The Williams Lake Mustangs had a clean Week 5 and 6 in the KIJHL. Picking up a win and ahead of their Cariboo rivals in the Doug Birks Division.
Quesnel had a tough road trip in Week 5, managing to get one win while away. Then had a strong performance back at home in Week 6.
After a double win last weekend, the Wranglers took another tumble, losing three in a row between the two weekends.
Here are the weekend recaps:
Williams Lake Mustangs:
While Williams Lake had a close game in their Friday, Oct. 17 match-up against the Chase Heat, squeaking out a 4 to 3 win on the road. It didn’t phase them for their second game the following Friday, Oct. 24, as the Mustangs ran wild over the Heat, winning 6 to 2.
In the Oct. 17 game, the Mustangs took an early lead, scoring three times through the first, second, and third periods. Declan Pocock scored first, his third of the year. In the second period, JP Desabrias picked up his tenth goal off a power play, and in the third, Logan Hauk scored his ninth goal at the halfway mark.
Then Columbia Valley battled back, scoring twice to make the game close in the three minutes. Then Logan Hauk scored his decennium goal, to give the Mustangs the go-ahead and win.
Next week’s game was more of what the division standings would lead viewers to imagine would happen. The Mustangs, back at home against the Chase Heat, opened the scoring first with a Pocock goal. The Heat had a surprising short-handed goal to tie it, then JP Desabrais answered back, and the Mustangs stampeded their opponent into the ground with tight passes and water-like flowing skating to a 6 to 2 victory.
Matthew Hufty, Cash Sellars, and Josh Gendron each scored in the second period and each picked up their second goals of the campaign, respectively.
Desabrais would pick up his twelfth of the season on a power play in the third period, which also saw Kaelen Swanson and Blake Collison get their eleventh assists each.
Looking at how the Mustangs line up in the Doug Birks Division, they are sitting 6-2-1-1 with 14 points. Keeping the race close with Kamloops, who are just ahead in the division with 17 points.
Quesnel River Rush:
The River Rush finished their road trip with one win out of three, which could have been two wins.
In Kelowna, Lynden Gorman was the Big Show, scoring all four of Quesnel’s goals to give the team a 4 to 3 dub over the Chiefs.
Deegen Bert picked up his eleventh assist on Gorman’s first goal. Isaiah Bagri got his fifth assist, and Jimmy Proulx his second on the second goal. Bagri got his sixth assist on Gorman’s third, and Gavyn Schaufele scooped his fourth of the year on Gorman’s final goal.
Saturday, Oct. 18’s game against Osoyoos was a bit more back-and-forth than expected. Osoyoos got the upper hand after a scoreless overtime, winning 5 to 4 in a shootout.
The Rush and Coyotes played an aggressive game and traded goal for goal the entire night, and both were even on penalty minutes.
Dawson Ernst scored twice in the first period for the Rush. Then Brenden Kindlein scored in the second, and Isaiah Bagri scored in the fourth to send the game to OT.
Whenever Quesnel and Kamloops face each other, Kamloops seems to have Quesnel’s number and their kryptonite—winning 5 to 1 in a fairly one sided game, that saw Kamloops get eight power plays to Quesnel’s three.
Kamloops scored all five of their goals before Quesnel’s Lynden Gorman scored the sole goal for the River Rush, his eleventh of the year.
The Following week, on Oct. 25, the Rush were back at home against Chase, and won 5 to 1.
The Rush were back to their normal form, taking an early 3 to nothing lead. With Gage Parrell, Gavyn Schaufele, and Brendan Kindlein all scoring in the first period.
A scoreless second saw the return of the ‘Rush 10’ at the end of the period and beginning of the third, when Chase scored their sole goal of the contest. Ian George, and Lynden Gorman would score again at the end of the period to send the game away.
After the last two weeks, the Rush are sitting at 6-6-0-1, and tenth overall in the KIJHL with 13 points. Just behind Williams Lake, overall, and in their division.
100 Mile House Wranglers:
The Wranglers had only one game in Week 5, which they lost 3 to 2 in a shootout against the Kimberley Dynamiters on Oct. 17.
Ethan Hofstrand and Nash Hilworth scored for 100 Mile, and picked up their first goals of the season.
Week 6 brought forth a tough three-game road trip for the Wranglers, in which they battled against Castlegar, Grand Forks, and Princeton. While losing all three games, only one game was lost in regulation; the others, the Wranglers pushed into OT to at least get a single point.
100 Mile lost 5 to 4 in overtime against Castlegar Rebels on Oct. 24.
The Wrangler’s Diego Cazac scored twice, once in the first and again in the second. Ethan Davey and Brandon Burns scored in the third period, which gave the Wranglers a 3 to 1 lead, before Castlegar answered back. Sending the game to overtime, where the Rebels took the game winner.
The Wranglers looked more to their actual form against the Grand Forks Bruins on Oct. 25, and the Princeton Posse on Oct. 26.
While the games did net two losses for 100 Mile, scooping a single point in a 4 to 3 overtime loss against Grand Forks, the Wranglers played clean and even games against two Top 10 KIJHL teams.
Even though 100 Mile lost 2 – nil against the Posse, it was a fairly back-and-forth, even game, with the Wranglers just barely getting outshot 35 to 30 by Princeton.
Against the Bruins, Jaden Rusznak scored twice in the first two periods, and Ethan Davey scored 100 Mile’s third goal to send it into overtime.
Up Next:
Tonight, all three teams are in action.
Williams Lake and 100 Mile have the first Cariboo Rivalry match-up since the Lake City’s game against Quesnel in Week 1. The game is in Williams Lake at the Cariboo Memorial Recreation Complex, and starts at 7 p.m.
Quesnel is at home against the Fernie Ghostriders on Hallow’s Eve, in the West Fraser Centre, starting at 7 p.m.
The Rush have a home stand this weekend, with back-to-back games against Kamloops on Saturday and Sunday.
Williams Lake hosts Fernie on Saturday, and then 100 Mile has their turn hosting the Ghostriders on Sunday.
Something going on in the Cariboo you think people should know about?
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