The Prince Rupert Rampage improved their record to 2-0-0 with an emphatic 5-0 win during a historic night in Kitimat on Saturday, Oct. 4.
Before the game, the Kitimat Ice Demons announced that goaltender Kayla Thompson would be the first female goaltender to play in a CIHL game.
The game got off to a quick start with the Rampage scoring just 3:46 into the first period. Judd Repole passed the puck to Tyler Ostrom who sent a no-look pass behind his back to Tyler Halliday who fired it past the glove of Thompson, giving the Rampage the 1-0 lead. A few minutes later, Ice Demons defenceman Wil DeJong interfered with a Rampage forward by making head contact earning him two minor penalties giving the Rampage a four-minute power play. DeJong didn’t agree with the call and voiced his disapproval to the referee, earning him a 10-minute misconduct for unsportsmanlike conduct.
The Ice Demons killed off the first three minutes of the penalty and with one minute to go, the Ice Demons intercepted a pass and tried to clear the puck, however a Rampage defender held the line and after a tick-tac-toe passing sequence and a scramble in the crease, Rampage forward Hunter Johnson put the puck in the net for his third goal of the season, extending the Rampage lead to 2-0. Both teams got a few scoring chances before the end of the period.
In the second period, both teams turned up the physicality leading to five roughing calls in the period. The first two roughing calls were coincidental penalties so no power play was awarded. At the 5:45 mark of the period, Rampage forward Drew Fudger got involved in a post-whistle shoving match earning him the sole penalty sending Kitimat to the power play. Despite the Ice Demons being on the power play, it was the Rampage who got the best look earning a break away opportunity that was turned aside by Cayla Thompson. The Rampage would kill off the remainder of the penalty.
With under 13 minutes to play, Kitimat defenceman Jake Robinson was charged with a tripping call sending the Rampage back to the power play. The Rampage put the pressure on but in the end the Ice Demons managed to kill the penalty. A few minutes later, a holding call to Robinson led to a shoving match and coincidental roughing calls were issued, putting the Rampage back on the power play. The Ice Demons would kill off the penalty, giving the team hope heading into the third.
It only took the Rampage 14 seconds into the third period to put their third of the game past Thompson. Rampage forward Jean-Luc Rendell-Fournier found the puck loose in the crease and snuck it past Thompson to make it a 3-0 game.
A few minutes later, a Judd Repole shot was kicked out by Thompson, but Reid Lindsay found the loose puck and shot it past Thompson to make it 4-0 for the Rampage. A few more penalties were called, including another unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against DeJong. With five minutes left in the game, Kory Movold capped off an offensive masterclass by the Rampage with his second goal of the season to make it 5-0, which would be the final score.
Despite the Rampage putting five goals past Thompson, she made some excellent saves and remained calm and poised keeping the Ice Demons in the game. Thompson was honoured as the game’s first star in the losing effort as she inspired the next generation of female hockey players and paved the way for women in the CIHL.
Having Thompson as the first female goaltender in league history was amazing, said Rampage head coach Roger Atchison.
“I wasn’t really paying attention to the social media, but all the players were talking about it. Once I was aware of it, I thought it was awesome. She played really well and it was great to see.”
A big part of the Rampage’s win was staying out of the penalty box, said Atchison.
“Staying out of the box is key when you’re playing on the road. It’s hard when you’re shorthanded in this league because other teams usually capitalize. So we tried to play a little more of a disciplined game and it worked out.”
The Rampage will be back in action Oct. 18, when they travel to Smithers to take on the Steelheads.
