PHOTO: Mike Hockley
The Trail Smoke Eaters return to home ice for Friday night as they welcome the Mainland Division’s Coquitlam Express for the lone time this season at the Trail Memorial Centre.
Smoke Eaters vs. Express 2018/19 Regular Season Schedule:
Friday, November 9th @ Trail Memorial Centre (7:00 PM)
Friday, December 7th @ Poirier Sports and Leisure Centre (7:00 PM)
The Smoke Eaters and Express meet for the first time during the 2018/19 campaign on Friday after Trail earned a season sweep over Coquitlam with pair of one-goal victories. The Smoke Eaters earned a 3-2 victory over the Express in Coquitlam in early December last season before Trail capped off the season set with a victory on home ice in early February by a 5-4 score. Tyler Ghirardosi had a strong finale in the series with a goal and an assist.
Trail saw their eight-game losing skid come to an end on Sunday evening in the final game of their three-game road trip with a 4-3 shootout victory over the Surrey Eagles at the South Surrey Arena. Owen Ozar, Braeden Tuck and Carter Jones each scored in regulation for the Smoke Eaters while Ozar and Kent Johnson tallied in the shootout for the win. Tanner Marshall started the game, allowing three goals on 12 shots before Adam Marcoux played the final 35 minutes, posting 20 saves for his 6th victory of the season.
Smoke Eaters Leading Scorers:
Braeden Tuck (9-12-21)
Kent Johnson (9-10-19)
Carter Jones (6-12-18)
Trevor Zins (5-12-17)
Diarmad DiMurro (0-15-15)
It was a good weekend for second-year Smoke Eater Carter Jones, who registered a point in each of the three games away from home. The Hillyard, Washington native has a pair of goals and an assist during his three-game point streak, including a big 3rd period goal in Surrey on Sunday evening that forced the game to overtime and then eventually a shootout.
The Smoke Eaters enter Friday night with the BCHL’s second best power play, registering at 21.7% and tied with the Merritt Centennials for the most goals for on the man advantage this season with 23, but they will be up against a stiff test tonight going against the Coquitlam penalty kill. The Express rank 2nd in the league in penalty killing percentage at 88.2% and have killed off their last 12 penalties spanning over five games.
Trail will look to keep their success against Coquitlam going, having won each of their last four games against their Mainland Division rivals. The Smoke Eaters have swept the season series each of the past two seasons against the Express and, dating back to the 2013/14 season, have won four straight games at the Trail Memorial Centre against Coquitlam, outscoring them 19-11 over that time.
The Coquitlam Express enter play on Friday night with a 14-6-1-0 record, sitting 3rd in the Mainland Division and are coming off of a 4-1 victory over the Vernon Vipers last Friday. Regan Kimens, Christian Sanda, Connor Gregga and Joshua Wildauer each scored for the Express in the victory while Clay Stevenson turned aside 31 of the 32 shots he faced in the game for his 7th win of the year.
Express Leading Scorers:
Joshua Wildauer (9-13-22)
Regan Kimens (7-14-21)
Dallas Farrell (6-15-21)
Christian Sanda (10-9-19)
Alex DiPaolo (8-11-19)
The Express have seven players returning from a season ago with captain and three-year defender Troy Robillard leading that charge. Christian Sanda, Joshua Bruce and Joshua Wildauer return up front while Jonathan Sheardown and Jordan Schulting remain on the backend and Clay Stevenson is back between the pipes.
Second year BCHLer Regan Kimens has relished in his 19-year-old season with his new club. After playing with the Langley Rivermen and Chilliwack Chiefs, the Concord, Ontario native has already eclipsed his total of points from 19 a season ago with 21 in an equal amount of games this season. Kimens currently owns a three-game point streak and has points in 17 of his last 18 games, registering a point in all but four games this season. His strong play earned him a scholarship to Merrimack University for next season.
How a year has made a difference for General Manager and Head Coach Jason Fortier with his club as the Express are just one win off of their total from the 2017/18 season in 37 less games. Coquitlam has won four of their last five games along with being tied for the top team in the league when it comes to home ice play with a 9-2-1-0 record.
The Smoke Eaters and Express drop the puck at 7:00 PM from the Trail Memorial Centre with tickets available for purchase at the Smoke Eaters Main Office as well as the door ahead of the opening puck drop.
