It took just 24 seconds for Pilots fans to have the opportunity to toss a stuffed animal on the ice.
Team captain and Pacific Junior Hockey League leading scorer Baylee Wright turned the teddy bears loose early in the first period, and the Pilots rolled to a 7-1 win over the Aldergrove Kodiaks on Friday.
Abbotsford also got goals from Mason Smith and Jacob De Waal in the first period to lead 3-1 after 20 minutes.
The second period saw Roy McClure, Cameron Obcena and Sahvan Gill score, with Wright adding another goal in the third.
Abbotsford’s power play was red hot, converting on five of nine opportunities and the Pilots outshot the Kodiaks 45-22 in the contest.
Pilots starting goalie Keaton Dyck made 21 saves to record the win. The win improved Abbotsford’s record at the MSA Arena to a league-best 11-2-1.
Abbotsford then traveled to Port Moody to take on the Panthers on Saturday and earned a 3-0 win.
Jamie Housch, Wright and Matthew Dyck tallied for the Pilots, and Dyck stopped all 35 shots he faced to pick up his fourth shutout and 16th win on the season.
Abbotsford’s record improved to 17-9-1 on the season, and the club sits in first place in the Harold Brittain conference and fourth overall in the league after the pair of wins.
The Pilots next take on the Kodiaks in Aldergrove tonight (Wednesday) at 7:15 p.m. The team then hosts the Surrey Knights on Friday at MSA Arena. Face-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
In other news, the Pilots added a pair of players earlier this month. Abbotsfor acquired former team captain Noah Wiebe from the Mission City Outlaws in exchange for future considerations on Dec. 1. Wiebe, an Abbotsford native, previously played two seasons with the Pilots collecting 25 goals and 60 points in 58 games. He served as the Pilots team captain for the 2017-18 season.
Abbotsford also picked up defenceman Dawson Wollf from the Nanaimo Buccaneers of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League in exchange for futures. Wollf previously had stints with the VIJHL’s Oceanside Generals and the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League’s Princeton Posse over the past two seasons.
For more on the team, visit abbotsfordpilots.com.