When is a meaningless game not meaningless?
Maybe it was Friday night’s BCHL tilt with the Chilliwack Chiefs hosting the Penticton Vees at Prospera Centre.
Standings-wise, there was nothing at stake for either team. The Vees (43-13-3-0) came in with first place in the Interior conference nailed down weeks ago while Chilliwack (40-10-6-0) locked themselves into second place in the Mainland division with a 3-2 loss to the Prince George Spruce Kings last weekend.
But once the BCHL postseason starts next weekend, these two teams are going to be among a small group of favourites to take the title, and you don’t want to lay an egg against a potential playoff foe do you?
So there you go.
Meaning, and a reason for Chiefs fans to be encouraged by the 3-0 final.
Yes is was a 3-0 loss, but Chilliwack stood toe-to-toe with the Vees for most of it and out-played Penticton in the third.
If it was a measuring stick game they measured up well.
The Chiefs were also without their starting netminder for this one. Mark Sinclair was in the press-box nursing an injury sustained in the PG game. In his place, Josh Bolding made just his second BCHL appearance and his first for Chilliwack.
His previous action was in relief for the West Kelowna Warriors and his junior B numbers with the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League Sicamous Eagles aren’t great (4.11 goals against average, .881 save percentage), but the 19 year old looked fine versus the Vees.
Penticton beat him twice and neither were softies. The first came with Bolding down on the ice in a goal-mouth scramble. The netminder stretched out his left leg, trying desperately to hold the puck between the post and his skate blade.
Given several whacks at it, Nicholas Jones finally nudged it across the line with 10:07 to go for what would hold up as the winner.
The Vees applied the dagger on a power play with less than two minutes remaining as Jones cut down the left wing and snapped a shot inside the far goal post.
Penticton’s final goal was an empty netter, with Duncan Campbell diving in the neutral zone and from his belly sweeping the puck into the yawning cage.
The three stars were Jake Smith (first), Connor McCarthy (second) and Jones (third).
The Fortis BC Energy Player of the Game was Anthony Vincent.
Announced attendance was a season-high 4,089 on a night when Chilliwack FC held a fundraiser to help the families of two youth soccer players battling cancer.
The Chiefs have one regular season game remaining, a Sunday night home affair with Prince George starting at 5 p.m.
