WESTLOCK – The Westlock Senior Warriors couldn’t overcome a disastrous four-goal, first period implosion on their way to a 7-3 Saturday-night spanking at the hands of the Morinville Kings.
While the Dec. 10 road loss dropped the club to 6-3-0-1 in the North Central Hockey League, they still sit in third overall behind the league-leading 9-0-0-1 Lacombe Generals and the second place Camrose Crunch, who stand at 8-1-0-1, and remain a point ahead of the fourth-place Kings, who sport a record of 6-4-1-0.
Captain Mike Ivey had no answers for the club’s slow start, but said they did manage to get the game to 5-3 through 40 minutes on a late first-period powerplay marker from himself, coupled with second-period goals from Nathan Brown and Kyle Dronyk. In the third period, the Warriors continued to push back, but had dug the hole too deep and Morinville struck for two more to make the final 7-3.
“The difference was the first period. A four-goal lead was tough to give up and we wish we could have come out of the gate stronger,” said Ivey. “I mean we got it to 5-3 and things were looking a little bit better and we got them on their heels, but we just needed one more to fully get back in the game and we just couldn’t buy one.
“This was a game we could have won, but we just need to find a way to beat these teams.”
The club has one more game before the Christmas break and will host Camrose at the Rotary Spirit Centre (RSC) Dec. 17 with puck drop slated for 8 p.m. Ivey knows it will be a tough test, although they have had success against the Crunch, falling in the shootout 8-7 back on Nov. 12 in Camrose. As for the remainder of the year, Ivey noted that with the Fort Saskatchewan Chiefs out of the league, the top two teams at the end of the regular season will receive first-round playoff byes, with the next four clubs being paired off into two, best-of-five series, while the seventh-place team will be eliminated.
“Camrose is a very good team, they can score. But we’re looking forward to it,” Ivey added.
Honouring a fallen Warrior
The Warriors will dedicate the rest of their season to a former teammate and NCHL MVP Nicholas Bourgeois, 31, who “tragically” passed away Dec. 5 following an accident.
Bourgeois, who hailed from Barrhead, played parts of six seasons in the NCHL with the Whitecourt Wild (2014-2016), the Kings (2017) and the Warriors (2018-2019) — during his first season with Whitecourt he was voted to the NCHL’s First All Star Team and named the league's Most Valuable Player.
The Warriors’ Facebook page paid tribute to Bourgeois saying he was “a force on the ice” and “a fierce competitor” who was also just a “super fun guy to be around.”
Ivey, noting Bourgeois was one of the best ever to wear a Warriors jersey, said Sunday they were devastated by the news and will be honouring him for the remainder of the campaign by adding a No. 26 sticker with the word “Nic” to their helmets. They also plan a minute of silence at the start of the Dec. 17 home game and hope to have Bourgeois’ family in attendance at their first home game of 2023 on Jan. 7 versus Devon to officially pay tribute to him.
“It was a tough one to hear about for sure. We loved having Nic on the team, he was a good friend to a lot of us and we’re feeling pretty bad for his family,” said Ivey.
“He was a great guy who meant a lot to us for sure and he’ll definitely be missed.”
A GoFundMe has been set up for his widow, Vanessa, and their two young children, Nova, who celebrated her fourth birthday only one day before her father passed away, and Stella, who is 18 months old. The page notes Bourgeois was “one of those people that never made an enemy” and was “exuberant, joked, laughed and lived his life to the fullest.” As of Dec. 11, a staggering $76,320 has been raised.
“It just shows how much he was loved,” Ivey added.
