The Maple Ridge Burrards had a weekend they’d just as soon forget after dropping two straight road games to the New Westminster Salmonbellies and the Nanaimo Timbermen.
The Burrards fall to 2-3 with the pair of losses, and are tied with the Burnaby Lakers for fourth place in the Western Lacrosse Association standings. The Salmonbellies avenged their 9-7 loss to the Burrards on Thursday with a convincing 14-4 thrashing on the road at Queen’s Park Arena. Joel Dalgarno got the Burrards on the board a minute into the game, a lead the team would hold until late in the first period when the ‘Bellies managed to score four goals on Burrards netminder Ron Schibild in the span of four minutes.
New West stretched their lead to 6-1 in the second period before Dalgarno could muster another goal for Maple Ridge. A comeback was not in the offing, however, as New Westminster continued to pelt Schibild in net with another pair of goals before the middle frame was through. With the score 8-2 going into the third, the Salmonnbellies so no signs of letting up as they scored four goals on Schibild before chasing him from the net at the midway mark of the period.
The Burrards put forth a much better effort Sunday in Nanaimo, however the result was the same.
Nanaimo struck first with a pair of goals for an early lead, but the Burrards answered back to tie things up by the 15th minute of the first period thanks to a pair of goals by Curtis Dickson. The teams traded goals once more and early in the second Kevin Reid gave the Burrards their first lead of the game.
It would be short-lived however, as the Timbermen tallied three goals to take a 6-4 lead.
Dalgarno, Riley Loewen, and Dayne Michaud each scored for the Burrards to restore their one-goal lead, but Matt McLeod of the Timbermen scored his fourth goal of the night in the final second of the period to tie things up once more.
Nanaimo took an 8-7 lead early in the third and were able to hold on for the win, shutting out Maple Ridge scorers in the final frame.
The Burrards next home game is this Sunday against the Langley Thunder at Planet Ice in Maple Ridge. Game time is at 6:45 p.m.
