Expectations were high for Smoke Eaters fans after Trail went into Vernon and took Games 1 and 2 in the Snake Pit, but the Vernon Vipers tempered those hopes in a hurry.
The Vipers tied up the best-of-seven Interior Division semifinal series with a 3-2 Game 4 victory over the Trail Smoke Eaters on Wednesday at the Cominco Arena.
Related read: Vipers strike back beat Smoke Eaters in Game 3
And as the Smoke Eaters prepare for Game 5, Trail coach and GM Jeff Tambellini says the Vipers pushback was no surprise.
“Expectations in our room was just play well and find a way to get the third one,” he said. “They’ve played well, we played well – after four games the series is probably exactly where it should be.
“All these games are one-goal games coming down to the third period, there’s no expectations where we’re getting ahead of ourselves, it’s 2-2 and we’re in the best-of-three now, and looking to go back on the road and find a third game (win).”
The Smokies held the lead in both home games, but couldn’t hold it, allowing Vernon to tie it then take the lead and score the game winner in the third period. Whether Trail tightens up when defending the lead, or the Vipers have made adjustments, Vernon outshot Trail 16-9 and 10-6 in the third periods of Games 3 and 4, respectively, and outscored the Smokies 4-1 in the final frame.
“We did the same thing to them in Games 1 and 2,” said Tambellini. “No difference, we were able to come back in Game 3, and the last four minutes of the game, it’s pretty much overtime, the next goal wins. No different than last night (Wednesday). It was a long shift, and we thought there should have been a penalty on the one side, then it goes in the back of our net. Those are things you have to live with in playoffs. It’s a tight series and there’s not a lot of margin for error. I like where we’re at, our group’s still going good, and we have a lot left to give in the series.”
Related read: Smoke Eaters leave snake pit with 2-0 series lead
In Wednesday’s match, the Vipers’ Jack Judson scored his third of the post-season and what proved to be the game winner. Vernon veteran Jagger Williamson found Judson in the slot, and the Arizona State commit wired a snapshot past the glove of Trail goalie Donovan Buskey for a 3-2 lead with 5:53 remaining in regulation.
With the two road wins, the Vipers regain home-ice advantage and the momentum, as the series heads back to Vernon Friday.
Trail jumped out to a 2-0 lead with Owen Ozar converting a cross-ice pass from Braeden Tuck to beat a sprawling Aiden Porter at 5:45 of the first. Carter Jones made it 2-0 just 62 seconds later on a power play, firing a shot from the right hash mark over the shoulder of Porter.
Williamson tallied his third of the series on an unassisted effort, breaking past the defenceman and going forehand, backhand on Buskey to cut the lead in half with 2:43 left in the opening frame.
Vipers’ defenceman Trey Taylor didn’t waste any time in the second period, scoring on a slap-shot just 13 seconds into the middle frame to tie it at two.
Trail outshot the Vipers 20-16 through two periods but struggled to find any offence in the final frame. After Judson’s go-ahead goal, the Vipers held off the Smokies attack, including a 6-on-4 man-advantage in the final 35 seconds.
Trail and Vernon each had 26 shots on goal, with the Smokies going 1-for-6 on the power play and Vernon 0-for-2.
Jones was named the game’s first star for Trail, with Williamson earning second star, and Judson third star.
Despite the home losses and with Game 5 imminent, Tambellini and the Smokies remain confident and focused.
“There’s no wavering in our group,” he said. “We feel good about our group, we like where we are, we like our process. We’re in a great series … and it’s going to be a heck of a finish. We’re looking forward to it, it’s a great challenge, it’s going to be an unbelievable series to be a part of. So, again, our group does not waver at all.”
Tambellini says the Game 5 line up will remain intact, and other than a generous amount of bumps and bruises, the Smokies are relatively healthy.
Game 5 goes in Vernon on Friday night and the Interior semifinal will return to Trail for Game 6 on Saturday with the puck drop at 7 p.m.
In the other Interior match up, Wenatchee Wild bounced back from a Game 3 loss to beat the Cowichan Valley Capitals 4-1 and even the semifinal series at 2-2.
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