The Smokies close out week two of the BCHL regular season with their lone game of the week tonight (Sat) in Cranbrook.
The coaching staff has worked hard this past week with the players going over video, while doing skill sessions in the morning and regular practice in the afternoon looking to build chemistry within a group that has 17 new faces.
Trail is 0-2 despite outshooting Langley and Vernon last weekend.
New captain Colton Whitfield has played two strong games and is helping Russian defense partner Aleksandr Andriyashev adapt to the smaller North American ice where everything happens much faster.
German Max Schaller and Latvian Roberts Polis are in the same situation as new wingers up front.
Newcomer Dysen Drake was effective in his first two games as a Smokie, with a hard nosed heavy style that saw him score 18 regular season goals and another seven in 14 playoff games last season in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League.
Caden Stolz has returned with the same energy and aggression that made him a fan favourite last season and has worked well with linemates Maddox Ghanda of Trail and Polis. He also scored the team’s first goal of the season last Friday night.
They’re battling the Bucks after splitting the preseason home and home series which included that resounding 10-2 win on Labour Day in Trail. Cranbrook won the return match 4-3 in their rink and picked up their first win of the regular season last night with a 4-2 victory over Okotoks in the East Kootenay.
20-year-old veteran Matthew Gilmore leads the team with four points while newcomer Ty Ross has scored three times including a pair Friday night against the Oilers. The Bucks, who have a lineup that includes 16 new players, lost their first two games of the season last weekend on the road in Salmon Arm and West Kelowna.
The BCHL’s Kootenay clash continues tonight from Cranbrook with the opening face-off at 5 p.m. Pacific.
Catch all the action on Mixlr and FloHockey.
