Goals, hits, scraps and a big win - in a game honouring a legend now gone, the Bombers gave fans a night to remember Friday, beating the Klippers 8-2.
The Bombers extended their win streak to nine games with another vulgar display of power on home ice, scoring four times in the second period to clinch the win.
The night started off with a tribute to former Bomber legend and long-time NHLer Gerry Hart. Hart, whose number 4 sweater is one of six hanging from the Whitney Forum's rafters, died over the summer, aged 75. With the ghosts of the Forum welcoming another to their ranks, the Bombers played hard from start to finish, opening the scoring less than five minutes in. Dawson Karol got his third of the year by plugging the puck past Kindersley's Logan Falk.
Later in the frame, Carter Anderson continued his hot recent form by scoring his third goal in three games, popping a backhand over Falk and in to make it 2-0 heading into the second.
Kindersley fought back to start the second, getting a powerplay and a goal from Easton Inglis, but the Bombers pushed on by scoring four straight goals through the remainder of the period. Brock Mueller was Johnny on the spot for a puck that jumped into the slot near Falk, then Alexi Sylvestre opened the floodgates - a gorgeous back toe drag by Jacob Vockler and a short pass to the side of the net set Sylvestre up with a yawning cage.
About a minute later, the Bombers caught the Klippers on a poorly-timed line change, forcing a turnover and a two-on-none with Liam Bridger and Noah Houle. Bridger got a wide open net and bulged the twine. Finally, with few seconds left on the clock, Cole Tanchuk hammered home a powerplay point shot top corner to send the Bombers into the third up 6-1.
The fun began in earnest in the third. Shortly after the period began, Anderson got his second of the game to give Flin Flon the touchdown and extra point, and while Zakery Anderson got the Klippers another goal, Mueller got his second of the night to end the scoring and give the Bombers their 8-2 result.
Midway through the third, a fracas in the Klippers zone started when a Bomber player almost put in goal number nine behind a sprawling Falk. The puck went in and was promptly waved off, sparking a fight in the corner, followed by another away from the play and a third still almost breaking out on the side boards. Finally, with almost everybody else finding a dance partner, the goalies got involved. Bomber goalie Kenny Marquart squared up with Falk and got an emphatic win, knocking the visiting goalie to the ground with one punch and playing to an 884-strong Forum crowd on his way off the ice.
When the dust settled, Falk, Cobe Perlinger and Alex Mack would be tossed from the Klippers, while Marquart and Joey Lies would be ejected from the Bombers following a second round of fights not long after.
Marquart got the credit for the win, making 24 saves - Harmon Laser-Hume, playing the last half of the third period, stopped all six shots he faced. In the Kindersley net, Falk stopped 32 shots, while backup Cody Jaman made six saves on six shots late.
The Bombers moved to 10-0-1-0 on the season in the win and are the first SJHL team to break 20 points this year, leading the league with 21 points.
The two teams square off for a second game at the Forum Saturday night.
