Centennials 7 Smoke Eaters 2

A very brief wrap on this one since my evening was spent working the Rebels/Leafs KIJHL game.

Trail dressed only 13 skaters in a 7-2 setback at the Nicola Valley Arena in Merritt after last night's close call in Penticton.

Joren Johnson, Marley Keca, Luke Bertolucci and Riley McDougall all missed out as the Cents jumped out to a 3-0 first period lead and never looked back, handing the Smokies their seventh consecutive defeat.

Silvan Harper and Chad Brears each scored twice, while Jakob Reichert chipped in with three points.

Garrett McMullen and Clayton McEwan (his second goal in as many games) replied for the Smokies, while Connor Tiechko chipped in with two assists.

Lyndon Stanwood made 44 saves for Trail, who were outshot 51-25.

Of note, Taylor House fought Merritt's Ross Mancuso in the first period; the two were teammates last year with Osoyoos in the KIJHL.

Up Next: Trail wraps up the road swing in Westside tomorrow, before returning home to host Merritt on Wednesday. Any possible Trail broadcast tomorrow night will be a "gameday decision" given the hefty dump of snow that graced (and continues to grace) the West Kootenay today.

KIJHL Tonight: Both local home sides held serve in their respective Game Ones. Castlegar's Scott Morisseau scored three times, twice in the first period as the Rebels won a physical opener over Nelson 5-1. Smokies AP Stuart Walton chipped in with three assists while Jordan Gluck made 30 saves, including several key stops in the latter half of period two. Beaver Valley fell behind early, but rode three power-play goals en route to a 6-3 victory over Spokane. The line of Chris Derochie, Ryan Edwards and Craig Martin combined for 8 points. Both series resume tomorrow in Castlegar and Fruitvale.