Season Series
Nov 26th: Chilliwack 2 at Penticton 3 (OT)
Feb 24th: Penticton 3 at Chilliwack 0
Fred Page Cup Schedule
GM 1: Penticton 2 at Chilliwack 4
GM 2: Penticton 5 at Chilliwack 1
GM 3: Chilliwack 2 at Penticton 5
GM 4: April 19th at SOEC, 7 pm
GM 5: April 22nd at Prospera Centre, 7 pm
GM 6: April 24th at SOEC, 7 pm *
GM 7: April 25th at Prospera Centre, 7 pm *
*If necessary
The Penticton Vees look to take a convincing 3-1 lead in the Fred Page Cup Final against the Chilliwack Chiefs in Game Four tonight from the SOEC.
The Vees grabbed their first series lead last night with a 5-2 win in Game Three and in front of 3,009 fans. 15-year-old Massimo Rizzo scored his first BCHL goal Tuesday and Gabe Bast, Grant Cruikshank, Chris Klack and Jared Nash also scored in the Vees win.
Chilliwack’s Jordan Kawaguchi scored twice, once on the power-play and once short-handed but it wasn’t enough, as the Chiefs suffered their first loss on the road in the playoffs; it also marks the first time they’ve trailed in a series.
Tonight is a big swing game, as a Vees win means a 3-1 series lead and chance for Penticton to win the BCHL championship Saturday in Chilliwack. If Chilliwack wins, it’s a 2-2 series and it’s the Chiefs regaining home ice advantage, with potentially two of the next three at home.
Penticton probably won’t mess with a winning formula right now, as they will likely go with the same line-up tonight as they did in Game Three. Mat Robson will make the start in goal and is 10-7 in the playoffs, owning a 2.24 goals-against average and sports a .921 save percentage.
Chilliwack went with 11 forwards and seven defencemen last night, as forwards Tommy Lee and Justin Dixson didn’t dress. Forward Wyatt Elmer made his series debut, along with defenceman Davis Bunz.
Mark Sinclair suffered the loss in goal for Chilliwack last night, stopping 26 of 30 shots. Through three games in this series, he has a 3.52 goals-against average and a .895 save percentage. His overall playoff numbers still very good, owning a 13-6 record, to go along with a 2.25 goals-against and .921 save percentage.
Nicholas Jones had three assists in the win Tuesday and is second in the BCHL scoring race with 22 points. Gabe Bast isn’t too far behind as he has six goals and 16 points, and is the top scoring defenceman in the BCHL playoffs. Right behind Bast is Chris Klack, who has 15 and goals in back-to-back games.
Jordan Kawaguchi leads the BCHL in scoring with 34 points in 19 playoff games and already has three goals and six points in this series. Kohen Olischefski is second in Chiefs scoring with 20 points and Jake Smith rounds out the top three with 17.
Tonight’s game can be heard on EZ Rock AM 800 locally, or via the iHeartRadio app on your iPhone, iPad, smartphone and or tablet. The game is also available via the BCHL webcast at www.HockeyTV.com
