The Cranbrook Elite enter the weekend seeking their first win of the year, and a bit of slump-busting on the floor could result in the same for the standings.

The Elite are 0-5 in junior B tier II play in the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League so far, but head coach Ron Miles expects that winless-ness could change when they host the Lethbridge Barricudas and Calgary Wranglers.

"We've had guys held off the scoreboard that are just too talented to go this long," he said. "In this league, we should be getting a minimum of 10 goals a game, and until we start doing that I don't know that we'll be having too many victories."

After a two-week layoff, the Elite returned to action last Saturday at the Rec Plex and lost 10-4 to the Okotoks Ice (5-1).

Having exited the first period with a 3-0 lead, Okotoks exploded to take an 8-2 lead into the final frame.

"There's a reason why they're in first place," said Miles. "They're a good passing team and we were struggling to move the ball. In the third period, it was 2-2 and that reflected that we were playing that much better."

The Ice took 10 minor penalties - half of them in the final period - but the Elite were able to capitalize just once on the advantage.

"We're starting to play a lot more disciplined - we only took six minutes in penalties, which has got to be a record in this league," said Miles. "That's a good sign. We'll work through it and hopefully start competing and giving the other teams a tougher go of it."

Taylor Stefansson scored twice for Cranbrook, while Rob Murray and Tanner Rennich both got one.

Cranbrook gave up far more breakaway and 2-on-0 situations than Miles would have liked, but goalie Joel Fruncillo had an outstanding game to keep it as close as it was.

The Elite lost several players in Saturday's game, including Kyle Lomon who tore a tendon in his thumb and is likely lost for the season. Mike Miles sprained his ankle and is still getting around on crutches.

"We're smarting a bit," said coach Miles.

***

The Elite will be playing the Barricudas for the first time on Saturday night (7 p.m., Rec Plex), while the Wranglers present a shot at redemption on Sunday afternoon (2 p.m.).

The Wranglers defeated the Elite 8-5 on May 14.

"We're still trying to get into mid-season form," said Miles. "We show glimmers of it from time to time, and there are times we can be dominating but we're still struggling. This weekend we should be able to compete with both the Lethbridge team and Wranglers team. I'm hoping we can put up a win in one or both games. We've got the talent."