The Alberni Valley Bulldogs (32-13-3-1) host the Chilliwack Chiefs (27-16-1-2) in a rare 4:00 pm Sunday afternoon game at the Multiplex.
The Bulldogs are coming off an emotion-charged 3-0 win over the Surrey Eagles last night before the biggest crowd in Port Alberni in almost 4 years. With the hoopla of last night’s dominant effort behind them, the Bulldogs must now turn their focus to a very good Chilliwack team who is coming off a 7-1 win over the Capitals in Duncan.
Adding to the concern for the Bulldogs is the fact that they’re likely to face a very grumpy Chilliwack team. This is the 5th and final match-up between the two clubs this year and to date, the Chiefs have managed a single shootout win over the Bulldogs. Alberni Valley is 3-0-0-1 against the Chiefs this year as they look for another win today. The Bulldogs have outscored the Chiefs 17-10 this year.
The Chiefs and Bulldogs are both big strong teams and their previous couple of matchups have been physical, hard-hitting, playoff style games. Expect today to be no different.
Chilliwack needs wins to secure home ice advantage in the 1st round of the playoffs, but more importantly, the Chiefs are still in a position to reach the upper levels of the Coastal Conference. Entering action today, the Bulldogs lead the Chiefs by 11 points in the standings, however Chilliwack is just 1 point behind Nanaimo who plays Surrey today.
With last night’s win, the Bulldogs secured home-ice advantage for at least the opening round of the playoffs. The Bulldogs now know that they will open at home on Friday April 1st & Saturday April 2nd.
Wins at the Multiplex have been plentiful this season and it’s been well documented. The Bulldogs have a true home-ice advantage here at the Dawg Pound. They’ve won 10 in a row in this building, and have posted a home record of 19-3-2-0. They’re also +40 here as they’ve outscored the opposition 94-54.
The Chiefs are led by Cam Johnson, who enters action tonight 8th overall in the BCHL points race with 58. The Bulldogs are led by Josh Zary and Stephen Castagna with 48 points each. That number has the duo tied for 20th in league scoring.
Hobie Hedquist became the first Bulldogs goalie to win 25 games in a season since Frank Slubowski in 2009-2010. Slubowski finished that season with 32. Hedquist also earned his 5th shutout of the season, a tie for franchise record. The BCHL record for shutouts in a season is 7 held by Michael Garteig, Ty Taylor & Brad Thiessen.
After today, the Bulldogs have just 4 games remaining in their season including two home games against Langley and Nanaimo next Saturday & Sunday.
