Youth trumps experience as Smoke Eaters skate to big win over TRU

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The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack participated in the Kolby Zanier Trust Fund game against the Trail Smoke Eaters of the British Columbia Hockey League on Saturday, with youth and speed on display for the Smoke Eaters as they seemed to beat the 'Pack to the puck in almost every situation on their way to a 9-3 victory.

“I was skating my bag off but they were too fast,” commented WolfPack forward Travis Herlein. “Those kids were just too fast and made us feel old.”

The opening frame was dominated by the Smoke Eaters as Dallas Calvin, Luke Bertolucci, Rajan Sidhu, and Brent Baltus all chipped in with goals en route to a 4-0 lead. Shots at the end of the period reflected the score as the Smokies were leading 14-4.

The second period saw some great opportunities for the 'Pack capped off by what seemed to be a sure goal as Jassi Sangha broke in on a breakaway, but Reed Vogt made not one but two great saves while David Gore followed behind but couldn't put the puck past Vogt. The second period saw no scoring but the Smokies led in shots 11-9.

The third period was filled with goals, as Baltus potted his second of the night followed by Brendan Long and Logan Proulx adding to the beating making the score 7-0. Herlein made sure the Smokies didn't finish the game with a donut on the board as he made it a 7-1 game with a little over 10 minutes to go in the final frame.

The last 4 goals went back and forth with Proulx adding his second followed quickly by Andrew Fisher squeezing one in the back of the net. Brent Baltus with two goals on the night already capped off a great performance putting his hat trick goal past WolfPack goalie Shane Mainprize. Cody Lockwood later put a shot from the blue line past Mike Molanich to see the final score end at 9-3.

The WolfPack will have a six-day layoff until they see the Clan from SFU come for a visit to Memorial Arena next Friday night. Come out and support your local university team for some exciting, fast-paced hockey as they inch closer to the start of the regular season.