BILLINGS — The Billings Cattle Punchers are off and running — or more accurately, skating and scoring.
The team shot out of the gates white hot back in September, and here we are entering week seven, with the Cattle Punchers still leading their division.
So what's fueling the hot start? Players point to a combination of speed and grit.
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"I'd say we're a very fast up and down team, but we get physical. We make hits, you know just finish plays," Billings defenseman Zach Hertz told MTN Sports.
That depth has become a hallmark of the team's early success.
"Guys have stepped up on different nights and it's nice to see the depth of where our team is kind of trending," said Billings head coach Steve Haddon.
In net, goalie Waylon Gardipy is playing his first year in the league — and embracing the challenge.
"It's awesome. It's very skilled, fast, hard-hitting," Gardipy said.
The Cattle Punchers (9-5) return home Friday for the first time in almost three weeks when they host the Grand Junction River Hawks (8-5) at 7:05 p.m. inside Signal Peak Energy Arena. To this point through 16 games, Billings has only played five at home.
"It's that time of year … sickness, bumps and bruises," Haddon said. "You know, we don't get a break. A lot of teams are getting bye weeks; we didn't get one."
Still, while maintaining the division lead, Haddon figures adversity now will pay off later.
"You've got to go through all these things in a season to figure out where your team is at, so a lot of good, healthy lessons early," he said.
As a quick refresher: The North American Hockey League has 36 teams dotted across the nation — from El Paso to Shreveport, up to Maryland and all the way back to Fairbanks. But teams mostly play within their own division, and Billings is part of the smallest, with only five clubs in the Mountain.
That means they'll see each other a mountain of times over eight straight months. Safe to say the Punchers will be sharply acquainted with opposing players on ice.
"I'm sure it's going to be … getting a little bit sick of each other. And then, getting more chippy as the season goes on, for sure," Hertz said with a smile.
