Braves, Warriors split season opener

By Tyler Lowey, Times Reporter

Weekends feel much better when you salvage a home series with a convincing win.
The Wheatland Warriors saved face by picking up a 4-2 win against the Bow Valley Timberwolves in South Central Alberta Hockey League (SCAHL) action Sept. 23 at the Strathmore Family Centre.
“Yesterday, there were a few jitters. For many of our guys, it was the first time at this level. It was also their first home game of the year and there were a lot of nerves in general,” said Warriors head coach Cody Brown. “We had a good bounce back today and we put in a pretty damn good 60-minute effort. To get that this early in the season is good to see.”
The the local double-A bantam team trailed 1-0 when Jarred Schrock popped his first goal of the year at the 14:46 mark of the first period, when he took a pass from Jerrin Hendricks on a two-on-one and roofed it.
In the second, Hendricks went from passer to goal scorer, when he ripped mesh during four-on-four play, as he snapped a wrister past netminder Ryan Lee’s glove.
Then, three minutes before the second period expired, Nate Gillis netted the winner when he deflected a puck in that was tossed to the net from the left corner, bouncing in.
“For it to be this early in the year with the circumstances against us, like not practicing much as a full team, to gel overall as a team like this, is pretty good,” said Brown.
The T-Wolves cut within one halfway through the third, until Brandon McGillvary supplied the insurance marker from Domenic Ficaccio.
One day earlier, the Warriors were hanging tough with the Airdrie Lightning 2-2 after the opening frame, but fell apart in the third period.
Philip Raycroft and Joel Romano netted singles for the Warriors, with Bryce Benfield, Hendricks and Schrock picking up assists.
“We were a little scrambly and Airdrie is a good team,” said Brown. “They have lots of size and play a rough-and-tough style. That’s a tough matchup to start the year.”
The Warriors will continue to benefit from a home-heavy start to their season with two of their three games this weekend coming at home.
They will host the Foothills Bisons on Sept. 29 (7:30 p.m.) and Okotoks Oilers on Oct. 1 (1:30 p.m.). Between the home bouts, the Warriors will travel to Cochrane Arena for a rematch against the Timberwolves Sept. 30.
Meanwhile, the Wheatland Braves took a page out of the Warriors book and responded nicely to their season opener thumping, with a 5-2 win in their home debut.
The West Central Tigers spoiled the Braves SCAHL opener with an 8-3 feeding Sept. 23 at the Nexsource Centre in Sylvan Lake.
Kolten Kuryk netted a pair of first-period markers from Luc Trevors (2) and Garrin Gosling.
A little home cooking seemed to fix the Braves problems, as they responded the next day by brushing back the Taber Golden Suns 5-2 at the Strathmore Family Centre.
The local double-A peewee team buried three goals in the second from returning vet Tyler Fairbairn, Trevors and Kuryk, as Chance Loke and Wyatt Yule supplied the other markers.
Connor White backstopped the Braves with 32 saves between the pipes to pick up his first SCAHL win.
The Braves are in action Oct. 1, when they travel to Red Deer to take on the Parkland Transmission. The Braves next home game won’t take place until Oct. 14, when they host the Lethbridge Hurricanes Red at the Family Centre.
The defending provincial champion Wheatland Chiefs are finally ready for their title defence.
The Chiefs season opener takes place Sept. 29 at the Cochrane Arena, when they take on the Bow Valley Timberwolves.
But before then, Head Coach Matt Gass was finishing up his final roster adjustments during a pre-season tournament in Taber Sept. 23 and 24.
The local double-A midget team opened the tourney with a 4-1 victory against the Foothills Bisons. Later that day, they downed the host Golden Suns 3-1. On the final day of the tournament, the Chiefs snuck past the Lethbridge Hurricanes 4-3 in a rambunctious affair.
“In these pre-season tourneys, there are a lot of different guys in and out of the lineup, as we try and get a final look at each of them,” said Gass. “We aren’t as much worried about the other team, as we are more interested in how our guys look against different teams.”
Following the tournament, the Chiefs roster was set.
In net, last year’s backup and one of the top goaltenders in the league, Riley Stovka, takes over in the No. 1 spot with backup and former Strathmore Storm goalie Ethan Rycroft.
The Chiefs will return a pair of defencemen and four forwards from last year’s dominating squad, while a pair of notable last names are also thrown into the mix.
Scott Desserre’s younger brother Mitch and former CFR Chemicals Bisons stud blue liner Cole Clayton’s brother, Chase, have been named to the team as defencemen.
Strathmore will get their first look at the defending champs Oct. 7, when they host the CBHA Blackhawks at the Family Centre.