The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
For this first time this season, the Flin Flon Bombers walked away with two wins in a double header weekend. The Bombers started off last Friday's game the same as any other game Ð they were unable to get their socks up in the first period. But, like the ending to many of their stories, the Bombers pulled through and showed the Kindersley Klippers who was boss with a 5-3 win. The Klippers started things off and had a 2-0 lead at one point. Bombers head coach and GM Mike Reagan says the team being down in the first period has a lot to do with players on the ice doing other people's jobs. "The defence is worried about playing offense, so the first two goals were odd-man rushes," he says. Devin Mitzner was able to step up and get the Bombers' first goal past Klippers goalie Josh Thorimbert. Mitzner has been a key player for the Bombers as he has been able to find the back of the net in times of need. "We often talk about how it's not the number (of goals a player scores), it's that (they) can capitalize on the opportunities," says Reagan. Mitzner was able to capitalize on the opportunity when he saw it and earned the team's first goal Ð with help from Andrew Johnston and Alex Lamontagne. Reagan says each game is different as some have a high number of power plays, which often comes with more opportunities, but there are other games when a team has to find the opportunities to take the lead. Friday night, the team was able to earn two of six goals on the power play. The game helped the Bombers turn a corner, said the coach. Although there were other teams playing that night, the Bombers were sent to first place in the Bauer Conference. Saturday night, the Bombers were able to take another two points from the Klippers as they shut out the team 2-0. Matt Weninger stood strong for the Bombers as he knocked away 37 shots from the Klippers. Mitzner was able to open fire again Saturday night as he got the ball rolling. With help from Dykstra and goalie Weninger, the Bombers had lost their bad start story. The team's second goal came from captain Michael Young, with help from Johnston and Ben Bitz. Friday's Game The Klippers, who already had one goal under their belts, earned a second goal in the first period to widen the gap to 2-0. Mitzner came in and earned the team's first goal of the night just 19 seconds after the Klippers. Going into the second period, Johnston tied things up with a power play goal, assisted by Lamontagne and Mitzner. With things tied at 2-2, the Klippers broke the tie with their third, and final, goal of the night. The third period came as a scoring frenzy for the Bombers as Dougie McLeod with help from Tanner Korchinski and Scott Brkich, David Dykstra with help from McLeod, and Dominic Martel, with help from Michael Young and David Roper were able to light the lantern. The Aftermath Going into the weekend, Reagan knew the team needed two wins. "The Whitney Forum is a tough place to play," he says, noting the team was going to use the home ice to their advantage. "This puts us in a position to do that," he said. For the next night, Reagan said the team was going to have to be better prepared to start the game if they were going to get that win they needed. Looking at the standings, the Bombers were in first, now tied with the Battleford North Stars. Reagan says while it may come to a shock to some, he knew the Stars were going to be a good team this year. "But it's still early in the season." Last year's biggest competitors were the Humboldt Broncos, but Reagan said the Bombers have other teams to worry about first.
