It was not the start that the Waywayseecappo Wolverines were looking for in the 2025 portion of their schedule, losing 6-2 to the Swan Valley Stampeders.
Before anyone could blink, Waywayseecappo was trailing big and was never able to get themselves back into the hockey game.
The Stampeders got out to a big early lead, when Jake Giacobbo, Ben Groome and Will Brown all scored in the first seven minutes of the game. The goals were scored in the first 10 shots for the Stamps.
The Wolverines got within two when Mikey Thomas banged in rebound to make it 3-1.
But the Stampeders made it 4-1 when Gavin Bartha took a shot from the point and was able to make it through.
The Wolverines once again made it a two goal game when Maddox Mason scored with 1:39 left to go in the first period.
The Stampeders continued the onslaught in the second period when Trace Langan and Ben Groome found the back of the net to make it 6-2 after two periods of play. Wolverines goaltender Jase Wareham was pulled after the sixth goal.
In the third, there were no goals, but play got a little bit chippy, with a fight and 44 penalty minutes between the two teams.
Elias Giaccari-Dimitriou stopped 31 shots for the win, while Wareham stopped 15 in the loss. Bercier in relief stopped all 11 shots he saw.
It wasn’t a busy night on special teams, with the Stampeders scoring on one of their three chances in the game. The Wolverines only had one powerplay chance, and it happened near the end of the game, and weren’t able to score.
The two teams will battle on Saturday night in Waywayseecappo for a rematch.