The Smoke Eaters will look to split the weekend in Prince George and take a little revenge against the Spruce Kings tonight for the back half of the weekend set in PG.
Season Series vs Prince George:
Nov. 5 Trail 3 at Prince George 5 Final
Nov. 6 Trail at Prince George 7:00 pm PDT
Jan. 5 Prince George at Trail 7:00 pm PST
Jan. 21 Prince George at Trail 7:00 pm PST
Jan. 22 Prince George at Trail 7:00 pm PST
The Smoke Eaters fought all the way back from an early 3-0 deficit and made a game of it. It didn’t look promising given the start they had but they worked their way back into the game, tied it in the third, before the penalties decided the game late. The Smoke Eaters were definitely worthy of a few penalties last night but for the most part played a disciplined hockey game, which is what they needed to do. However they ended being shorthanded nine times, and against a powerplay like the one Prince George is running right now, it was a recipe for disaster as the Spruce Kings scored four of their five on the man advantage. Take away all the penalties in Friday’s game and it’s 1-1 after 60 minutes. The Smoke Eaters will be hoping they can stay out of the box and play more 5-on-5 tonight, as the amount of penalties began to stretch the Smoke Eater penalty killers. On the other side of the special team battle the Smoke Eaters went 2/3 on the man advantage.
Smoke Eaters leading scorers:
Disher (4-7-11)
Michaelis (7-3-10)
Hunter (3-7-10)
Lagerback (3-5-8)
Wolford (2-6-8)
The Spruce Kings will want a cleaner game on their end tonight despite the 5-3 win. There has to be something said for giving up a 3-0 lead and to be tied at 3 late in the third. The powerplay as mentioned got them their win as it has multiple times this year. Now going 4/9 is nothing to overlook and will be an ongoing threat for this team. If Spruce King head coach Alex Evin can replicate a performance like that again tonight he’ll be looking at a weekend sweep against the Smoke Eaters. John Herrington continues to lead the way for Prince George with 19 points in 11 games, while Nick Rheaume and Rowan Miller lit up the score sheet last night. Those players will be relied upon again tonight to help the Spruce Kings take all four points on the weekend.
Spruce Kings leading scorers:
Herrington (8-11-19)
Rheaume (9-8-17)
Labelle (3-13-16)
Miller (6-5-11)
Schives (1-10-11)
The Smoke Eaters and Spruce Kings do battle for the final time n the 2021 calendar as the teams don’t meet again till January. The Smoke Eaters looking for a bounce back while the Spruce Kings aim for a weekend sweep. Puck drop is 7pm on BCHLTV or on Mixlr with the Teck Trail Pre game report starting at 6:50pm with Ben Phillips.
