With six games left in the regular season schedule, the Columbia Valley Rockies are holding on to their playoff spot, winning back-to-back games at home on Friday (February 1) and Saturday (February 2) nights.
“We’re sitting in the driver’s seat now,” Rockies GM Ross Bidinger said. “We’re extremely happy with the last two games, and now we can really get a strangle hold on Creston.”
The Rockies played to a thrilling 3-2 in a double overtime win against the second-best team in the league, the Castlegar Rebels, on Friday. Jake Fardoe netted the winning goal with 10 seconds left in the second overtime period. The teams were playing 3 on 3 at the time, which allowed the Rockies’ passing game to shine for the fans.
“Castlegar is a good team,” Bidinger said. “Their transition game is really quick and we ended up killing more penalties than we should have but ultimately it was good to get the points out of that game.”
Facing 51 shots in the night, goaltender Stewart Pratt was named the game’s first star, with Brendan Burge and Jake Fardoe taking the second and third star nominations.
On Saturday, the Rockies faced the Spokane Braves, who are similarly ranked in the Neil Murdoch Division. The Rockies scored two unanswered goals in the third to finish off the Braves, who couldn’t get more of their 42 shots past Rockies goaltender Stewart Pratt.
Josh Haley, Karsten Banack and Kyle Pouncy were named first, second and third stars of the game, all of whom helped the team get the much needed points to pull ahead of the Creston Valley Thunder Cats in the standings.
The win brings the Rockies to 41 points on the season, while the Thunder Cats have 39. During the last six games of the regular season, the Rockies will face the Thunder Cats and the Fernie Ghostriders twice, and if all goes well for the team, will play either the Fernie Ghostriders or the Golden Rockets in the first round of the playoffs.
A lot can change in the next six games, however, so Bidinger isn’t calling the season over just yet.
“Right now the players are jacked. We want to roll into the playoffs with some more strong results,” he said.
The next home game for the Rockies will take place on Saturday, February 9 against the Osoyoos Coyotes.
