The Chilliwack Chiefs came to the Prince George Coliseum thinking they had a chance to take advantage of one of the bottom feeders of the B.C. Hockey League in a two-game series at the Coliseum.
They didn't leave disappointed, filling their boots with a four-point bounty collected at the expense of the Prince George Spruce Kings.
Fresh from a 7-3 win over the Kings Thursday night, the Chiefs picked up right where they left off in the rematch Friday. They scored on their first shot and reeled off four more goals in the first period on the way to a 6-1 triumph.
Three of those first-period markers came off the stick of 19-year-old Chiefs winger Vimal Sukumaran, a Providence University recruit, who notched his hat trick before the game was 14 minutes old.
Zach Giuttari, Darien Craighead and Jordan Kawaguchi also scored, while Kale Kane collected four assists for the Chiefs (21-6-1-3), who strengthened their grip on first place in the Mainland Division. They're now 28 points ahead of Prince George (8-24-0-2) who remain fifth in Mainland.
It was a rough beginning for Kings goalie Liam McCloskey, making his first start in three games. Giuttari's high floating shot from well outside the blueline skipped into the net off McCloskey's trapper just 24 seconds into the game.
The Chiefs have the third-most potent offence in the B.C. Hockey League and they kept it coming. Sukumaran was left alone in the slot for a one-timer past a defenceless McCloskey and Craighead connected on a Chiefs' power play to make it 3-0.
Then at the 13:28 mark of the first, Kings forward Kyle Johnson put the puck right on the stick of Kane at the end of a scrum along the boards and that set up a 2-on-1 Sukamaran finished with a tap-in. Fifteen seconds later, the same two Chiefs connected again on a quick rush into the Kings' zone.
Corey Hoffman gave the crowd of 1,019 what it was waiting for near the end of the first period when he scored on Aidan Pelino, and the ice was littered with donations of toques, gloves and socks on Drop The Gloves and Sock It To Em' Night for the St. Vincent de Paul Society.
The Kings tried to make up for their atrocious start in the second period, outshooting the Chiefs 17-6, but were unable to score. Shots ended up 35-29 in the Chiefs' favour.
LOOSE PUCKS: Kings goalie Sam Tanguay, 20, suffered a head injury when he was hit with a puck in the pre-game skate Friday and did not dress for the game. Aaron Jakubowski, 16, was called up from the Cariboo Cougars major midget team for his first-ever appearance in a Kings uniform and he backed up McCloskey. Prince George was also missing 20-year-old forwards Braiden Epp (knee injury) and Jake LeBrun (broken clavicle)... The Kings finish 2015 on the road. They begin a three-game, three-night trip next Friday in Nanaimo and also visit Cowichan Valley and Langley.
