The Fernie Ghostriders took home a 4-3 win in a fiery home opener against the Kimberley Dynamiters on Nov. 14.
With both teams blazing onto the ice, the Riders were quick to sink two pucks in the first period. As tensions rose, the Dynamiters squeezed a goal in before the buzzer, finishing the first period with a score of 2-1 for the Riders.
“I really liked our team’s resilience tonight,” said head coach, Jeff Wagner.
“We did a good job of keeping things simple, of getting pucks deep into their zone, making them play a 200 foot game, and ultimately getting rewarded for it.”
Showing both grit and determination, the Riders held the Dynamiters in the second period, fighting hard to score two more goals and head into the third with a lead of 4-2.
“I thought that in the first two periods we dictated pace for the most part – we kind of got away from our game in the second period when things got a little bit physical after the whistle, and it seemed like our focus level was a little bit off, but I thought we did a good job in the third period of locking things down,” said Wagner.
The Riders continued to fight hard in the third, holding on to their lead until the buzzer went, wrapping up a win on home ice with a final score of 4-3.
Wagner praised his defensive core for helping lock down the win, alongside exceptional effort from captain Savy Gill and number 21, Kort Kisinger.
“Kisinger did get a goal and an assist, but on top of the points that he got, I thought he was a hound on the puck – he was making it difficult on defenders to get anything going,” added Wagner.
Having started their regular season play as of Nov. 13, the Riders look forward to facing off against the Columbia Valley Rockies next week, having lost to them during exhibition games last month.
“They seem to be the team to beat right now in our division, and so it will be a challenge – they have a lot of veteran guys back – but we’re looking forwards to turning the page, and these last two games were a big stepping stone for us in the right direction,” said Wagner.
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