Victoria Royals, Grizzlies battle on the road
VICTORIA 7 ALBERNI VALLEY 2
Two 20-year-old veterans and their star captain helped the Victoria Grizzlies shake off a slow start and pick up a B.C. Hockey League victory in Port Alberni on Friday night.
After the Bulldogs scored shorthanded 22 seconds into the second period to go up 2-0 on the Grizzlies, Victoria got secondperiod goals from Cam Thompson, Alex Newhook and Ryan Nolan to pave the way to a 7-2 victory in front of 1,006 fans at Weyerhaeuser Arena.
Newhook, projected to go in the first round of the 2019 NHL draft, finished the night with three goals, giving the 17-year-old from Newfoundland a BCHLbest 43 points on the season.
Thompson finished the game with two goals and an assist, while Nolan added a goal and two assists. Marty Westhaver had the other Grizzlies goal.
Mackenzie Wright and Dawson Tritt scored for the Bulldogs.
The Grizzlies, who lead the Island Division at 18-8-0-1, used their No. 1-ranked power play to do some damage. Victoria finished 2-for-5 with the man advantage, while Alberni (9-18-1-0) was 0-for-3.
Newly acquired Kyle Dumba got his first start in goal for the Grizzlies after coming over from the Surrey Eagles last weekend, and he didn’t disappoint. With regular No. 1 netminder Kurtis Chapman out with an injury, Dumba stopped 34 of 36 shots to improve to 5-7 on the season. John Hawthorne made 25 saves in the Bulldogs’ net.
The Grizzlies return home to face the Nanaimo Clippers tonight at The Q Centre.
LOOSE PUCKS: Charles LePage from the VIJHL’s Kerry Park Islanders was called up to back up Dumba on Friday . . . . Prior to tonight’s game, at 4 p.m., is the annual Guns and Hoses police vs. firefighters charity hockey game at The Q Centre. A ticket to the Grizzlies game also gets you entry into the Guns and Hoses game, which will see funds raised through 50/50 and concessions donated to Fill the Cup charity. The Grizzlies will also be raising funds by auctioning off their autographed third jerseys which they will be wearing for tonight’s game.