PEORIA — Zach Wilkie stepped onto the ice for a homecoming with the Peoria Rivermen on Friday and gave them the kind of play you'd expect from one of the most decorated defenseman in SPHL and team history.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThen he also gave them some words of wisdom after a poor outing left the Rivermen with a 5-2 loss to last-place Quad City in front of 4,438 at Carver Arena.
"I told them the truth," Wilkie said, after the Rivermen rallied from deficits of 1-0 and 2-1 to tie, fell behind 3-2 in the third period and then gave up two empty-net goals in the final minute as last-place Quad City snapped a four-game losing streak and won for the first time in a season series now five games old.
Wilkie, a two-time SPHL champion with the Rivermen, came out of retirement to sign a five-game tryout contract and help a shorthanded Peoria roster.
Retired Peoria defenseman Zach Wilkie makes his return to the ice against Quad City on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025 at Carver Arena. The Rivermen fell to the Storm 5-2."It was emotional for me," Wilkie said. "To be on that ice, to be in front of those fans again … I had about 15 chances to score and I just wish I could have put one of those in.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"Not everyone gets to play here. Not everyone can play here. The Peoria Rivermen are not an easy team to play for because there is so much tradition, so much history going back (44 years). It's a very high standard and you have to be willing to meet it every night."
And that was his message to the team as he took over the locker room after the game and talked his teammates.
"Win or lose, it's about bleeding these colors," Wilkie said of the Rivermen uniform. "Even if things don't go your way, you live the logo.
"I learned that from (retired Rivermen captain) Alec Hagaman when I came here. Anyone who plays here has to understand you work and play every day to make this organization proud, make the fans and the community proud.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I wanted to make sure these guys heard that."
This story will be updated with more in a few minutes.
Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or [email protected]. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: A homecoming: Rivermen lose to Quad City, but welcome popular player back from retirement
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