Game Report | BLA at TRA
The Smoke Eaters got at least one point from 15 different players in a wild 8-5 victory over Blackfalds.
Trail’s Judah Makway led the late Sunday matinee charge at Cominco Arena with two first period goals, including his third shorthanded marker of the season.
The 20-year-old power forward has scored in four straight games to run his season total to 14.
Rookie Deacon Drummond drilled his third goal of the season into the top corner late in the second period and it stood up as the game winner.
Defenseman Drew Anastasio sniped his seventh goal and the season on a screened snapper from the point and has tallied in three straight games.
Also supplying singles were Ridge Dawson, Jack Kennedy, Christian Kim and Jason Stefanek, who also has 14 goals this season.
Jack Ziliotto chipped in with three assists.
Trail’s three unanswered second period goals gave them a 6-2 lead after 40-minutes, but the Bulldogs took advantage of some wide open play early in the third.
Will Mitchell scored twice for the visitors in the final frame.
His first came on a breakaway after intercepting a point pass at the Bulldogs blue line and he added a shorthanded goal on an odd man rush.
Blackfalds scored a second short handed goal on the same advantage with Noah Mertz converting a cross-seam pass on another odd man rush, reducing Trail’s lead to 7-5 with about eight-and-a-half minutes remaining.
Stefanek sealed the deal about 30-seconds later, just as the Bulldogs penalty expired, scoring on a wrap-around.
The Bulldogs who suffered their 16th straight setback also got goals from Juan Copeland and Tyler Chiovetti.
Trail outshot Blackfalds 41-29, while going 1-for-2 on the power play and killed off two of three Bulldogs advantages as they scored while on a 5-on-3 advantage in the first period.
Ryan Parker made 24 saves including a breakaway stop when Trail was leading 4-2 in the second period, to pick up his fourth win of the season.
Newcomer Kirill Kapustin from Russia who was pulled at the end of the second period after giving up 6 goals on 26 shots, took the loss.
Slokvakian import Lukas Fursten stopped 13 of the 15 shots he faced in the third period.
The Smokies who lead fourth-place Salmon Arm by a single point in the tight Interior Conference, now have a New Year’s Eve showdown against the Bucks in Cranbrook.
The season series between the Kootenay rivals is split at a game each with 4-3 road victories by both teams who have also won four of their last five games.
The Smokies are also riding an 8-1-1 record over their last ten games.
Catch all the action beginning at 5 p.m. Pacific time on Mixlr and FloHockey.