Max French played Wednesday night with a heavy heart.
The Westside Warriors captain dedicated Wednesday's game against the Chilliwack Chiefs for long-time friend Brittany Metro who is in the midst of her second battle with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
French opened the scoring and then watched as his teammates filled the net four times in the second period in an emotional 5-2 win over the Chiefs.
"It was a very emotional night. It was a big accomplishment for us and it couldn't have gone any better," says French.
"We raised a ton of money for a good friend of mine and everything turned out great. We had a lot of support from the community and the fans. It's just awesome to see everyone coming together and unifying for a great cause."
The goal was special as well.
"It kind of topped it off in the first period there and I felt awesome. It was a really great night and there are other forces that work on these kinds of nights."
With the game tied at one after 20 minutes the Warriors came out gunning in the second and were rewarded with two quick goals.
After missing three glorious opportunities Connor Dempsey tapped home a nifty cross-crease pass from Seb Lloyd.
Just 24 seconds later Shawn Hochhausen scored his sixth of the year to put the Warriors up by two.
After the Chiefs cut the deficit to one, the Warriors put it away with a pair of power-play markers from Dempsey and Marcus Basara.
Lloyd chipped in with a pair of assists.
Chilliwack took the play to the Warriors in the opening couple of minutes but was thwarted on two or three occasions by Warriors netminder Dwayne Rodrigue.
Westside weathered the opening storm, kept the game close, and came out guns-a-blazing in the second.
Warriors coach Rylan Ferster says he knew the Chiefs would come out hard.
"We've kind of had that fox-hole mentality. We dug in but we didn't get buried," says Ferster.
"When you do those things and you're able to have some push back and get a save. It's funny; a bounce here and there, your power-play starts working and you can win a game. It's a fine line between winning and losing."
Ferster says he liked the way the power-play worked.
"Over the past few games our special teams have been okay and that's what happens, you win a couple of games."
Neither team was able to score during a chippy third period which featured a pair of scraps after a stoppage of play in the Warriors end.
Three players were ejected along with Chiefs coach Harvey Smyl.
The teams combined for 80 minutes in penalties during the fracas.
The win was key for the Warriors who are trying to chase down the Chiefs for one of the final two playoff spots in the Interior Conference.
Wednesday's win moves the sixth place Warriors to within two points of fifth place Vernon and eight in back of the Chiefs and Prince George Spruce Kings.
The Warriors till have four games remaining against the Chiefs.
Westside hit the road for a pair of games in Vernon Friday and Salmon Arm next Wednesday before returning home to host Alberni Valley Friday, February 3 and Merritt Saturday the 4th.
Check out The General’s Report for more on the Westside Warriors.
