By Sara Moulton
The Fernie Ghostriders tamed the downtrodden and undisciplined Revelstoke Grizzlies in a 7-0 shutout on Friday, January 10.
Difficulties both on and off the ice in Revelstoke this season have resulted in only seven wins out of 37 games for the Grizzlies, leaving Fernie the clear favourite ahead of last Friday’s match. Former Grizzlies player Matt MacDonald opened the scoring with a great goal for the home team in the first period, paving the way for a barrage by the Riders.
Joel Burgess shot the puck into the net halfway through the second period, followed soon afterwards by two in a row by crowd favourite Josh Teves. As the Grizzlies’ dirty play earned penalties and sacrificed players to misconduct calls, the strength of the Riders became increasingly apparent.
In the third period, Revelstoke thug Riley Creighton resorted to trying to injure the Ghostriders’ goalie Austin Wells, earning himself 10 minutes worth of penalties and three game misconducts in the process. Teves was sent off for defending his teammate, but the spirit of the Ghostriders appeared to only increase after the incident. A final onslaught saw three more goals in quick succession from Burgess, Aidan Geiger and Aaron Neufeld while the Grizzlies could only accumulate more game misconducts. Revelstoke’s antics reached a ridiculous low when Jeremy McGregor displayed the legacy of the team’s chaotic leadership by abusing one of the officials. With a near empty bench and little sign of any actual effort, the final score of 7-0 was an embarrassing defeat for the visitors in their first of two games against Fernie this season.
The reaction of the Ghostriders’ coaches after the game was less focused on their own resounding victory than the bewildering behaviour of the Grizzlies. With the Riders scheduled to play the Grizzlies in Revelstoke on Friday, January 17, head coach Dale Hladun was concerned about the prospect of more deliberate attempts to injure his players by a team that has no hope of reaching the playoffs.
“I was glad to get the points but was more worried about our health,” said Hladun. “[Revelstoke] doesn’t care anymore… I fear for our players in their next game.”
Watching from the sidelines while recovering from an injury, defenceman Cole Weber agreed with the views of his coaches.
“It makes me mad… it was dirty play, but you can’t really worry about a team like that. We only have to see them one more time and then we can forget about them.”
Here’s hoping for a safe and successful outcome during the Rider’s road trip on the weekend of January 17 to 19. The team will travel to Revelstoke, 100 Mile House and Kamloops over three consecutive days and will then play another road game in Creston before returning to the Fernie Memorial Arena the following weekend.
Don’t miss the next home match against the Columbia Valley Rockies on Saturday, January 25 at 7:30 pm.