Stampeders still hot and still on top Winning is infectious. In most cases, something infectious is to be avoided; However for the now 8-0 Williams Lake Stampeders, this type of infection is just what the doctor ordered. It would be the visiting Hazelton Wolverines who would attempt to inoculate for the infection. Their attempt would be to no avail as the local Senior Men’s hockey team would take both ends of a weekend CIHL date by scores of 9-3 and 7-3. The growing fever the Stampeders continue to build saw not only several new talented hockey players joining the team for the weekend games, but nearly 600 happy fans passing the weekend turnstile to witness the fever for themselves. In other games the Kitimat Ice Demons spoiled the Omenica Ice’s home opener in Vanderhoof with an 8-4 win Saturday night, but dropped the second game of the double-header 7-6 in two of the fastest, hardest hitting games in the CIHL this year. In Terrace, the River Kings dropped a 6-3 decision to the Smothers Steelheads. In Saturdays game in Williams Lake, the high flying line of Francis Johnson, Grant Johnson and Wilfred Robbins would account for 7 of the 9 goals scored on the night and would combine for a total of 14 points. Grant Johnson had a 4 goal evening, while line-mate Francis Johnson tallied the 3 goal hat-trick. Wilfred Robbins would be the set-up man on this night recording 5 assists. Other Stampeder marksmen included Dan Huska who would open the scoring, and William Louie with his first goal of the season. The Hazelton Wolverines had a gun of their own as former Prince George Spruce King, Amedee Marshall notched all 3 goals for the visitors. Willie Sellers was outstanding in the Williams Lake net making some spectacular saves to record the win. Sunday’s game would again see the Johnson, Johnson, Robbins line account for much of the afternoons point total in recording 8 points and 3 goals. This time Wilfred Robbins would benefit from his line-mates in recording the hat-trick, as well as helping set-up 3 other goals on the afternoon. Robbins now has a total of 30 points on the season and leads the Central Interior Hockey League scoring race. Stamps defenseman, Ryan Fehler added 2 goals to his season total with Jared Kohlen and new-comer, Ian Gillespie rounding out the Stamps scoring. Hazelton marksmen included Stu Barnes who notched a pair of goals and Keegan Jack with the single. Once again Willie Sellars backstopped the win in bringing his season record to 7-0 with a 3.00 G.A.A. Next up for the Stampeders are two road games against the same Hazelton Wolverines on November 18 & 19. The next home date is against the divisional rivals, 100 Mile House Bears on November 25th. In Vanderhoof Saturday the Demons quickly recognized that the Omenica Ice will be a team to be reckoned with. The Sunday loss was only the Demons’ second of the young season and came with a new goaltender, Ben Wilmer, in the net. But the loss could not be attributed to Wilmer, who played well, as did Brett Williamson for the Ice. Both goalies were victimized by deflections in the Sunday game. The Saturday game was a well refereed affair in which Kitimat received 33 minutes in penalties and the Ice 37, with Korey Martins wearing the red armband. The play was hard hitting and fast skating, maybe the best game of the young CIHL season so far. Brett Vilness in the Kitimat net was outstanding in the second period when the Ice mounted a determined attack. However, Sunday’s tilt featured Jim Storey, a usually dependable and noisy referee, who managed to be looking elsewhere and missed the high stick that sent Derek Wakita to the hospital in Burns Lake, with a gashed lip and minus two teeth and later he also didn’t see the slash that sent Blaine Markwart for stitches to a smashed finger, as Demons were mounting their last ditch attack. Demons were already shorthanded, losing Mike Fisk in the second to a twisted knee and then buzz saw center Nick Markowsky, after a spirited fight with Omenica’s Tyler Walsh, 20 seconds after the Ice had taken its 7-6 lead. However Storey’s eyes were good enough to catch a “too many men on the ice” bench minor infraction he awarded to the Ice Demons, who were pressing for the tie, with less than two minutes to go. Demons’ coaches were furious because the bench doors in the unheated Fraser Lake “fridge” arena open into the zone below the blue lines at each end. They were sticky and hard to open all night, resulting a situation that could have allowed that call all night long and did bring several offside calls for both teams. This doesn’t take away an important and deserved victory for the Omenica Ice, who had a much better third period on Sunday than they did on Saturday; They found goals scarce in the third Saturday, when they were badly outplayed after running out of gas. But, they scored twice within a minute midway through the same period on Sunday, on point shots from Germaine Brigham. Both goals came on similar deflected blasts that changed direction on Wilmot. The first, tipped Geoff Morgan’s stick and went unerringly to the top corner. The second