The Kimberley Dynamiters finished the first half of the season this past Friday, December 20 with a 5-2 victory over arch-rival Fernie Ghostriders.
Keegan McDowell, newly returned to the team, started off the scoring in the first with assists from Brock Palmer and Beau Larson.
Fernie tied it up before the end of the period, with a goal from Connor Nolan.
In the second, it was Erik Delaire, from McDowell and Palmer putting Kimberley ahead again. Fernie tied it again with a goal from Dylan Defosse, but that would be it for scoring for the Ghostriders.
Palmer notched a goal at 4:20 of the second, from Cam Russell, and then it was Jed Butler, from Jett Saharchuk and Cam Reid at 3:15 of the second.
Butler got his second of the night from Reid and Russell, for the 5-2 win. He was named the home star of the game.
Head Coach and General Manager Derek Stuart thought that it was an outstanding effort from the team, after a less than impressive game earlier in the week.
“The whole game was good,” he said. “The boys don’t usually let themselves have two bad games in a row.”
The Nitros finish the first half of the season with a 27 and 3 record and a league-leading 55 points, ten points ahead of the next two teams, Kelowna Chiefs and Revelstoke Grizzlies.
“Our overall record is better than we might have anticiapted,” he said. “The team is playing the way we want them to be heading into the second half of the season.”
Last week, the Dynamiters acquired Jack Verstraete, from Calgary.
“Jack is a 20-year old, right winger, with lots of junior experience,” Stuart said. “Unfortunately we have lost Ryna Bennett for season-ending shoulder surgery.”
Play resumes on December 27 when the Dynamiters travel to Fernie, and then Fernie visits Kimberley on the 28th for the Winter Classic.