The Trail Smoke Eaters split their opening exhibition games against the West Kelowna Warriors on the weekend.
Following a 3-2 overtime loss on Friday in Kelowna, the Smoke Eater offence erupted for six goals in the first period on their way to a 9-7 victory Saturday at the Cominco Arena.
In Saturdays win at home, goals from Cooper Leitch, Connor Brown-Maloski, and Evan MacEachern in the first three minutes and seven seconds put Trail up 3-0 before the Warriors Jonathon Desbiens replied on the power play.
The Smokies would score three more times before the period was out, while the Warriors Desbiens would get his second on the pp with a laser to the top corner to make it 6-2.
The Smoke Eaters would take advantage of some undisciplined play by West K, as Dexter McLeod, Kale Howarth, , and Harlan Orr would put the Smokies up 9-2 in the middle frame before the Warriors settled down and score three times in the final two minutes of the period to make it 9-5 heading into the third period.
Kelowna would net two more in the final six minutes of the third to draw within two but the Smoke Eaters held on for the 9-7 win.
On Friday three Warrior power play goals would be the difference in a 3-2 overtime loss by the Smokies. The Smoke Eaters would take a 2-1 first-period lead on goals from Spencer McLean and Max Newton, but West Kelowna’s Reed Gunville would tie it four minutes into the second. After a scoreless third period a point shot by Nick Rutigliano in overtime would find its way through traffic and beat Trail goalie Bailey Macburnie for the victory.
Trail’s next game goes Friday in Castlegar against the Selkirk College Saints, before returning to Trail on Saturday for a 7:30 game at the Cominco Arena.
See more on the Smoke Eaters in this week’s Trail Times.
