By Garry Abben, Tribune sports writer

Albert Lea Tiger boys’ hockey coach Roy Nystrom’s analysis of Saturday afternoon’s 5-1 loss to Rochester John Marshall was simple and to the point.

“We didn’t match the intensity that John Marshall brought to the ice today,” said Nystrom. “We skated better in the third period, but we need to play with intensity for three full periods.”

The Tigers led off the scoring in the first period when junior defenseman Travis McKinney scored on an assist from junior forward Beau Larson. The remainder of the period saw the Rockets and Tigers unable to capitalize on scoring opportunities until Rocket senior forward Robbie Amundson scored an unassisted goal with 3:11 remaining.

Shortly after, John Marshall struck again when sophomore defenseman Scott Steege scored with only 37 seconds left in the period. Steege’s goal was assisted by seniors Alex Suginaka and Jake Hovick.

It was perhaps the goal scored late in the first period that propelled John

Marshall’s explosive second period.

Rick McCoy scored the Rockets’ first goal of the period with 10:45 remaining. John Marshall continued to pressure the Tiger defenders, making it pay off when Suginaka scored with 8:08 remaining in the second period.

The Rockets weren’t done yet however, as Amundson scored his second unassisted goal of the game late in the second.

“Obviously the second period was a tough one for us,” said Nystrom. “We did come out and show much more intensity in the third period, but didn’t shoot the puck particularly well.”

The third period was scoreless, and saw the Rockets’ outshoot Albert Lea 9-3. The Tigers were much more aggressive throughout the period, creating scoring chances on several rushes into the John Marshall defensive zone, but many of their shots were wide of the net.

John Marshall outshot the Tigers 32-13 for the game, which dropped Albert Lea to 9-5 overall. The Tigers remain in the hunt for a Big Nine title however, as the Rockets’ handed them just their second loss in conference play.

Albert Lea travels to Owatonna Tuesday for a 7:30 face-off against the Huskies.