Timbermen Play Role of Spoiler

July 27, 2009

It was a hot one on July 25th when your Nanaimo Timbermen hosted the Maple Ridge Burrards. The heat was a major factor during this game as it seemed that Maple Ridge had a hard time adjusting to our arena heat and Nanaimo took advantage of that, scoring early and often. Scott Ranger opened up the scoring only a minute and forty seconds into the game, then Shane Pederson and call-up Cody Bremner scored only minutes apart. By the five minute mark of the first period, Nanaimo jumped off to a 3-0 lead. With a couple great saves from Matt King, Nanaimo went into the dressing room with a 4-0 lead. Scott Ranger led the way with 2 goals and an assist in the first.

Maple Ridge ended the shut out streak with only 37 seconds in the second period, but that couldn't get Nanaimo off their game as they answered right back with a goal coming from Ranger to complete the hat-trick. Pederson extended the lead from a perfect screen shot and Nanaimo didn't stop there. Ranger continued his impressive game by getting his fourth goal of the game and Kaleb Toth found the back of the net late in the period to give the Timbermen an 8-1 lead at the end of the second.

With Maple Ridge's play-off hopes slipping away they had to do something drastic, and for the first 13 minutes of the final period it seemed that a come back was about to happened. With the Burrards scoring 5 un-answered goals, what looked like an easy victory for the Timbermen turned out to be a nail biter before Nanaimo snapped the Burrards come-back and ruined their play-off hopes at the same time. With three more goals, one from Ryan Campbell and two from Toth, Nanaimo finished the hot afternoon on an 11-6 victory. All three stars of the game were given to the Timbermen, going to Simon Stocks, Shane Pederson, and Scott Ranger, who got the first star with a very impressive night totaling four goals and three assists.

The T-men play next on Wednesday, July 29th, in Langley against the Thunder. The last home game or the Timbermen is this Saturday, August 1st, against the Victoria Shamrocks. Come out and show your support for your home team in their final game of the 2009 season. Game time is 7:00 at Frank Crane Arena.