The U18 Sea Wolves and Smithers Storm split their high-scoring weekend series with first place in the league on the line.
The Sea Wolves took to the ice in the first game looking to remain the top team in the league with Smithers trailing by three points. The game got off to a rocky start for the Sea Wolves and with seven minutes left in the first period Charlie Brown would get a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct for boarding and Craig Munro got a minor penalty for interference from the bench, giving Smithers a long two-man advantage.
Smithers came up short on both power plays but would score two goals before the end of the period as Kingston Lewis Jack and Evan Anderson gave Smithers a 2-0 lead.
After a disappointing first period the Sea Wolves wanted to strike back but the only goals of the period ended up in the back of their net. Eamon Cunningham, Evan Jaarsma, Tucker Slaney and Damien Lowrey each scored giving Smithers a 6-0 lead after two periods.
Down by six starting the third, the Sea Wolves didn’t have a good chance of winning, yet they still battled scoring three goals in the first three minutes of the third with goals from Noah Movold, Noah Bomben and Owen Davies to give them life. Shortly after the Sea Wolves’ third goal Damien Lowrey scored to give Smithers a 7-3 lead.
In the final five minutes, both teams added a goal with Luca Pirillo scoring for the Sea Wolves and Tucker Slaney capping the scoring to make the final score 8-4.
With their league lead trimmed to a single point, the Sea Wolves were eager to respond in Game 2.
Riley Murphy opened the scoring four minutes into the game, giving the Sea Wolves a 1-0 lead through one period. In the second, Davies added a goal and Pirillo scored twice to make it 4-0.
The Sea Wolves continued to dominate in the third. Pirillo completed his four-goal weekend with two more tallies and Movold added another to seal a 7-0 win. Goaltender Ballack Dantas earned his first shutout of the season.
The Sea Wolves return to home ice on Nov. 30 for a Sunday doubleheader against the Terrace Kermodes.
