Hey, SJHL - northern Manitoba sends its regards. Northern players combined for 10 points and Carter Anderson put four in the net during an 8-4 win over Yorkton Friday night.
On Teddy Bear Toss night, the Bombers took the lead just seven minutes in. Anderson scored the goal that started the madness - "...and here come the teddy bears!"
Anderson fired in a one-timer from his office at the faceoff dot on a two-man advantage that started a storm of stuffies, a pummelling of plushies, a torrent of toys, a kaleidoscope of cuddles over the Whitney Forum glass. Each stuffed animal was gathered up by the Bombers and members of the Flin Flon Skating Club and Flin Flon Minor Hockey and will be donated to the Flin Flon Aboriginal Friendship Centre's annual gift program.
Once the ice was cleaned and play continued, Yorkton tied the game back up midway through the frame, then took a lead after a pair of big defensive lapses. First, Dalton Mayes found open ice in the Bomber zone and set up Jye Zawatzky wide open at the side of the net, beating Kenny Marquart. Yorkton would then take the lead, with Clay Sleeva getting open at the side of the net and getting it past Marquart.
The Bombers dug the hole deeper late in the period, going down to 5-on-3 for almost a full two minutes, but the penalties were both killed off. Soon after, Anderson got the Bombers tied up after a superb individual effort, winning the faceoff, passing it to himself, dangling out a pair of defenders and Yorkton goalie Blake Sittler and finding paydirt with a backhand. Flin Flon would survive the scare and enter the second period tied at two.
The tie wouldn't last long - the Bombers' captain made sure of that. It took Justin Lies 12 seconds to win the draw, give support to help force a turnover, get open for a pass and dangle out Sittler, making it 3-2 Flin Flon.
The cavalcade continued five minutes later, despite going a man down - Anthony Piccininno, back in the lineup after missing some games due to injury, got his first goal since the SJHL showcase, blazing into the zone, beating the defender to the outside and throwing it past Sittler short-side. Yorkton would bring the game within one with a slick passing play after Adam McNutt went for a big hit and missed, leading Jaron Desnoyers to make it 4-3 - how the game would stand after 40 minutes.
All hell broke loose in the third period for the Bombers offensively. It started with Anderson clinching the hat-trick with another powerplay marker, sending items onto the ice for the second time of the night - this time, hats. Barely 30 seconds later, Piccininno extended the lead before the last goal had even gone out on the Whitney Forum PA, going bar-down on Sittler. The floodgates were wide open.
The Bombers made it a touchdown and extra point when Jacob Vockler fed Alexi Sylvestre in the slot and he fired a quick one through the netminder, giving Sittler the sympathy pull and the Bombers a 7-3 lead. Sleeva would score his second of the game for Yorkton, stopping the bleeding for a short time, but Anderson delivered the coup de grace on a late powerplay. The forward got his fourth goal of the night with another quick wrister, doing so with both his parents and Bomber superfan Jonny Doogs in the crowd.
Marquart got the W for the Bombers in a 28 save performance. Yorkton's 'tenders combined for 37 saves - Sittler making 27 and backup Adam Kelly making 10.
Anderson ended the night with five points, adding an assist to his boatload of goals. Lies added three assists for four total points, while The Pas' Ashton Paul had an assist.
The Bombers now sit six points clear of Battlefords for the top spot in the league, despite the Stars now having played three more games. Flin Flon now sports a record of 22-1-2-0 and 46 of a possible 50 points. Lies is leading the SJHL scoring races with 22 goals and 45 points, both in 24 games.
The Bombers will face off against the Humboldt Broncos at the Whitney Forum Saturday night.
