During the holiday season the Virden Oil Kings and Miniota-Elkhorn C-Hawks renewed their rivalry.
“The rivalry with Elkhorn has a been going on for a lot of years, and both communities love it,” Oil Kings player Shane Keown said. “It brings in a lot of revenue for both teams when we do face each other, and it is great to see the barns packed with fans. I feel that it brings the best out of both teams and creates some awesome hockey to watch. They are definitely a great addition to the THHL, and we are glad that the rivalry is back.”
On Dec. 23, the teams met for the first time since the C-Hawks joined the Tiger Hills Hockey League this season. In Virden, the C-Hawks prevailed 8-3 with Shawn Bowles and Josh Martin both scoring twice. In Elkhorn on Dec. 30, the hosts shut out the Oil Kings, 4-0. Cory Gardham made 28 saves for the shutout.
“I felt that neither team played particularly well in either game,” C-Hawks coach Garth Mitchell said. “From our standpoint, we did some good things and worked hard but did rely on some very timely saves from Cory Gardham. It definitely gives our team an indication of areas that we need to improve on to play these talented teams in the league.”
The teams did not compete last season with the C-Hawks playing in the North Central Hockey League while the Oil Kings had moved to the THHL. On the line in December was not only bragging rights but first place in the THHL’s Western Division.
“The games against the C-Hawks were much anticipated with both teams at the top of the standings,” Oil Kings coach Ryan Mathieson said. “We didn’t get the results we hoped for, but the games were fast paced and high intensity. To be successful we have some aspects of our game to clean up, but we feel we match up well with them. The regular season games showed the rivalry is as strong as ever and our goal now is to get another shot at them in playoffs.”
As of Monday, Miniota-Elkhorn leads the THHL with a perfect 11-0-0-0 record and 22 points in the standings. C-Hawks forward Shawn Bowles and Oil King Devon LeBlanc were tied for the league-lead with 18 goals each in 11 and 10 games, respectively. Bowles was third in THHL scoring with 32 points, while twin brother Bradley was seventh with 28. Other C-Hawks in the top 20 were: Josh Martin (12th, 24 points), Taylor Sanheim (16th, 21), and Jason Bowles (20th, 19).
Virden is second in the THHL Western Division with a 9-2-1-0 record and 19 points. LeBlanc was fourth in the league with 31 points. Tanner Hepp was 17th with 21 points in seven games. Drake Bodie was 19th with 20 points.
“So far I have been most pleased with our ability to put the puck in the net,” Mathieson said. “We have a highly skilled forward group and they have meshed well and are producing at a prolific rate. Having our puck moving defencemen playing at a high level has been integral to our offensive success.”
