The Smoke Eaters got their weekend split thanks to their OT specialist, Evan Bushy, as they beat the Langley 3-2 in overtime to split their BCHL Showcase set.
The Smoke Eaters got rolling early against the Riverman with another strong push and this time, compared to Saturday’s game against Surrey, they were rewarded for their efforts. It was quite a smart play that gave Joel Barton his first BCHL goal as Ridge Dawson and Quinn Disher combined to give the young defenseman the puck in the slot.
After the Smoke Eaters hot start they let off the gas just enough for the Rivermen to get into the game, as they hemmed Trail into their own zone and ran up the shot clock, forcing a couple big saves out of Evan Fradette. The Smoke Eaters would hold firm through the first despite the response from the Rivermen.
In the second the Smoke Eaters led the way again with shots, but had a few penalties to kill. Again Fradette made some of his best saves of the night to keep the Rivermen off the board, allowing the Smoke Eaters to double their lead in the back half of the second. Quinn Disher finished off a nice passing play from Charlie Strobel, as Disher scored his third of the year and added his third point of the weekend.
The Rivermen the pushed back and broke through twice, both on the powerplay, scoring once two minutes after Disher’s goal and again in the third near the midway mark to tie the game at 2. They also outshot the Smoke Eaters 12-3 in the third as they looked for a go ahead, but couldn’t find the answer they needed for Evan Fradette who stopped 39/41 on the night.
So again we needed overtime and the trio that won the game against Wenatchee in OT started this one as Brady Hunter, Zach Michaelis and Evan Bushy began the 3-on-3. It took just 19 seconds for Bushy to score the winner!
The Smoke Eaters return home now for a two in a row as they welcome in the Nanaimo Clippers for Retro night on Friday October 29th. Then they’ll host the Wenatchee Wild for the second time this season on Saturday the 30th. Tickets are still available for both games and can be bought at tickets.trailsmokeeaters.com.
