The Bonnyville Jr. A Pontiacs finished their 2018 season on a high with back-to-back road wins against the Whitecourt Wolverines and the Grande Prairie Storm.
Heading into the Christmas break for the Alberta Jr. Hockey League (AJHL), the Pontiacs sit second in the north division and third overall in the league with 54 points.
“We’re in a position that we’ve never been in (before) in franchise history,” exclaimed head coach Rick Swan. “This is absolutely the best first half (of the season) that the Bonnyville Pontiacs have had in 28 years.”
Pontiacs defeat Wolverines
The Pontiacs had their sights set on the win when they hit the ice against the Wolverines on Tuesday, Dec. 18 with a 6-2 victory.
Pontiac Daine Dubois showed they weren’t messing around when he scored the first goal of the game less than two minutes into the first.
Trey Thomas followed suit to add to their lead.
Adding his name to the scoresheet was Bobby Young, bringing the Pontiacs score up 3-0.
The final goal of the first frame went to Garin Butler.
Swan described the start to the matchup as the best first period the team has had all year.
“For us to come out and play like we did, I was very proud as a coach.”
The second period went to Whitecourt after they capitalized on two separate powerplays to cut Bonnyville’s lead down 4-2.
Pontiac Jaden York wasn’t happy with their oponents catching up. He found the back of the net less than five minutes into the final period.
The last goal of the night would go to Lucas Reeves, who solidified the Pontiacs’ 6-2 victory.
Pontiacs bring the storm
Facing their last game of 2018, the Pontiacs wanted to carry on the momentum from their win earlier in the week.
In the end, they would defeat the Grande Prairie Storm 4-2 on Thursday, Dec. 19.
Swan noted the win was “a gritty, tough, physical, hard-fought” battle.
The Pontiacs quickly took the lead with Grayson Constable finding the back of the net on a powerplay less than five minutes in.
Grande Prairie answered with one of their own.
Cayden Kraus added another goal to the scoreboard for the Pontiacs in the second frame.
Thomas added his name to the scoresheet during the final 20 minutes of the game, bringing the Pontiacs’ lead to 3-1.
Grande Prairie tried to close the gap with another point, but Isaac Saniga wasn’t happy with that.
He got his first of the game at 12:31 in the final period, and solidified the win for the Pontiacs.
According to Swan, the Christmas break comes at a good time for the team.
“We know the second half (of the season) is going to be exciting, and this is the perfect time for our break to occur so our players can get a break, and excited to come back and really play our best hockey.”
