An offensive outburst in the second period lifted the Chilliwack Chiefs to a 3-2 win against the Prince George Spruce Kings Wednesday night in Chilliwack.
In the B.C. Hockey League game, the Chiefs scored all three of their goals in the latter half of the middle frame. With his team down 1-0, Luke McColgan got Chilliwack started with an unassisted power-play marker at the 11:41 mark. A little more than a minute later, Craig Puffer struck for the home team. And, before the period was done, Liam Ferguson added to the Chiefs' total.
The Spruce Kings pulled themselves into a 3-2 deficit at 15:27 of the third when defenceman Raymond Grewal scored his first BCHL goal on a power play. But the Kings failed to beat Chilliwack goaltender Aidan Pelino the rest of the way and settled for the one-goal loss.
Prince George opened the scoring in the first period on a goal by Justin Rai, his league-leading 10th of the season. Jake LeBrun and Grewal drew the assists, so Grewal finished the night with two points. The 19-year-old P.G. product was moved to the Kings from the Western Hockey League's Prince George Cougars on Oct. 9.
Rai, a 20-year-old from Surrey, is tied for the BCHL points lead with Prince George native Liam Blackburn of the West Kelowna Warriors. Both players have 17 points.
Pelino earned the win, while Alex Brooks-Potts - who was named the game's third star - took the loss for the Spruce Kings. The Chiefs outshot the Kings 15-8 in the decisive second period and 34-30 overall.
With the result, the Chiefs improved to 7-1-0-1 and the Spruce Kings dropped to 6-3-0-1. Chilliwack is in first place in the Mainland Division, two points ahead of the second-place Kings.
The game was the first of a grueling road trip for the Spruce Kings. Next up is a date tonight with the Powell River Kings (4-4-0-2). The Spruce Kings will also face the Nanaimo Clippers on Saturday and the Alberni Valley Bulldogs on Sunday.
The next home game for the Spruce Kings is Thursday against the Penticton Vees. The puck will drop at 7 p.m. at the Coliseum.
