Another busy weekend for the Creston Valley Thunder Cats, and four points earned out of a possible six.
Friday, Nov. 10, found the ‘Cats way up north in the Shuswap, taking on the Chase Heat.
Max Chakrabarti opened the scoring at 9:42 of the second period, after a scoreless first at the Art Holding Memorial Arena. Kaleb Preymak with the Heat tied it up only 35 seconds later, but Stavros Koutsantonis put Creston back ahead with his third of the season — and his fourth of the season and second of the game seven minutes into the third period put it away for the Thunder Cats.
Friday’s game was an offensive shotfest, all right. Dario Cantini was busy in goal for Creston, stopping 42 of 43 shots, while at the other end Meyer Gaume stopped 35 of 38.
Then it was off the Revelstoke, and at Saturday game versus the Grizzlies.
The Thunder Cats matched the pace of their opponents on Saturday, even after Revelstoke’s power play goal in the first period to open the scoring. Koutsantonis answered to tie it up, Jeff Patola of Revelstoke made it 2-1 again, Nikolai Morrison tied it up again with his third goal of the season for Creston.
But then the Grizzlies broke loose in the second period, with four unanswered goals in a four-mite span, chasing Dario Cantini from the net for Jacob Burnside. Leo Senger scored with one second left in the second period, but the damage was done. Patola’s second goal of the game for Revelstoke was just the icing on the cake for the Grizzlies, and so the game ended, 7-3 Revelstoke.
Creston’s firepower was a little off on Saturday compared to the Grizzlies — 26 shots to Revelstoke’s 38.
However, the ‘Cats managed to shake off the defeat in time to face the Sicamous Eagles, Sunday, Nov. 12, and take to the ice with a renewed offensive mindset.
Nikolai Morrison put Creston on the board just 12 seconds in, and the teams spent the rest of the first period battling it out. Jacob Burnside was solid in net, stopping 13 Eagles’ shots. Creston killed off two penalties, Sicamous three.
In the second frame, the Eagles put in two unanswered power play goals five minutes apart for a 2-1 lead, short-lived as it proved to be, with Bobby Anselmo tying it up at the 15 minute mark with his first of the season. Creston outshot the Eagles in the second, 12-8.
But the third period remained scoreless — even though Sicamous got through to Burnside 12 times, they couldn’t get one past him. Creston got six shots on Eagles goalie Dylan Marshall.
And so to overtime, where Luke Chakrabarti, benefiting from a Sicamous holding penalty, got his 13th of the season, and the game winner.
So ends the Creston tour through the Shuswap, but their road life continues. The Thunder Cats are off to Kimberley next Saturday, on a short weekend, to play the Dynamiters on Friday, Nov. 18. The following weekend sees them in Golden on Friday, Nov. 24, and Fernie, Nov. 25. They aren’t back at the Johnny Bucyk Arena in Creston until Friday, December 1.
The Creston Valley Thunder Cats are now comfortably in fourth place in the Eddie Mountain Division of the KIJHL, ahead of the Golden Rockets and chasing the Fernie Ghostriders.
