Pucks were coming fast and furious at Sunwave Centre in Salmon Arm Saturday night with the hometown SilverBacks taking a 7-4 win over the Trail Smoke Eaters.
The score was 4-3 after 20 minutes with four different 'Backs scoring and Adam Fares tallying twice for Trail. Salmon Arm took control in the third with Graham McBain, Alex Gillies and Bryce Gervais – with his second of the game – each scoring.
Craig Martin scored a power-play goal in the third but that was all. Each team had at least 15 shots each period with Trail taking a 50-47 edge in total shots for the game.
In Langley, the Rivermen – who had scored just three times in their previous five games – scored five times in the first period against the Victoria Grizzlies and hung on for a 6-4 win. Five different Rivermen tallied in the opening frame including Mario Puskarich's opener on his 10th of the year. After a scoreless second, the Grizz chipped away with four straight in the third. Defenceman Braxton Bilous' marker at 14:06 made it a 5-4 game but Puskarich's empty-netter relieved the Rivermen's stress in the final minute.
Malcolm McKinney's double-overtime penalty-shot goal won the game for the Coquitlam Express agains the host Surrey Eagles. the game was scoreless after one and the teams traded goals through the second and third after Coquitlam's Justin Georgeson opened scoring. Devon Toews' goal for Surrey in the final minute of regulation forced OT setting the stage for McKinney.
A rare BCHL tie resulted in Powell River with the Prince George Spruce Kings visiting the Kings. Craig Dalrymple's shorthanded goal in the first opened scoring but Ben Matthews and Scott McHaffie responded for PG in the second. Teagan Waugh's goal in the third tied it and the teams couldn't resolve anything through OT.
The Nanaimo Clippers surrendered the first three goals of the game to the host Alberni Valley Bulldogs but overcame the deficit with a 5-4 win. Shortly after Brandon Halls made it 3-0 'Dogs, Andrew Gladiuk got the Clips on the board and he scored again in a three-goal Nanaimo second period. Luke Gordon got the eventual winner in the third as Dylan Nowakowski scored late for Alberni Valley.
In Penticton, the Merritt Centennials scored twice in the first on goals by Evan Stack and Billy Marshall and the Vees got two in the third including Grant Nicholson's marker in the last minute to send it to OT. In the second minute of extra time, Richard Sabourin converted a Brent Fletcher centering feed to win it 3-2 for the Cents.
It was a see-saw game in Vernon with the visiting Chilliwack Chiefs tallying the first three goals of the game on their way to a 5-4 win. Mathieu Tibbet's first as a Chief made it 3-0 but Vernon scored three straight in response with Max Mowat's power-play tally starting the rally. Malcolm Gould's goal early in the third was the winner as Marcus Basara tallied late for the Vipers.
