FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Merritt, BC – March 16, 2012
Brandon Pfeil's first of two goals on the night stood up as the winner to lift the Merritt Centennials to a 4-1 win over the Prince George Spruce Kings in BC Hockey League playoff action on Friday night at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena.
In addition to Pfeil's two-goal effort, Silvan Harper and Regan Soquila each chipped in with two assists for the Centennials.
After a scoreless opening frame, Prince George opened the scoring on a Michael Betz marker at 8:18 of the second period.
It didn't take Merritt long to respond as Brent Fletcher rifled home a shot past Ty Swabb at 8:41 to tie the game.
Pfeil gave the Centennials a 2-1 lead at 12:06 and the North Vancouver product scored again at 17:40 on a power play to increase Merritt's lead to 3-1.
In the third period, Billy Marshall scored 5:42 in to put the Cents ahead 4-1.
Ross Mancuso, Jakob Reichert and Chad Brears each notched an assist in the win.
Lino Chimienti made 32 saves for the win in goal for Merritt.
Swabb took the loss for Prince George, stopping 32 shots.
The victory is Merritt's first in a playoff game since March 13, 2007, when the Centennials beat Trail 5-2 in Game Six of the Interior Conference Quarterfinals.
With Friday's win, the Cents take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven Interior Conference Semifinal series.
Merritt hosts Game Two on Saturday night at 7:30 at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena.
For further information, please contact Cents Head Coach & GM Luke Pierce at 250-378-3607.
Fans looking to purchase advance, reserved Interior Conference Semifinal playoff tickets can do so on Saturday from 12 – 3 pm at the Centennials Marketing Office (2185 Voght Street).
Reserved tickets are also available on Saturday, March 17, Thursday, March 22 (if necessary) and Saturday, March 24 (if necessary) from 3 – 6 pm at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena.
All tickets purchased after 6 pm on game days are general admission and subject to availability. For more information, please call Cents Marketing Manager Rachael Sanders at 250-378-3604.
Exclusive Cents merchandise is available at both Booster Club Booths at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena during all Centennials games. Merchandise includes t-shirts, hats, hoodies, souvenirs and much more.
Select merchandise is also available outside of game hours at the Cents Marketing Office (2185 Voght Street) and at Merritt Printing (1951 Garcia Street).
Throughout the playoffs, fans are encouraged to go to MerrittCentennials.com for exclusive coverage including photo galleries, post-game coverage and more. For extensive pre-and-post-game analysis by the Cents play-by-play voice, Alex Grebenyuk, visit centscentral.blogspot.com
The Merritt Centennials, proudly celebrating 39 seasons as the BCHL's longest continuously run franchise, is a non-profit, community owned Junior 'A' Hockey Club run by a dedicated team of investors, directors, and volunteers.
Stay current with the latest team news by visiting www.merrittcentennials.com. In addition, stay connected with the Cents on Facebook (/merrittcentennials) and Twitter (@merrittcents)
