A fast and furious start staked the Smokies to a 4-2 silencing of Salmon Arm to open a two-game Shuswap doubleheader.
Trail’s hottest trio took matters into their own hands early.
Christian Kim spun a great centreing pass from behind the Silverbacks net to Cash Carter who crammed in his team-leading 8th goal of the season before the game was two minutes old.
Their centreman Cade De St. Hubert deflected in a Max Hense shot from the point with three minutes left in the opening frame.
Less than a minute later, rookie Brayden Rotach scored his first BCHL goal giving the Smokies a 3-0 advantage.
The Castlegar kid broke hard to the net and deposited a Cooper Struckel rebound after Struckle streaked down the right wing to lead the 2-on-1 break.
The Rotach goal stood up as the winner.
But the Silverbacks got on the scoreboard before the end of the opening frame as Maddux Martin finished a pressure packed shift in Trail territory.
The scoreless second period belonged to the goaltenders.
Trail’s Chayse Johnson and Salmon Arm’s Daniel Dirrocolo were unbeatable and Johnson saved his best work for the final frame.
Shortly after the Silverbacks scored early in the third period, Johnson committed highway robbery on Martin, scrambling across the net to somehow take the perilous puck in his trapper after a mad scramble across the wide-open net.
Johnson earned second star honours with his 33 save performance, personified by his protection of the sometimes crowded crease.
De St. Hubert put the game on ice with 56-seconds remaining, finding the puck a few feet inside the Trail blue line, spun and fired a 150-foot shot into the middle of Salmon Arm’s empty net. Cade was the game’s first star.
The Smokies directed 27 shots on Dirrocolo, while going 0-for-3 on the power play and fended off two Salmon Arm advantages including a key kill in the third period while defending a one-goal lead. The six Smokies defensemen battled through a second straight game without captain Isaac Fecteau who suffered an upper body injury last Friday night in Okotoks.
Trail is now 14-3, including an 11-1 record on the road. Considering that the win over Alberni Valley at the BCHL Showcase is officially a home game, Trail’s actual record this season away from Cominco Arena is 12-1.
The win coupled with Cranbrook’s 4-2 victory over West Kelowna, takes the Trail troupe into a first-place tie with the Warriors atop the Interior West Division.
It was a hard-fought contest played at a high pace, setting the stage for the game-two showdown on a suspenseful Saturday night in Salmon Arm.
It’s a 6 p.m. start with all the action on Mixlr and FloHockey.
The next Smoke Eaters home games are November 21 & 22. Good seats are still available at Tickets.TrailSmokeEaters.com.
