Close games seem to be the flavour of the month for the Victoria Grizzlies.
Heading into tomorrow’s home game against the Nanaimo Clippers (7 p.m. puck drop, The Q Centre), the club had played in seven straight one-goal games in October – and eight overall.
In those seven games this month, the Grizzlies have three wins, two overtime losses and two regulation defeats.
The Grizzlies picked up three of a possible six points on their first extended road trip of the season last weekend, beating Salmon Arm 3-2, losing 2-1 to Penticton and dropping a 4-3 overtime decision to the Centennials in Merritt on Sunday.
The results left the Grizzlies (5-4-0-2) in a tie for second in the Island Division with the Alberni Valley Bulldogs (6-5-0-0), six points back of Nanaimo (9-3-0-0).
On Sunday, Merritt’s Diego Cuglietta scored in the last second of the first overtime period to give the Centennials victory. Having ended two periods deadlocked at 1-1, the teams traded a pair of goals each in the third.
All of the Grizzlies’ goals came on the power play. Garrett Forster and Kevin Massy tallied in the third while Meirs Moore scored in the first.
In Penticton, Grizzlies goalie Sean Cleary earned a game star for stopping 33 of 35 shots, but only Jay Mackie, with a first-period power play marker, could beat Vees goalie Hunter Miska on the night.
The Grizzlies’ Brett Gruber tallied the winner on the power play midway through the third period against the Silverbacks. Matthew Kennedy and Shawn McBride also scored in the win.
Victoria has a home doubleheader this weekend, hosting Surrey Eagles tomorrow night (Oct. 25) at 7 p.m. and the West Kelowna Warriors on Sunday at 2 p.m. at The Q Centre.
