DELTA, B.C. – The Battle of Boundary Bay picked up where it left off on Tuesday as the Delta Ice Hawks and White Rock Whalers renewed acquaintances. The two squads last squared off at the end of December at the Ladner Leisure Centre, a contest won by the Whalers in a 4-3 shootout result. Though their last battle was less than a fortnight ago, the new calendar year wipes the slate clean and refreshes the Tom Shaw Conference rivalry.
This time around, first blood was drawn by the Ice Hawks, as Mateo Sjoberg won an early face off and dished the puck to Danylo Bereza, who in turn cycled the puck back to Jonathan Soares who set up Tye Hemenway for a beauty of a shot. Living up to his first name, Whalers forward Ty Balchen scored in short order to bring the game back to a dead heat. Delta regained control of the reins as they laid on the goals, starting with Ryden Mathieson and followed in quick succession by Danylo Bereza before a relative lull on the scoresheet. Returning to the lineup for his first game since December 17th in Langley, Grady Lenton began a new point-streak with his 20th goal of the season to give the Ice Hawks a three-goal lead. Whalers forward Devon Mahil stepped up for his club, scoring a crucial goal to keep the Whalers’ hopes alive before the period’s end.
As the second period rolled onwards, Delta’s Beckett Cross scored an exclamation-point of a goal to regain the three-goal advantage, marking his second point of the night after assisting on Mathieson’s first period marker. White Rock stayed tenacious, as one-time BCHC Top Prospect Jonah Ussher chimed in with his 19th goal of the season, assisted by linemates Jeevin Bal and Mahil to keep themselves in the conversation.
The fans who packed the Ladner Leisure Centre may have anticipated an exciting game, but few could have predicted how tight of a match it would become, especially as White Rock manifested its destiny in the third period. Bal, sitting on two assists by this point, linked up once more with Mahil and Ussher to pull within one goal of tying the game. Delta forward Dawson Toledo, back in the lineup for the first time since October 8th and sporting a new jersey number of 44, was dispatched to the penalty box on a slashing minor. It would only take 13 seconds of time on the ensuing power play for Connor Hughes to stun the building with a gargantuan game-tying goal. The rest of the way, goalies Thomas Popa for Delta and Garin Wickstrom for White Rock each made save after jaw-dropping save to keep the game tied as the end of regulation time loomed heavily on the horizon.
Delta played some of its best defensive hockey during overtime, preventing the Whalers from getting any meaningful zone time controlling possession as much as possible. The tension in the building reached its zenith, as Nick Goyer drove hard towards the White Rock net and applied pressure, leading to an extended conversation amongst the officials before sending Whalers forward Max Lyons to the penalty box for slashing and prompting a 4-on-3 power play for the Hawks. During the power play, the Hawks set up camp in the Whalers’ zone, though were unable to solve Wickstrom. Overtime would end as it began, still tied and needing a shootout.
White Rock’s first shooter up was Hughes, whose lone goal was all the Whalers needed to collect victory. Delta’s attempts from Bereza, Lenton, and Brogan Kennedy were fruitless, as were subsequent White Rock efforts from Dylan Heer and Balchen.
The Ice Hawks’ next action takes place Saturday, January 11th in Mission versus the Outlaws, game time is 6:45 PM. The next time the Ice Hawks play at home will be Tuesday, January 14th against the Grandview Steelers for the usual 7:35 PM puck drop.
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THREE STARS
• Delta forward Beckett Cross was crucial for his team, notching a goal and an assist and providing the heartbeat for Delta’s hopes as the third star of the contest.
• White Rock forward Jeevin Bal was instrumental, along with linemates Mahil and Ussher, in propelling the Whalers to victory via one goal and two assists to secure second star honours.
• White Rock forward Connor Hughes assisted on the Whalers’ first goal, scored a critical game-tying goal on the power play, and cemented his team’s win with the only goal in the shootout to lock in as first star.
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NOTABLE NOTES
• Delta goaltender Thomas Popa, victorious in his first two games with the Ice Hawks, made his first start at home and made 29 saves on 34 shots in his first action against White Rock since the 2023-24 Playoffs as a member of the Richmond Sockeyes.
• Delta affiliate Cruz Waltze suited up for the Ice Hawks for his fifth game this season, last appearing on December 3rd vs Chilliwack. Waltze has only played for Delta in home games, and has yet to appear with the Hawks outside of the Ladner Leisure Centre.
• The White Rock Whalers won their fourth shootout victory this season, and have yet to lose when the game gets past overtime. Concurrently, they have one overtime win to go along with four overtime losses.
• Despite losing in the shootout, Delta now has 59 points in the standings, tying them with the Richmond Sockeyes. Delta, however, has the edge over Richmond for first in the Tom Shaw Conference via one additional win and three games in hand.
• 10 of Delta’s final 11 games in the regular season are all within the Tom Shaw Conference, with the only remaining game vs. a Harold Brittain opponent coming this Saturday on the road against the Mission City Outlaws.
• The next instalment of the Battle of Boundary Bay is set for February 8th, 7:30 PM at the Whalers’ home of Centennial Arena, the final game of the regular season for both clubs.
• If the playoffs were to begin tomorrow, Delta would finish first in the Tom Shaw Conference, awaiting the victors of the first round Survivor Series between the (4) Port Coquitlam Trailblazers and the (5) North Vancouver Wolf Pack. Meanwhile, (3) White Rock would go toe-to-toe with (2) Richmond.
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