Postgame: Nitehawks - 6 Steam - 5

I actually contemplated NOT writing this tonight as I dont have a whole lot of positive to comment on, but decided I need to get it over with and out of my system. For those of you that read and follow regularly, you will know my standpoint on the following already. Therefore this wont come as too much of a surprise. Please note: The follow statements are wholly my own and do not in any respect reflect the opinion of the Beaver Valley organization!

If the last game was the best I had seen, this was inexplicably the worst! I have seen bad officiating in my very short tenure on the KIJHL scene and come to regard this as a norm around the league and have been validated on many occasions with fans and coaches alike. This game took the cake and then ate it in front of everyone. While the penalty that WERE called were clearly penalties, it was what was allowed to go on long before the third rolled around, that set the tone. Many, many non-calls(both sides, but mainly on BV) were witnessed by the crowd which got the animosity started in the stands. If anyone has ever been to an emotional game, you will know that fan mood can effect player mood, especially if its frustrated and somewhat negative. This is what happened tonight and while BV managed to hold their composure, Summerland did not. This loss of composure led to several 10 minute misconducts for 'beaking' at the refs during breaks in play. The thing that made the whole fiasco more important was the fact that it was a CLOSE game! If it had have been a blow-out, then things could have been different. Enough....on to the game story....

Like I said, it was the worst game i have seen. And this time not from an officiating standpoint, but a gameplay one. BV was blatantly being outplayed by Summerland. I figured it was going to be just the first period jitters after a long drive, but it was game-long. The Steam deserved to win this game, hands down, but BV mustered just enough talent, combined with a shortened Summerland bench due to misconducts, to pull off the win.

The power play actually was a huge part of this game with BV going 4-for-11 and SS 3-for-6. 16-yr old phenom Craig Martin got things going with a ppg with just under 7 mins to go in the 1st. Not to be outdone, Gerry Hol pots 2 ppg's with under 4 mins left to give Summerland the 2-1 lead after one.

Nick Perez got one of the few regular strength goals at 5:01 of the 2nd to pull BV even at 2 and Tyler Collins got a ppg a minute and a half later to put the Nitehawks ahead. Ryan MacMurchy at 9:05 on the pp and Doug Chadwick at 17:39 regained the Steams lead before we are through 2.

Arie Postmus took just 18 seconds of the 3rd to bring BV back square with Summerland where it stayed until the penalty fiasco reared its ugly head and BV netted 2 ppgs from Derochie and Baines within a 1:10 span just past the midpoint of the period. Josh Spence, thankfully, scored 2 minutes later which defused an ugly fan situation in which I was in the center of (could have been ugly). Summerland pushed hard the last few minutes but were unable to get the puck to the net for the tying goal and BV held on for the win.

Game Stars:

BV - Craig Martin 1G 4A
SS - Gerry Hol 2G 1A
BV - Tyler Collins 1G 1A

The win aside, there was not many positives in this game. I had brought a close family member with me tonight who resides in Kelowna. I often speak to her about how well the Nitehawks are doing and how proud I am of the accomplishments they achieve on a nightly basis. While they managed to hold their composure at the end of the game and keep out of the box, they did not play like the team that hold court on any given night and deem their opponents unworthy.

I had the opportunity to speak with BV Head Coach Terry Jones after the game, and when asked about the officiating, he commented:" It was interesting! They(Summerland) deserved to win this game. I feel they outplayed us but in the end, they lost their composure , we didnt, and that had a big impact on the outcome."

Out of the line-up for tonights game, Dallas Calvin will be returning for tomorrows game against the Kelowna Chiefs in Kelowna.