Flin Flon went into the holiday break with some jingle bell rock Saturday night, beating La Ronge 7-5 in their last game of 2024.
It was chaotic and sloppy at times, both physical and fast, ultimately engaging and entertaining hockey - much to the glee of over 800 fans at the Whitney Forum. The Bombers earned points in their 14th straight game, picking up 27 of a possible 28 points in that time.
Flin Flon owned possession early, but La Ronge got more shots to start, with Kenny Marquart standing tall in the Bomber net. The Bombers would break the deadlock first, owing much to La Ronge's biggest Achilles heel - player discipline.
When La Ronge goalie Graham Brown had a hard time freezing a puck, Keefe Gruener took a stab at the puck while it was still loose. La Ronge's Jacob Cossette took exception, pulling Gruener aside and feeding him a cross-check - Cossette took the only penalty on the play and putting Flin Flon up. Leighton Carruthers made the visitors pay, pumping home a one-timer and getting the Bombers the lead.
The Bombers had their own setbacks. First came an injury to defender Pierce Yakimchuk, who went down in the corner and would later leave the game, pulling the Bombers back to five D. Next up was a parade to the penalty box through the later part of the first, including Ryder Ringor taking a penalty and then taking another one right after - he tried to play the puck before fully getting out of the box, getting an interference from the bench penalty and spending another two minutes in the sin-bin.
Marquart took a penalty of his own later in the frame, taking a hack after a whistle by Zane Normand and getting back at the perp himself following the whistle, setting off a fracas behind his net - he got two minutes for his trouble, served by teammate Evin Bossel.
With the teams playing 4-on-4 following the scuffle, the Bombers struck again. Carruthers scored his second, coming in on a 2-on-2 and beating Brown clean with a wrister - then, while that goal was still being announced over the rink's PA system, Koen Senft got on the board himself, ending the first with a 3-0 goal.
Flin Flon was in the driver's seat after 20 minutes. They would almost crash the game in the second.
Normand got the Ice Wolves on the board on a powerplay early in the second, banging in a rebound in close - Marquart argued goalie interference but the goal would stand. Dylan Nazareth scored on another powerplay from a second Bomber penalty, getting a shot in close and solving Marquart.
Ryder Dembo, who took a late penalty that sunk La Ronge in their game Friday night, came back to tie it up with a third goal six minutes into the second, coming in unmarked and scoring on a rebound. The Ice Wolves tied the game up before the Bombers could manage anything more than a few shots on net.
La Ronge's discipline issues gave the Bombers a chance to get back in it - Luke Scheck nailed Ryder Mucha into the boards and took a penalty, opening the door for Ringor to feed Gruener, who smoked a shot home on a wide-open net.
That was just the boost the Bombers needed. Soon after, Anthony Piccininno came in on another rush with Carruthers and kept the puck, firing and scoring, making it 5-3 Bombers. Flin Flon took that two-goal lead into the third.
The Bombers' pressure continued in the early third, with Evin Bossel, making his return to the lineup after almost a month away from injury, sprung in on a break and scoring from the hash mark to extend the lead. That goal would come in handy, as the Ice Wolves fought hard to get back into contention.
Less than two minutes after Bossel scored, the Ice Wolves came back down and caught Marquart out of position, with Vinny Di Iulio banging the puck home. The officials did not initially signal a goal, nor did the goal judge, but the puck can be seen going into the Bomber net on replay - the Ice Wolves immediately celebrated the goal and did a fly-by of their bench. The Whitney Forum faithful serenaded the officials with "ref, you suck" chants, but the stripes got the call right - goal, La Ronge.
The Ice Wolves cut the lead to one moments later, thanks to a big mistake by Marquart. The goalie forgot the cardinal rule - if you're a goaltender, tend the goal - and got caught behind his own net trying to play a puck in a crowd of players. By the time he got back in the crease, Cole Thomas fired it into the empty net, making it 6-5.
The Bombers were on the verge of blowing their second three-goal lead of the night, but held on, getting a much-needed marker halfway through the period through more undisciplined La Ronge play. Senft got his second goal and fourth point of the game, working on a powerplay near the La Ronge goal and getting just enough space to go roof on Brown, making it 7-5.
The rest of the game was the Bombers trying to hang on - Reid Arberry brought the crowd to their feet by dropping the mitts with La Ronge's Tyson Matthews. Despite giving up four inches and more than 20 pounds to Matthews, Arberry got the lion's share of punches and the takedown in the bout, hitting the crowd with the "are you not entertained?" pose on his way to the Bomber room. Later in the period, with Brown ready to go to the Ice Wolves' bench for an extra attacker, the goalie got halfway to the bench before the puck squirted loose into the La Ronge zone - he hustled back to the net to stop a possible shot, but an Ice Wolf had already left the bench, giving the visitors a too-many-men call at the worst possible time.
With a man down and Brown on the bench, Marquart took his shot at history, trying to become the first goalie in the Bombers' near-century-long history to score a goal - he took a stab from near the net, but La Ronge's Riley Silzer played party pooper, sticking the shot down to the ice. Marquart tried a second time in the final moments but a Bomber penalty kiboshed his shot - Cole Tanchuk would eventually fire it down and into the empty net, but it landed in the net after the final horn.
Marquart got the win with a 33-save performance, while Brown, playing his second game in as many nights, made 32 saves. Luke Lepper had four assists on the night, while Carruthers finished with two goals and two assists - both Ringor and Senft also had three points apiece. Five of the Bombers' seven goals came either on the powerplay or at 4-on-4.
The Bombers will enter 2025 in sole possession of second place in the SJHL, holding 40 points in 30 games played and a 19-9-2-0 record. First-place Melfort, who have won their last 15 games, have 52 points, while Yorkton, Weyburn and Battlefords trail the Bombers with 37, 36 and 35 points respectively.
The Bombers' next game won't be until Jan. 4, a rematch with the Ice Wolves in La Ronge. The teams will then meet in Flin Flon again the next night.
