The Abbotsford Pilots scored early and often on Friday, en route to a 6-1 win over the Aldergrove Kodiaks.
Coming off a loss on home ice on Sept. 23, the Pilots scored three goals in the opening frame to cruise to the win.
Philip Gauthier opened the scoring at 3:53 of the first period, and about two minutes later Kolby Steen made it 2-0. Mateo Toledo scored his league-leading 11th goal at 14:17 to give Abbotsford a cushion heading into the second.
Dryden Michaud scored a pair of goals in the second period, to build the lead to 5-0 after two periods.
Nicholas Leeder made it six unanswered goals for the Pilots in the third period, scoring his first-ever Pacific Junior Hockey League goal. The Kodiaks then scored a late goal to break the shutout bid of Pilots goalie Jacob Crawford, who stopped 53 of 54 shots for his fourth win of the season.
Abbotsford’s power play was firing on all cylinders on Friday, as they connected three times out of six with the man advantage. Michaud, Steen and Jackson Waniek all recorded multi-point games for the Pilots.
Abbotsford’s record improved to six wins and two losses with the victory, and they sit in second place in the Harold Brittain conference.
The Pilots next host the Richmond Sockeyes on Friday.
The team also has two upcoming events in October. They celebrate Hockey Day in Abbotsford on Oct. 29. Fans are invited to come to the parking lot at Envision Credit Union on Sumas Way to play road hockey with the Pilots, win prizes, ticket giveaways and more.
On Oct. 15 and 16 is the Pilots’ 17th annual Fishing Derby. The Gary Graber/Richard Newton Memorial Fishing Derby invites anglers to camp and fish on the Vedder River, with prizes and other activities.
