Two first timers going for title
The Wenatchee Wild are going to the Fred Page Cup final in just their third season in the B.C. Hockey League.
Regular-season MVP Jasper Weatherby has kept rolling in the playoffs, notching two goals and two assists as the Wild beat the visiting Trail Smoke Eaters 6-1 Friday, as Wenatchee took the Interior Conference championship series 4-1.
The Wild takes on the Prince George Spruce Kings in the final starting this Friday and Saturday at the Town Toyota Center in Wenatchee, Wash.
AJ Vanderbeck had a goal and three assists, Cooper Zech and Lucas Sowder a goal and two assists and August Von Ungern a single goal for the Wild, who opened up a scoreless game by outscoring the Smokies 4-1 in the second period.
One-time Vernon Vipers forward Blaine Caton scored for the Smokies, who played in the third round for the first time in team history.
Wenatchee, who outshot Trail 4121, were always in command of the series, grabbing a 3-0 lead before the Smokies won Game 4 in Trail 5-2.
Prince George beat Powell River 2-1 in overtime Thursday to take the Coastal Conference championship series 4-1.
Both the Wild and Spruce Kings will be appearing in the BCHL final for the first time in their respective history.
Wenatchee, who only joined the BCHL in 2015-16 after eight years in the North American Hockey League, made it to the second round in each of their first two seasons in the league.
The Wild – who won the BCHL regular season title in 2016-17 — lost in the second round to Chilliwack in 2015-16 and 2016-17.
The Wild defeated the Spruce Kings in six games in the first round in 2016-17. The teams played together in the Mainland Division until the Wild joined the Interior Division this season.
After finishing third in the regular season with a 37-16-4-1 mark for 79 points, the Wild swept Merritt 40 and stunned the favoured Vernon Vipers 4-2 in the second round of the playoffs.
Prince George joined the BCHL in 1996-97 and have never made it past the third round. However, the Spruce Kings did host the RBC Cup national Junior-A championship in 2007, making it all the way to the final before losing 3-1 to the Aurora (Ontario) Tigers.
The Spruce Kings won the Mainland Division with a 33-17-4-4 record for 74 points. They endured two seven-game series and a gruelling travel schedule against Chilliwack and Surrey before dispatching Powell River in five games.
The Wild and Spruce Kings met twice this year with each team winning a close game on home ice – 3-2 for the Wild on Nov. 11 and 4-3 for the Kings on Dec. 9.
The travel will be challenging for both teams in the series as 986 km (613.4 miles) separates Prince George from Wenatchee. It is an approximately 12-hour bus ride between the two cities.
Games 3 and 4 will be played April 16-17 in P.G., and, if necessary, Game 5 is April. 19 in Wenatchee, April 21 in PG. and April 23 in Wenatchee.
The winner of the series advances to the Doyle Cup B.C.-Alberta championship series against the Alberta league champs.
The winner from there represents the Pacific region in the RBC Cup starting May 15 in Chilliwack.
In the Alberta league, Spruce Grove Saints are in the final awaiting the winner of the semifinal series between Okotoks Oilers and Brooks Bandits. Okotoks leads the series 3-2.
ICE CHIPS: Weatherby (13 goals, 29 points) leads the playoffs in scoring with teammate Sam Morton and Spruce Kings’ Ethan De Jong tied with 22 points. The Wild, who have scored a league-high 58 goals in 15 playoff games, have five players in the top 8 of playoff scoring. PG has scored 52 goals in 19 games.