The Bulldogs gave up a pair of first period goals on Wednesday night and skated to a 3-1 road loss against the Nanaimo Clippers at the Frank Crane Arena.
Thomas Samuelsen opened the scoring for Nanaimo just 23 seconds into the first period when he deflected a point shot past Bulldogs netminder Cole Demers. Alberni Valley tied the game on a Ryan Miotto goal midway through the frame, but Clippers’ captain Marcus Mitchell tipped in a shot on the power play to give the hosts the lead after 20 minutes.
The teams traded chances in the second and third periods but the score remained 2-1 until Sammy Steele picked up an insurance marker for Nanaimo with less than seven minutes remaining. The Bulldogs couldn’t beat Jordan Naylor on their 10 third period shots despite some great opportunities with the goalie pulled for an extra attacker.
Demers played well in the loss, making 31 saves on the night. The Bulldogs went 0/2 on the power play.
Alberni Valley is back in action on Saturday when they host the Victoria Grizzlies for Teddy Bear Toss night. Faceoff is set for 7:00 PM.
