There’s something to be said for opening the season at home against the reigning league champions.
The High River Flyers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period and held off the hard-charging Okotoks Bisons to escape with an impressive 3-2 victory, their second consecutive home opening triumph over the Bisons, in the Heritage Junior Hockey League (HJHL) regular season opener for both teams, Sept. 21 at the Bob Snodgrass Arena in High River.
“We just came out to a slow start, we were undisciplined and we couldn’t come back from it,” said Okotoks captain Chase Fallis. “They were stupid penalties and it didn’t seem like they were getting any calls against them and we were having so many turnovers in the neutral zone and defensive zone.”
Bisons head coach Mike Hannigan said his club fought off a tough first period to be the better team for most of the 60 minutes.
“Take away that first period and I think we dominated,” said Hannigan. “It was the first time we actually had a starting lineup after the exhibition and guys were still kind of getting used to each other and it was a little bit scrambled.”
The Flyers had a dream start on Friday as captain Tom Mikrut, a former member of the Bisons, fed Kade Bleackley in the slot for a pretty opening goal 4:41 into the game. Ryan Goldthorpe made it 2-0 six minutes later on a deft deflection of a point shot from Longview’s Zane Briggs. Okotokian Ryan Midtdal added the Flyers’ third goal of the period on a carbon copy of Goldthorpe’s marker when he tipped a Briggs point shot past Bisons’ netminder Tyler Hughes.
“I don’t really think you can fault the goaltending,” Hannigan said. “Two were deflections and the first one was just a nice shot and beyond the first period he didn’t let anything else in.”
The second and third period saw the Bisons control possession for minutes at a time in the attacking zone, but with little to show for it as Flyers goalie Myles Dunne proved a tough nut to crack on opening night, stopping 21 of 23 shots.
“We came out strong and started making smarter plays like getting the puck deep and trying to get pucks to the net,” Fallis said. “But their goalie played pretty good.”
The ice began to tilt in Okotoks’ favour in the middle frame and the visitors’ diligence paid off when speedster Matt Howatt gained the zone, left the puck for Dillon Loomer who made a cross-crease pass to newcomer Jordan Eddy for a tap-in.
The third period was played almost entirely in the Flyers’ defensive zone and Phil Dillon cashed in on the sustained pressure by burying a rebound off a Ty Fehr shot to make it interesting at 3-2 with just over eight minutes on the clock, but it was too little, too late for Okotoks.
Despite the loss, the Bisons coach was encouraged by the work ethic and subsequent momentum generated from those making their Bisons debut on Friday.
The Bisons dressed two forward lines composed of newcomers to the team, including a trio of Okotokian rookies in Zak Johns, Darren Bordt and Dylan Boyd who were a force on the fore-check for the defending champions.
“They were coming into their own,” Hannigan said of his rookie forwards. “They were still a little nervous, but once that nervous energy was gone they were hustling for sure.”
Fallis, a fourth-year Bison, knows the result of a season opener is of little significance in the big picture of the HJHL season. Okotoks lost its first game of the season in High River in 2011-12 and went on to win its second league championship.
“It’s the first game of the year and we’ve got 35 to go,” Fallis said. “This happened to us last year.”
Flyers’ head coach Murray Wegener didn’t want to make any major conclusions from the game either.
“The young guys really stepped up their game I thought and the veterans played a good game,” Wegener said. “We probably caught them with a bit of an off-game, we’re not stupid, but at the same time we found a way to win and that’s all that counts.”
The hosts were enthused for the tilt, one which held a little extra meaning for the franchise.
“We built it up a little for the guys because it’s our first game in our 10th year,” Wegener said of the Flyers’ anniversary of a decade as a franchise. “We had a couple former captains here and they chatted a little bit with them and I think the boys we’re pretty excited about that.” Not that the foothills rivalry was lacking intensity to begin with.
“We always get up for this, it’s a natural rivalry,” Wegener said. “I grew up in High River and always had that rivalry myself with them.”
The Bisons didn’t dwell on the loss for too long as they got back on the ice Sunday in Banff where they made quick work of the Bears with a 10-0 thrashing. Loomer posted one goal and five points, Eddy and Kevan Mikkelsen each scored a pair and rookies Johns and David Dallen scored their first with Okotoks.
The Bisons (1-1) host their home opener Friday, Sept. 28, at 8 p.m. when they face-off with the Coaldale Copperheads for the first time since dispatching their South division foes in the second round of last year’s playoffs.
For more information go to www.okotoksbisons.com.
