Showdowns and Showcases ahead for the Prince Rupert Rampage this weekend

The Jim Ciccone Civic Centre in the background as the
Rogers Hometown Hockey Festival space takes shape

Beyond the four points up for grabs over the next 24 plus hours, the Prince Rupert Rampage will also be the focus for what should be an amazing celebration of Canada's game, with the Rampage and Rogers Hometown Hockey set to make the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre the place to be on Saturday and Sunday.

First there is some business at hand on the road with a trip to Tamitik Arena in Kitimat and a reunion with the Ice Demons, with the two teams sharing a 1-1 record so far in the 2019-20 season, the last visit to Kitimat for the Rhinos delivered a statement game from the Ice Demons who shook off some of the recent past with an impressive 4 to 2 victory in front of the Aluminum city's hockey fans.

The return engagement came last weekend with the Rampage shook off any rust from their one month break from action to double the Ice Demons 6-3 in front of the always loud home side at the Jim.

And while they may be tempted to look ahead to what Saturday will bring when they return home to Rupert, they will surely keep their eyes on the two points available from the road, pivotal if they wish to make up some ground on the league leading Terrace River Kings.

The Terrace side make for the showcase attraction on Saturday for the second game of the Rampage's weekend of play, as they take on their long time rivals at home and with the Hockey Festival that is the Rogers Hometown Hockey event serving as the added narrative to what would already be a highly anticipated match up.

It's a Hockey Village in Prince Rupert at the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre

With Prince Rupert trailing the River Kings by four points, the simple math of hockey shows just how important this weekend is for the Rhinos, with two offensive threats on both teams set to show off some skills, with Chapen Leblond and Judd Repole both tied for third in the scoring race heading towards the holiday break in a few weeks.

Leblond  is tied for the lead in goals scored, while Repole has been a key playmaker for the Rampage as shown by his league leading 11 assists in but seven games.

Puck drop tonight in Kitimat is set for 8 PM, with the Jim Ciccone set for some rockin' on Saturday at 7PM as well.

Saturday night is also the Teddy Bear Toss in aid of the Prince Rupert Food Bank, with the toss set to go just before the action starts.

As they do before every home game, the Rampage have announced the PRMHA player to take to the ice for pre game and anthem time, with Parker Mellis set to hit the ice with the Rhinos.

Rampage fans are reminded of the scarcity of parking spaces available at the Civic Centre owing to the Hometown Hockey set up, there is overflow parking set up at Charles Hays Secondary, Prince Rupert Middle School and at the lot across from the Credit Union downtown, with shuttle buses and regular bus service in place to get you to the game.

You can review those notes here.

For a wider overview of the Rogers Hometown Hockey showcase see our archive here.

The Rampage have also posted a number of spectacular photos from the talented Prince Rupert photographer Phuong Nguyen who was at the Civic Centre during the set up for the weekend festival of hockey , you can review those photos here.

For a look at the CIHL and Rampage season so far see our CIHL archive page here.