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Game Day Preview: Cents @ Eagles – Nov. 17

The Merritt Centennials (5-15-1-0) get set for a reset in game two of their island road swing against the Surrey Eagles (8-13-1-3) this afternoon.

The Merritt Centennials found themselves down early, and weren’t able to climb back into the game in a 6-3 loss against the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies had gone 2 full games without scoring a goal, but they broke that slump just over a minute into the game with Henri Schreifels beating Marshall at the 1:08 mark to give the Grizz the early edge. Cody Monds would add to the lead at the 7 minute mark of the first and that seemed to wake the Cents up from their slumber. Already outshooting the Grizzlies, the Cents poured it on with 17 shots in the first period, but were unable to solve Joe Howe who was terrific in net for the Grizzlies. In the second period, the Centennials looked to get themselves back in the game after Hunor Torzsok deflected a Talon Zakall shot in from the point. Unfortunately, the Cents gave the goal back on the very next shift and Victoria restored the 2 goal edge 3-1 for the end of 40 minutes of play. The final frame saw the Cents push at times, but not to the degree required to get back in the game. The Grizzlies would open the scoring in the period at the 6 minute mark, but this time it was the Centennials who answered on the shift after the goal with Kagan sneaking one past Howe. Victoria was able to answer back later in the frame, and Talon Zakall notched his 2nd goal in 3 nights as to bring the Cents within 2, but with the net empty the Grizzlies leading scoring Schreifels would add another to ice the game for the 6-3 final. Final shots were 39-24.

The Surrey Eagles are 2-3 in their last five, and come into the game on tail of two losses in a row with tight one goal games against Division opponents. They lost 4-3 to the Coquitlam Express on Friday, and lost a tight 2-1 game to the Langley Rivermen earlier in the week. The Eagles are a transformed team this season under Head Coach Cam Keith. They’ve brought in some quality players, can score if given the opportunity, and play on the olympic sized ice. If the Cents aren’t ready to go off the hop, the Eagles could land with ferocity after a day of rest.

Josh Kagan added another goal to his totals last night and continues to lead the team with 21 points. Payton Matsui and Daniel Tkac help pace the attack with 15 points, and the Cents are hoping for a boost in the ranks by adding Christian Buono who was acquired via trade into the lineup tonight.

The Eagles boast a couple dangerous threats in their lineup with some players who are in the top 20 of BCHL scoring. Holden Katzalay is 7th league wide with 31 points, Christophe Tellier is 14th with 25 points, and Hudson Schandor isn’t far behind with 24 points.

The special teams battle sees the Eagles with the edge. Once again the PK was perfect last night for the Centennials albeit with just a couple opportunities to kill.

Powerplay:                               Penalty Kill:

Cents – 6.5% (17th)             Cents – 72% (16th)

Eagles – 15.9% (11th)         Eagles – 81.4% (9th)

The Cents may be looking to shake things up in net tonight to see if that changes the play in front of the goaltender. Tanner Marshall is 3-7 with a .877 SV% and a 4.55 GAA. Affiliate Carter Woodside from the Princeton Posse has looked impressive in limited action in the KIJHL. He’s 3-0 with a 1.33 GAA and a .943 SV%

The Eagles have been sharing the workload in the crease this year. Thomas Scarfone has picked up more wins at 5-8-1, a .916 SV%, and a 2.85 GAA. Cal Shell is 3-5 with an .897 SV% and a 3.64 GAA.

Head Coach Derek Sweet Coulter says the Cents need to be willing to pay the price for victory.

“We were trying to get too much from the outside tonight. We need to go to the front of the net, take some shots, pay the price, be good team mates and then we will start seeing results.”

The Cents will look to pay full admission for the win against the Surrey Eagles.

Puck drop 4pm from the South Surrey Arena. Pre-Game 3:45 on Q101 and HockeyTV with Jared Thomas.