The bigger they are the harder they fall. The Express defeated the Chilliwack Chiefs tonight 7-5.
First Period:
This game did not take long to get into the swing of things and once it did, it was #FullSteamAhead.
1:25 into the period Abram Wiebe took a high-sticking minor. Ray Hamlin made him pay as he found his 3rd of the season 55 seconds into the penalty.
The Chiefs answered back very quickly as Dylan Kinch found a break and beat Smith to tie it up 34 seconds later.
At 7:44 Giesbrecht took back the lead off passes from Hamlin and Rubin.
Buttazzoni gave the Express their 3rd off a beautiful top shelf snipe that beat Austin McNicholas.
12 seconds later Chiefs player Brian Morse got called for slashing and put the Express back on the power play. The Express generated chances but with 16 seconds left, Buttazzoni took a roughing penalty.
16:17 is when Tyler Kopff got another one through for the Express’ fourth of the period.
With less than a minute and a half remaining, Luke Roberts was called for interference and the Chiefs took advantage. At 19:26 Mateo Mrsic capitalized and cut the lead to 2.
Second Period:
To begin the period both Vardy and Davidsdon got offsetting Unsportsmanlike conduct penalties to give us 4 on 4. During the 4 on 4, Buttazzoni got the Express back on the board for their 5th of the game.
3 seconds later, Buttazzoni got sent to the box for hooking, but the Express killed it off.
At 7:56 Mason Kesselring got the momentum going for the Chiefs and got their 3rd of the game. Just over a minute and a half later Abram Wiebe with help from a deflection off a defender cut the 3 goal lead to 1.
At 10:13 Vardy was called for interference, and at 14:20 Darius Bachler was called for high-sticking. Both were killed off.
Third Period:
54 seconds in, Gallucci was called for interference but the Chiefs were unable to convert.
At 4:32 Garzone scored for the Express’ 6th of the game.
At 5:23 we saw Devlin and Davidson drop the gloves. Each got 5 + 10 and Davidson got the additional 2 for instigating. During the play, Vardy also got 10 for disrespectful and abusive behaviour.
At 9:41 Giesbrecht and Morin got offsetting roughing minors.
With just under 5 minutes left in the game, Kinch scored his second goal of the game to cut the lead back to 1.
The Chiefs pulled their goalie and with a minute 47 left, Hamlin found the back of the net to seal the deal.
Post Game Thoughts:
From a fan’s perspective, this was THE game to watch. It had hard physical play that resulted in a fight and strong hitting along with offensive showings that lead to a plethora of goals.
Both teams went 1/5 on the power play but the Express in particular looked dangerous as they generated high-danger chances.
#FullSteamAhead | #RunThisTown
