It was a return to form for the Revelstoke Grizzlies last weekend as the team swept all three games, with two wins over the Sicamous Eagles and shutout victory over the North Okanagan Knights in between.
“Wins at this time of the year are tough to get,” said coach Rylan Ferster. “You just want to be playing your best hockey down the stretch. We got three wins, we’ll take them any way we can get them.”
Friday night the Grizzlies were at home to take on the basement-dwelling Sicamous Eagles in what was a back-and-forth affair for most of the night in front of 320 fans.
Brendan Urban scored in the first for Revelstoke but Sicamous tied the game just past the midway point of the second. Brad Friedrich got the lead back nearly three minutes later after battling for a rebound but once again Sicamous tied the game, scoring a minute into the third period.
Once again, the teams traded goals, with Bruce Silvera scoring for Revelstoke and David Harrison for Sicamous.
Finally, at 8:46 of the third Revelstoke took the lead for good when Colten Dahlen blasted in a point shot. Then, less than two minutes later, Lucas Hildebrand scored his first goal for the Grizzlies on the power play. Sicamous potted a late goal but some aggressive forechecking by Revelstoke helped seal a 5-4 win.
Saturday night Revelstoke travelled to Armstrong to take on the North Okanagan Knights. Tory Caldwell made 21 saves for the shutout and Brandon Perger scored two goals and an assist in the 4-0 win.
The game was the debut of the newest Grizzly, Devin Gelowitz, who was lured away from Okanagan College to join the squad. Playing on a line with Urban and Perger, Gelowitz recorded two assists in his debut.
Sunday afternoon saw the Grizzlies once again take on the Eagles at the Forum and this time Revelstoke controlled the game from start to finish, outshooting Sicamous 59-26 in a 4-1 win in front of a sparse crowd of only 120 people.
After a scoreless first period, Hildebrand put Revelstoke in front with a howitzer from the point just under four minutes into the second period. Revelstoke kept pressing but it took more than ten minutes for them to score again. This time it happened when Garrett Kemmler sprung Silvera loose for a breakaway goal.
Revelstoke added two more goals in the third period. First when Brendan Urban swatted in a rebound and then when TJ Christensen scored his first goal of the season on a pass from his older brother Brooks.
“I definitely feel relieved. It’s about time,” said TJ after the game. “I was extremely happy that my brother assisted it and my whole family was here to watch.”
Sicamous added a late goal to end Garrett Rockafellow’s shutout bid but that was as close as they would get.
Revelstoke now heads into its final four games of the season, starting with a home game against the Kamloops Storm on Friday before going on the road Saturday to take on the Kelowna Chiefs.
With the Grizzlies enjoying a 29 point lead over the Storm in the Doug Birks division, Ferster wants to make sure the team is on a roll heading into the playoffs, which are scheduled to begin on Monday, Feb. 14.
“Over the last four games you just want to play your best hockey,” he said. “Hopefully you’re going into the playoffs on a high.”
