t have asked for a more boring game from the team on January 17.
The Bears’ 4-0 win — Palmer’s second shutout of the season — was exactly what the team needed to stay conference leaders while battling the domino of injuries faced these past few months.
But when you play a bottom of the pack team just 15 minutes after a late scratch from your last defensemen standing, you have to appreciate the timing. abrupt absence meant a five-man defensive lineup for a team already a blue-liner short, against the lowest ranked team in .
“It gave [ and , two left-side defensemen] a chance to get a little bit more ice time than normal, and they were good. They were effective. They led our offence. They contributed to our goals. They were strong on pucks. They made good decisions. When those two are playing well, we’re a difficult team to play against,” head coach said.
An open blue line? No big deal
There’s a running theme in Herbers’ words — the Bears, well offensive leaders, have secured the back end.
Palmer earned his fifth straight win and now leads Canada West with a 1.84 goals against average. As a rookie goaltender, and the Bears’ de facto starter, his playoff-practice is starting to lead the team.
“He’s making some big saves at key times. He’s comfortable back there and he’s poised. And plays with confidence that just rubs off on the rest of the team,” Herbers said.
That “confidence” saw an over-worked take a goal and assist in Friday night’s win. Now leading the Bears with 29 points in 21 games as a defensemen, de la Gorgendiere made it look like the team was at full capacity.
Bears learn some discipline and capitalize on the special teams
Thanks to one less penalty minute, the Bears fell from the number one penalized team in Canada West to a slightly better second slot. For a season long issue — they’ll take it.
With so much practice, the Bears’ penalty kill — an otherwise offensive unit led by and — has secured the team short-handed. But it’s nice to see them reel it in a bit.
“There’s been way too many penalties and way too many guys penalty killing. We want to make sure we clean that up. But on the other side of it, I thought our penalty kill was very good the other weekend against , and was a game changer for us for scoring those two shorties on Saturday. So our penalty kill has to be good, but we can’t be overusing it,” according to Herbers.
He has a point.
Instead, the Bears need to focus on drawing more penalties and capitalizing on the man-advantage. Something like power play goal perhaps?
Bears’ offence shows growth in off the radar areas
Aside from the power play, Nash also stole 50 per cent of Friday night’s goals. Not bad for a fourth line forward, now at 14 points in 20 games. On any other team, we’d probably talk about this more.
But did he steal thunder in his first game back? Perhaps.
“For the most part, Hall kept it simple and moved his feet. When he does that, he’s effective. He tried to take pucks to the net. Played as a big body, and that’s where he needs to play,” Herbers said.
Hall now joins his brother, and on a second line looking to find some chemistry heading into game two against the Cougars on January 18.