Merritt, BC – August 31, 2012
The Merritt Centennials improved to 1-1-1 on the BCHL exhibition season with a 4-2 win over the Trail Smoke Eaters on Friday night at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena.
There was no scoring in the first period, but the Centennials held a decisive advantage on the shot clock 17-7.
Rhett Willcox opened the scoring for the Cents at 10:46 of the second period with assists to Sebastien Pare and Derek Huisman. Pare got on the board just 27 second later as he beat Smoke Eaters netminder Lynden Stanwood. Brandon Bruce picked up the assist. Shane Poulsen replied for Trail at 15:49 to make the score 2-1 heading to the third period.
In the final frame, Pare got his second of the night on a power play at 1:57 with assists to Huisman and Regan Soquila to put the Centennials up 3-1. Adam Wheeldon got the Smoke Eaters back to within one before Pare iced the game and put the finishing touches on a hat trick with a goal at 19:57 of the third. It came with Trail netminder Braden Krogfoss on the bench for an extra attacker.
Goaltender Tyler Steel started the game for Merritt and Phoenix Logan-Hill came on to play the second half of the game. Steel didn't allow any goals in his 21 minutes and 13 seconds of action.
The Cents next game is Saturday as they round out their exhibition schedule at the Cominco Arena in Trail against the Smoke Eaters.
The 2012-13 regular season kicks off the 40th season of Merritt Centennials hockey at the Save-On-Foods BCHL Showcase in Chilliwack next weekend.
SCORING SUMMARY
First Period
No Scoring
Second Period
1. MER Rhett Willcox (Derek Huisman, Sebastien Pare) 10:46
2. MER Sebastien Pare (Brandon Bruce) 11:13
3. TRA Shane Poulsen (Dallas Flockhart, Mitch Foyle) 15:49
Third Period
4. MER Sebastien Pare (Regan Soquila, Derek Huisman) 1:57 PP
5. TRA Adam Wheeldon (Jake Lucchini) PP
6. MER Sebastien Pare (unassisted) 19:57 EN
Shots on goal: Merritt: 17-14-21-52; Trail: 7-8-7-22
Saturday's Schedule
9 – 10:30am – Player Interviews
11am – 5:30pm – Bus to Trail
7:30 – 10pm – Exhibition Game vs. Trail
For further information, please contact Cents Head Coach and GM Luke Pierce at 250-378-3607.
Follow the Cents on Twitter at @BCHLCentennials and on Facebook.com/MerrittCentennials.
Season tickets are still available for the 2012-13 season. For more information on how to get yours, call the Cents Marketing office at 250-378-3604.
The Merritt Centennials, proudly celebrating 40 seasons as the BCHL's longest continuously run franchise, are a non-profit, community owned Junior 'A' Hockey Club run by a dedicated team of investors, directors, and volunteers.
