The stands were packed for the home opener win by the Cochrane Generals last night (Sept. 30) that marked their return to the SLS Centre. In their third straight win early in the season, the Gens outpaced the short-benched Airdrie Techmation Thunder, 5-1. Caden Stephenson opened the scoring with a powerplay goal at 11:27 in the first. The teams exchanged goals in the second. Gens leading scorer Diago Coelho crinkled the mesh with an unassisted on a shorthanded goal with two Gens and one Thunder in the box. In the third, Tristan Ripplinger scored his fourth of the season on a powerplay goal from Stephenson and Coelho. Coelho scored his second of the night four minutes later from James Quaife and Brendan Thubron. Quaife capped off the scoring from Daniel O'Handley and Zach Manuel. It was the first point in a Gens uniform or for any Canadian team for Aussie import O'Handley. The Gens are heading to Coaldale today to face the Copperheads, who are coming off a 3-1 loss to the Mountainview Colts last night. Three teams in the HJHL south division remained undefeated after Saturday night. The Bisons are undefeated in four and both the Gens and Medicine Hat Cubs haven't seen a loss in their first three games. This was the Gens first game at the SLS Centre after five seasons at the Cochrane Arena. The opening ceremony included recognition of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and a salute to new title sponsor Cannex Contracting. It also marked the introduction of Hat-Trick, the Gens' first mascot. He was a hit in the lobby and was popular with fans as he roamed through the stands packed with nearly 400 fans. We can expect an exciting matchup between the Gens and Bisons on Friday, Oct. 6 at the SLS Centre in their lone game of the Thanksgiving weekend. The puck drops at 7:15 p.m. In response to Canada's Online News Act and Meta (Facebook and Instagram) removing access to local news from their platforms, CochraneNow encourages you to get your news directly from your trusted source by bookmarking this page and downloading the CochraneNow app.