This past Sunday, January 2nd, 2022 at 4:00 pm local hockey fans made their way to the Art Holding Memorial Arena. The event, a game of shinny between “our Heat” and the always challenging Revelstoke Grizzlies. It is often written that the games are edge of your seat entertaining, but this one was filled with stand up, sit down, shake your bootie and scream or yell. If any hockey hound wanted something special under the tree, it came shaped in an upscale, undeniable 8 to 5 victory over the mad bears from the Stoke.
It played out as follows…Bryan Fraser received a minor penalty for a trip, he was so fired up about it when he got out of purgatory he rifled a blast from the blue line for his first goal of the season helped by some friends Jarod Sigouin and Jacob Biensch. That was followed by slick hands Dylan Handel placing a powerplay marker in the mesh from Mikkel Hrechka and Mr. Sigouin. Thirteen seconds later Aidan Brown tallied the 3rd counter from Fraser and Lucas Ouellette. The firing squad wasn’t quite finished as Hrechka scored the 4th in a row goal from Sigouin and Handel. A dangerous spot to be in, the locals up by 4 and Revelstoke not happy, so they scored and the 1st concluded 4-1 Heat.
The 2nd period started out positive with Ouellette from Brown and Matthew Poole providing optimism. But then a lapse in concentration or did they take their feet off the gas, who knows but the Grizzlies came roaring out of their hibernation with 3 tallies to make it close after 40 minutes, 5-4.
The rivals took 4 of 5 minors in the 3rd and it cost them. Sigouin on the man advantage from Biensch and Poole stretched the lead. Then Captain Biensch on the powerplay from Hrechka and Handel provided insurance. Grizzlies got one back, but an empty net slider from Biensch assisted by Handel and Poole, put a bow on a present for the fans! It was a full team effort that delivered the goods in this contest but Jarod Sigouin outshone his friends with 1 goal and 3 assists.
Jacob Biensch is climbing up in the statistics department, currently 8th in the KIJHL with 14 goals, 18 assists for 32 points. The Heat remain firmly in 3rd spot in the Doug Birks Division with 28 points, 7 points back of the Grizzlies and 11 points up on the 100 Mile House Wranglers.
Weather and Arena problems are playing havoc with the schedule throughout the KIJHL. Starting January 8th 8 regular season games will be played in 15 days, 6 of them on the road! Next home game is the 15th at 7 pm versus the Summerland Steam. The boys hit the road for 4 games on the road prior to that, so maybe we should welcome them home on the 15th with some extra warm bodies in the chiropractor friendly plastic butt buckets. Just a thought, until next week, ta da.
Chaos Castle Crowd Pleaser
