Langley, BC – The Rivermen fall 7-5 to the Victoria Grizzlies in a goal frenzy of a game on Saturday night (November 16) at the Langley Events Centre. The Rivermen lose their second straight game and drop to 14-8-1-2 on the season, but still remain second in the BCHL Mainland Division.
It was a picture perfect start for the Rivermen as they got off to an early two goal lead in the first period with goals from Marcus Vela and Mitch McLain. The Rivermen also chased the Grizzlies starting goaltender Nic Renyard who only faced 3 shots giving up two goals. Even with the great start the lead didn’t last with the Grizzlies scoring two quick goals of their own to tie the game as no lead was proving to be safe.
After the first period the game was tied at 3 and the goal scoring continued early in the second period as Mark McLellan scored 46 seconds into the frame for the Grizzlies. The go ahead goal for the Grizzlies ended Brock Crossthwaite’s night in net and for the second straight night the Rivermen used both their goaltenders. All four goaltenders saw action in this one as both teams had their struggles on the defensive side of the puck.
The Rivermen’s defense continued to struggle in the third period giving up another early goal and putting themselves in a 6-4 hole with about 17 minutes left to play. For most of the third the Rivermen had a tough time sustaining offensive zone pressure until Jakob Reichert pushed the puck and the goalie into the net to get within one. The goal gave the Rivermen a shot at a last minute come back but it fell just short with the Grizzlies scoring an empty net goal to seal their third straight victory.
The Rivermen will look to rebound on Thursday November 21st when they host the Prince George Spruce Kings and a chance to regain the lead in the BCHL Mainland Division. The Spruce Kings currently lead the division by one point but the Rivermen do have a game in hand.
The battle for first gets started at 7:15pm at the LEC for tickets visit www.ticketmaster.ca
