The Merritt Centennials will try and bounce back once again as they finish off a stretch of 4 games in 5 days against the Chilliwack Chiefs tonight.
The Merritt Centennials came off the heels of their best game in the Pod season against the Chiefs, but couldn’t match the effort and intensity as they fell to the Spruce Kings 2-0 last night.
The Cents had a decent effort in the first period as they traded some early chances with Prince George, but it didn’t take long for PG to out pace the Cents. Andrew Seaman opened the scoring after he picked a defenders pocket and broke in alone, he pulled to the backhand and was able to shovel it past Dias to make it 1-0. The Cents did well to keep just one goal behind, but they couldn’t muster much offense before the buzzer sounded.
In the middle frame the Cents had a tough time getting their legs going and Prince George came in waves. Josh Dias played exceptional to keep the Cents within one, but the team had trouble breaking out of the defensive zone and getting sustained pressure around Trotter. Neither team could solve the netminder in period 2.
Period 3 should have seen the Cents pour it on in an effort to level the score, but it was PG that had the legs and Nick Rheaume was able to capitalize after a shot off the end boards bounced to him and he was able to fire it short side and make it 2-0. Towards the tail end of the game the Cents were able to garner a bit of an attack, but it wasn’t enough to beat Trotter who hung on to secure the shutout. Final shots were 36-20 while both teams went scoreless on the powerplay.
Just as the Cents are coming off a shutout loss, the Chiefs are coming off a shutout win. Mathieu Caron bounced back after allowing 4 goals against the Centennials to deny all comers against the Spruce Kings the other night in a 1-0 victory. Dawson good scored short handed in the first period and the goaltenders went the distance after that in a duel to the final buzzer.
The Cents will need to find some energy off the bus and in the opening frame as overall they just didn’t have anything in the tank last night against PG. The first period needs to be strong and they somehow need to keep their legs through the whole 60 in this grueling finale. The Cents have been playing solid defensively, but need to get more going in the offensive zone and a return to the style of play they had in their lone win in the pod season that saw them going hard to the net.
Jake McLean continues to lead the Cents offensively with 4 points. Jerzy Orchard, Talon Zakall, and Walker Erickson sit just behind with 3.
The Chiefs have a balanced attack. Ethan Bowen leads the way with 5 points, Kyle Penney has 4 points, and 6 other players have chipped in with 3.
The special teams battle sees the Chiefs with the edge in both categories and the Cents will have to be wary of their high skill powerplay.
Powerplay: Penalty Kill:
MER – 13.6% (12th) MER – 76.7% (12th)
CHK – 15% (10th) CHK – 83.3% (7th)
The goaltending duel poses a question for both sides as each starting goalie has seen action in all pod games so far. Dias is 1-3 with a .883 SV% and a 3.98 GAA, but there’s a chance we could see Melnyk or Phillips-Watts suit up for this one.
Mathieu Caron is coming off the heels of a shutout and is 3-1 with a .926 SV% and a 1.76 GAA, but the Chiefs could turn to back up Gullmes and give Caron a breather.
Head Coach Derek Sweet-Coulter says that the team has to find a way to bring the energy.
The Cents hope they can energize themselves to a victory tonight.
Puck drop 5PM. Pre-game 4:45 on BCHLTV.ca and Q101.ca with Jared Thomas and Michael Reeve.
