Sue Sitter/PCT Bottineau-Rugby Braves forward Macen Heisler looks for a pass from a teammate on the ice at Al Wentz Arena, Rugby. The Braves fell to the Williston Coyotes 5-4 in overtime in the hockey game Jan. 4.

Snow and bitter cold put both the Bottineau-Rugby Braves and the Williston Coyotes to the test when they met for a hockey game at Rugby’s Al Wentz Arena Jan. 4.

Both teams had to travel some distance through steady snowfall to get to the Rugby indoor ice rink. Many of the Braves rode into Rugby on a bus from Bottineau. The Coyotes came from even farther away, encountering snow on U.S. Highway 2, then a bus breakdown in Minot. Rather than rescheduling the game, the Coyotes borrowed a bus from Minot Public Schools and continued on.

The Coyotes were eager to settle a score from Dec. 21, when the Braves defeated them 3-1 in Williston. The Braves were just as eager for another win against the Coyotes.

Both teams’ determination carried them through to an overtime period, when Coyotes forward Ashton Collings shot the goal that gave Williston a 5-4 win, assisted by Chase Brannin.

Defenders played a key role in the game, which was scoreless through much of the first period. The Coyotes stayed on the puck like coyotes on their prey. The Braves fought fiercely – especially goalie Easton Freeman, who logged 16 saves in the first period. With just over five minutes to go, Coyotes defender Jackson Ekblad landed the first goal of the game past Freeman. Seconds before the horn sounded to end the period, Braves forward Colton Getzlaff shot the tying goal, assisted by Ethan Siemens.

The Coyotes struck again in the second period, this time with a goal shot by defender Riley Erickson, assisted by Collings and Carter Bakken. Bottineau-Rugby answered three minutes later with a goal shot by forward Macen Heisler, assisted by Getzlaff. Although the Coyotes caught one penalty in the first period and two in the second, the Braves were unable to land power play goals.

Braves took trips to the penalty box in the first and second period as well. However, Bottineau-Rugby’s defense kept the Coyotes at bay, denying them power play opportunities.

The Coyotes closed in on Braves territory once more. This time, forward Chase Collings landed a goal, assisted by Colby Nehring and Landon Thiessen. The period ended with a 3-2 Coyotes lead.

The Braves returned to the ice for the third period more determined than ever. Just over two minutes in, Siemens tied the game again with a goal assisted by Alex Lorenz. Four minutes later, Bakken shot a goal for the Coyotes, assisted by Ashton Collings and Ekblad. The Braves would tie again with an unassisted goal by Getzlaff.

Both teams intensified their fight, resulting in penalties on both sides. One scuffle sent Heisler tumbling to the ice and landed Ekblad in the penalty box with a five-minute major. Another sent two Braves and two Coyotes to the box for two minutes each.

“It was a really emotional game. It was really emotional on the players. It was good emotion,” Braves Coach Jesse Nostdahl said after the game. “I think (Williston) got a little carried away with that major, but it’s hockey and they’re high school kids.”

Regulation play ended with a 4-4 tie. Although the Braves had the advantage with a Coyote still in the box, Bottineau-Rugby players saw shot attempts go astray in overtime. The Coyotes managed to keep the puck in their grasp and penetrate Braves territory until Ashton Collings scored the winning goal for Williston with just over five minutes on the clock. Collings high-fived Brannin, who assisted the goal, and the Coyotes left the ice, vindicated.

Did the Coyotes’ determination to get even for their earlier loss to the Braves make the difference?

“Maybe,” Nostdahl said after the game. “You never know what you’re going to get out of a team, especially high school boys. But (Williston) had a chip on their shoulders for sure.”

“The thing about us and Williston is there are a lot of different matchups that can be exploited,” Nostdahl said of the Braves’ lineup. “There’s our purple line, which is Heisler and Siemens and Getzlaff, they had a good matchup. Then, our orange line, which is Matt (Olson) and the twins (Cole and Dalton Vietz-Reile), they were trying to shut down their Collings line. It was fun to really watch that battle play out. It was kind of like a heavyweight match between those two line pairings. It was a lot of fun. Hats off to the guys for battling.”

Nostdahl added, “It’s hockey. You never know what’s going to happen.”

Nostdahl said the Braves would practice next for a round of away games in Jamestown and Mandan Jan. 7 and 8.

“They’re one of the harder teams to play against,” Nostdahl said of Jamestown’s Blue Jays. “We’ll be ready.”