Playing in his first ever game in a Trinity Western uniform, Cody Fidgett (Richmond, B.C.) put on an impressive show as he potted a hat-trick to lead the Spartans men’s hockey team to a 4-3 win over Simon Fraser in preseason action Friday at the Langley Events Centre.
Fidgett transferred to TWU from Selkirk College over the summer and made an immediate impact, scoring the Spartans first two goals and then nabbing the winning goal midway through the third period. With the score tied 3-3, Fidgett made a slick move into the slot, beat his defender and slid it through the five-hole of Clan goalie Jordan Liem to give the Spartans a win in their first preseason game.
“It felt great out there,” said Fidgett, whose winner came with 8:38 to play. “It’s fun going out with a new team and obviously to score felt pretty nice. I had good linemates out there who were dishing me the puck, so it was a real team effort out there.”
With a late lead in hand, TWU goalie Nic Clark (White Rock, B.C.), who came into the game to start the third period, made a number of clutch saves, including a breakaway stop on Josh McKissock, to preserve the win.
Fidgett’s game-winner came not long after the Clan had scored a pair of early third period goals to take a 3-2 lead. The Spartans had a 2-1 edge going into the third, but goals by Yan Kalashnikov and Vance Bridgman gave the visitors a short-lived lead.
Just over two minutes after Bridgman put SFU ahead, Florian Niedermaier (Davos, Switzerland) knotted the score at 3-3 with just over 10 minutes to play. Fidgett’s winner came 1:36 later.
The Clan’s Jono Ceci was the other goal-scorer for SFU as he opened the scoring 3:09 into the first period. Spartans goalie Silas Matthys (Wollerau, Switzerland) stopped 15 of the 16 shots he faced while Clark made 11 saves on 13 shots. Liem made 32 saves for SFU.
The Spartans outshot SFU 36-29.
“I know a win doesn’t matter in the preseason, but it sort of does in terms of confidence,” said Spartans coach Barret Kropf. “All through training camp, the messaging has been that we can’t take a step back after last year. What we did last year is now the new minimum. The last 20 minutes were a little more scattered but in terms of the first 40 minutes, the veterans on the team probably thought that might have been our best 40 minutes ever, having only allowed 16 shots. But we just want to keep challenging guys that that’s our minimum. That’s the new norm for Spartan hockey.”
The Clan opened the scoring on a power play when Ceci, with the assist to Jesse Williamson, snapped a shot from the top of the slot through the legs of Matthys. However, late in the frame Fidgett snapped in his first goal as a Spartan, taking a cross-ice pass from PJ Buys (Newmarket, Ont.) and sliding it into a wide open net. Blair Murphy (Surrey, B.C.) also picked up an assist on TWU’s first of the preseason.
Early in the second, Fidgett was back at it, as he raced down the left wing and rifled his second of the night in off the post. Buys earned his second assist.
Down 2-1 going into the third period, SFU scored a pair of quick goals to take a 3-2 lead. Kalashnikov deflected a shot past Clark to even the score and then Bridgman put SFU ahead with a tap-in from the doorstep. McKissock and Jared Eng nabbed assists on Kalashnikov’s goal while Saylor Preston and Matt Luongo assisted on Bridgman’s goal.
Less than two minutes later Niedermaier tied the game when he banged home a loose puck from in tight. Mattias Schmitt (Surrey, B.C.) and Micah Cockrill (Chilliwack, B.C.) each earned their first assists of the preseason on the goal.
“Fidgett and Flo being able to contribute right away was great,” Kropf said. “And it wasn’t just on the scoresheet, but they were also opening up space for other guys on their lines. We have depth now that we didn’t have last year, so teams aren’t going to be able to just shut one line down.”
The Spartans will now head out on the road for preseason games against Selkirk on Sept. 19 in Trail, B.C. and against Eastern Washington on Sept. 20 in Castlegar, B.C.
The Clan will travel to Alberta to take on ACAC opponents SAIT Sept. 19 and Red Deer Sept. 20.
Game Notes: TWU was 1 for 3 on the power play while SFU was 1 for 2.
VICTORIA
SIMON FRASER
LOGAN LAKE
VANCOUVER ISLAN.
OKANAGAN
