In a thrilling showdown last night, the Blackfalds Bulldogs extended their winning streak to five games with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over the Trail Smoke Eaters. The Bulldogs showcased their resilience at home, weathering a barrage of shots from a determined Smoke Eaters squad that outshot them 27-15 through two periods. Despite Trail’s pressure, Blackfalds held firm, securing the win in a tightly contested battle that highlighted their current dominance in the BCHL since they have no chance of making the playoffs they felt it was a great time to start winning games.
Joey Melo opened up the scoring for the Bulldogs at 16:32 of the first period. The assists on the goal went to Nicholas DiPaolo and Thomas Neu.
Shots on goal in the first period were 15-6 for the Smoke Eaters.
Hopkins, Minnesota native Cade De St Hubert ties the game up for the Smokies at 9:22 of the first period. The assist on the goal went to Medicine Hat, Alberta native Josh Evaschesen and Minnesota State commit Cash Carter.
The Smoke Eaters got a 5 minute major for boarding at 12:44 of the second period.
Joey Melo gave the Bulldogs the lead for his second of the night on the Power Play at 13:13 to make it a 2-1 game. The assists on the goal went to Luke Dahlen and Thomas Neu.
Shots on goal in the second period were 12-9 for the Smoke Eaters
Trail was awarded a penalty shot. As good as Ridge Dawson is it is Kapustin in net, so we all know what happened.
Shots on goal in the third period were 12-8 for the Smoke Eaters. The Smoke Eaters outshot the Bulldogs 39-23 in the game.
Kirill Kapustin made 38 saves on the 39 shots that he faced for the win for the Bulldogs. For the Smoke Eaters 20 year old Sacred Heart commit Teagan Kendrick made 21 saves on the 23 shots that he faced.
Three Stars of the game were 1) Kirill Kapustin 2) Joey Melo 3) Cade De St Hubert
Attendance in Blackfalds was 556
Bulldogs next game is Friday March 21st against Austin Borggaard’s former team the Langley Rivermen in Blackfalds.
