The Warren Mercs came up just short Thursday night, dropping a 6–5 decision to the Morden Bombers in South Eastern Manitoba Hockey League action in Morden on Jan. 29.
Warren erased a two-goal deficit late in the second period, scoring three unanswered goals in a span of 10 minutes to briefly take a 4–3 lead. Brenden Luschinski led the charge with a pair of goals, including a shorthanded marker with five seconds remaining in the middle frame that swung momentum in the Mercs’ favour.
Carson Ouellette opened Warren’s scoring early in the second period on the power play, converting the Mercs’ lone man-advantage opportunity. Drake Lindsay also found the back of the net, while Gianluca Esteves added a third-period goal to keep Warren within one down the stretch.
Morden responded with two third-period goals, including Jay Fehr’s power-play marker at 10:35 that proved to be the game-winner. Michael Hlady scored earlier in the frame as the Bombers reclaimed the lead for good.
Evan Baty made 36 saves in the Warren net, while Reed Peters earned the win for Morden with 36 stops of his own.
Despite the loss, Warren sits fifth in the SEMHL standings with an 8–7 record, remaining firmly in the playoff mix.
The Mercs continue a busy stretch on the road, visiting Portage on Feb. 3 and Ile des Chenes on Feb. 4, before returning home to host Winkler on Feb. 7.