redirected off Craig Hewitson’s pants backside, as the Demons crowded to defend the crease. Wilmot was handcuffed on both shots. Until that point the Demons had played a little loosely defensively and were guilty of too many giveaways, as the Ice pressed very hard on the fore check. Saturday This was Demons’ best game of the season so far, as both teams were pumped for this first game. The Ice excited their fans with some fast skating and hard hitting, and they were rewarded with the first goal of the game at 7.28 of the period, an unassisted goal for Brent McIsaac, who was a pest in both games and made a bit of a nuisance of himself in the third period on Saturday, inviting several Demons to fight, but getting no takers as he tried to re-ignite the Ice after Demons scored twice in 30 seconds to stretch its lead to 7-4. (McIsaac was clearly still miffed about the fight in Houston with Rob Lafferty last season, which resulted in a broken leg for McIsaac as the two went down awkwardly.) Demons got that goal back quickly as Craig Hewitson scored his first of two on the night, tipping a Blaine Markwart rebound, up over a sprawled Williamson. Mike Fisk assisted. Demons then went ahead on a seeing eye shot from the point by Geoff Morgan, a young Kitimat midget player, who impressed with his speed and skill in both games and fitted in well on the shorthanded Demons defense corps. Gerard Baldo and Blaine Markwart got assists on the power play goal. The Hewitson-Markwart-Coleman line, which had a total of nine points Saturday, was buzzing throughout with Coleman and Hewitson each scoring twice, Markwart with three assists and Hewitson with two. Out-shot 21-11 in the first, the Ice showed up better in the second and Daniel Simoes got them right back in the game 40 seconds into the period, with a nice re- direct of a shot by captain David Boone. Ice tied the game 10 minutes later on a goal by Boone, with Dan Simoes returning the favor for the assist. Just when it looked as if the two teams might go to the locket rooms tied at 3-3 Daniel Mayer, assisted by Blaine Markwart, finished off a good rush by Demons to regain the lead for good. In the third Ian Coleman (Craig Hewitson), Craig Hewitson (Blaine Markwart) and Terry Whelan (Nick Markowsky and Daniel Mayer) put the game out of reach before Tyler Walsh got a consolation goal with five minutes left. Gerard Baldo nullified that goal with a bullet with just two minutes left, assisted by Mike Fisk. Daniel Simoes cross checked Blaine Markwart with two minutes left in the game, Hewitson responded and the two wrestled each other to the ice and were ejected for fighting, Hewitson getting two for his cross check, five for fighting and a game, while Simoes earned two for instigating and five and a game. Ice had about 600 fans at the game, who were not disappointed, despite the loss. Sunday It was c-c-cold in the smaller Fraser Lake arena on Sunday, but Demons started off at a torrid pace, with Daniel Mayer scoring the first of his two goals, just 36 seconds into the game, assisted by Markowsky and Terry Whelan. Big Jordan Campbell, who showed good stick handling skills all weekend, got that one back but Mayer restored the Kitimat lead two minutes later, again assisted by Markowsky. Campbell came back again, for his second of three on the night, assisted by Tyler Walsh. McIsaac put the Ice in front again, assisted by Brigham and Curtis Perren, but Blaine Markwart took a Hewitson pass from behind the net and went high on Williamson to knot the game at 3-3 as the teams came on to the ice for the second period. Demons out-shot the opposition 21-6 in the period and deserved better in the goals department. Williamson had a good period. In the second, Demons were juggling lines to accommodate the injuries to Fisk and Wakita and fell behind by two goals on scored by Boone (Campbell and Perren) and Campbell, his hat trick (from Dustin Friesen). But two goals from Blaine Markwart (Hewitson and Doug Wilson) and Hewitson (Markwart and Paul Plante) again sent to teams to the dressing rooms tied 5-5. But the Ice out shot the Demons 16 to nine, for the first time in the weekend. In the third, the shorthanded Demons showed a lot of spirit attacking hard and Williamson was bombarded, but kept kicking out Demons shots. Demons took the lead 6-5 on a Hewitson goal at 12.07, assisted by Jeff Baker and Brad Owen, but a Gerard Baldo hooking penalty opened the door for the Ice. Some what against the run of play, Ice got the two deflected goals by Brigham, the first on a power play. Demons came on hard looking for the equalizer but play was disrupted by the Walsh-Markowsky fight. Ice went into a defensive shell but the too many men bench penalty helped the Ice keep the Demons off the scoreboard until the final whistle. The same two teams will go at it again in Kitimat this coming weekend and fans can expect two highly entertaining and hard-fought games as Demons seek revenge and the Ice strive to gain points on the Williams Lake Stampeders, who are undefeated on top of their division, with 16 points from eight wins in a row.