Penticton, BC: The Trail Smoke Eaters couldn’t stay out of the penalty box Saturday night, and the Penticton Vees made them pay time and time again, going 5-for-7 on the man advantage in a 7-2 win in game two of the Interior Division semifinals.
Owen Sillinger opened the scoring in the game as Jonny Tychonick took a long shot from the line that Adam Marcoux stopped. Sillinger was all alone in front of the net, and easily corralled the rebound before sliding it past Marcoux just 3:46 into the game.
Trail answered quickly after Braeden Tuck flipped the puck from his own zone to centre, and Tyler Ghirardosi found it with a step on the Vees defenceman. Ghirardosi ripped the shot from the left circle over Adam Scheel’s glove to tie the game just over a minute after the Vees scored.
Jack Barnes continued his torrid scoring pace in the playoffs, jamming home a rebound off a Jared Nash shot for his fourth goal in six playoff games with under four minutes remaining in the period.
With just 10 seconds remaining Andre Ghantous was called for slashing, sending the Vees to the power play to start the second. Wyatt Sloboshan sent the puck to the goal line for Taylor Ward, who quickly fired it across the slot for Sillinger who fired home his second of the night just over a minute into the period.
A few minutes later, Barnes brushed Marcoux after the Trail goaltender covered the puck, sending Ethan Martini into an inexplicable rage, throwing haymakers at Barnes and throwing him into the end wall. Martini was subsequently ejected from the game, while Barnes had to be helped off the ice and didn’t return.
On the five-minute power play the Vees would score twice and Lukas Sillinger slid home a rebound in the crease before Jackson Keane banked the puck off Marcoux and in from blow the goal line 47 seconds later to make it 5-1 Penticton through 40 minutes.
After Spencer Maclean cut the game to 5-2 with five minutes to go, the Smoke Eaters parade to the penalty box resumed as Maclean was called for roughing after the whistle and given a misconduct, becoming the second Trail player to be ejected from the game.
Owen Sillinger completed the hat trick after his no-look centring feed went off a Trail player and into the net, eclipsing his goal total from last seasons playoff run with his fourth of the post season.
The Vees weren’t done there as Blaine Caton was called for goalie interference with 1:25 to play, and Keane scored his second of the game, firing a wrist shot past Marcoux in the slot with just 19 seconds to play.
The Vees now head to Trail for game three Tuesday night, looking for a 3-0 stranglehold on the Smoke Eaters.
