Something had to give when a pair of southern foes with identical records collided Friday.
The Carstar Okotoks Bisons took control early and didn’t look back in dispatching the Medicine Hat Cubs 5-1 to break the first place tie in the Heritage Junior Hockey League’s South Division Friday night at the Murray Arena.
“It was definitely a big game and we just wanted to stay consistent with what we’ve been doing the last couple of games,” said Bison Trevor Bonham. “Just getting pucks in and lots of shots and staying consistent with that.”
The teams split the season series over the first two meetings with the road squad securing the two points. That trend would be bucked on Friday.
Bisons winger McCallum Bakken opened the scoring with a touch of fortune.
The hard-nosed forward fired in a bouncing shot from centre ice that evaded Cubs netminder Tyler Wakelam. Less than a minute later, Seamus Garagan buried his second goal in three games with a rebound tap in.
“It’s a big momentum shift for us and we love to take advantage of that and keep going,” said Bisons forward Zephyr Laplante. “They’re really structurally sound, they play their systems really well and I think we took advantage of them when we were moving pucks and getting to open ice and attacking a defender or two in certain situations and burying it when it counts.”
Laplante made it a three-goal game with a powerplay tally to highlight a suffocating defensive performance in the middle frame where the visitors were held to just one shot in the frame and six through 40 minutes.
“Our defence is super strong this year,” said Bonham. “We did a really good job getting in the way of shots, we had lots of blocks, our D-men were stepping up and making lots of plays at the blueline.”
In the third period, Easton Dean found the back of the net with a well-placed wrist shot on the rush and Laplante completed the scoring on a breakaway from a brilliant saucer pass from linemate Jake Snashall.
“Snashall put a nice bouncer and I sensed it was jumping over the d-man’s stick and just went for it,” added Laplante. “It was hope and a prayer and it found me.”
Laplante, a former Alberta Junior Hockey League player with the Calgary Canucks and Whitecourt Wolverines, has quickly found a home in Okotoks with 16 points in 12 games.
“The guys are just all so welcoming,” he said. “So it’s easy to get a feel and easy to have chemistry with the guys when they’re so open.”
In goal, Connor White made 15 saves to improve to 4-1 with Okotoks.
The Bisons (12-3-0) continue the weekend slate Saturday night in Strathmore for their second meeting of the season with the Agra Risk Wheatland Kings (11-3-0).
“We see it as a statement weekend to show the league that we deserve to be where we are and put it to some top-quality teams,” Laplante said.
Next weekend, Okotoks takes to the road for North Division clashes versus Airdrie and Rocky on Nov. 15-16.
For more information, go to okotoksbisons.com.
