Whether rooting for the RCMP or spouting for the firefighters, a packed crowd filled Brennan Park Arena to raise more than $2,000 for Briana Gonzales through the eighth annual Guns and Hoses charity hockey game Friday (March 14).Squamish Mayor Ian Sutherland played referee, and guided Briana, who is suffering from a chronic pain condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), to centre ice for the ceremonial puck-drop between two captains of rescue. And she might have even given her favourite team - the firefighting squad - a touch of luck despite being a bit nervous in front of the big audience."At first I was a bit scared, but then it was cool," she said. As the two teams faced off for the first period, the Timbits were already getting ready for their halftime showdown. Kids like five-year-old William Rickert Junior gathered in the arena foyer, strapping on shin pads and skates with the help of dad William Rickert Sr.Rounding up a whole spirit squad to cheer on their favourite team, Aura Mullings, 8, and Linnea Burke, 7, brought two stuffed Dalmatians and a stuffed wolf to root for the firefighters. The girls lined the animals' noses up to the glass as they followed the game."We're going for the firefighters, so we brought Dalmatians. Sparky, Sparky and Charlie," said Linnea matter-of-factly.The larger version of Sparky the Fire Dog was also on hand trying to match cheers from the RCMP's Safety Bear. With all the fan support, the firefighters came out firing fast by flooding the cops' net with five goals in the first period. It was clear they wanted to make up for last year's 9-2 loss. "In the first three or four minutes it looked like it was going to be a total rout," said firefighter Bob Fulton. RCMP Constables Christy Mohr and Nick Herder didn't let a losing score damper their pride. They cheered for their fellow officers from the bench where they stood decked out in full Mountie uniform.With the score 5-0 going into intermission, wee Timbits chased and tumbled around the ice and fans lined up for the infamous puck toss.The cops threatened the firefighters' lead into the second period by scoring three unanswered goals to make the score 5-3. But the firefighters responded with two more goals to take back bragging rights 7-3.
