(image: Darren Francis)
The game was feisty from the outset, and hotly contested early. Chilliwack would open the scoring just short of the midway point, on a Brady Milburn deflection in front past Colin Winn. Chilliwack earned a power play seconds later, and connected on it on a scramble after a first save made by Winn, as Milburn scored his second straight to make it 2-0. The Bulldogs earned a power play with under two to play in the first and threatened on it, but the Chiefs held the lead to the buzzer.
The second period was a better one for the Bulldogs, but they were unable to generate enough offence to find the net, as it stayed 2-0 Chilliwack into the third.
The Chiefs came out strong to start the third, scoring three times in as many minutes to blow it open. An icing followed by a faceoff win made it a 3-0 game, as Dustin Renas scored on a high shot from the deep slot. Less than a minute later, Arjun Bawa snuck one through five hole, before it was 5-0 on a rebound at the side of the net finished by Dwayne Jean Jr, with all the scoring happening from the 2:25 to the 4:34 mark of the third. Connor Dick made it 6-0 with eleven minutes gone in the third, before the Bulldogs responded to snap a long shut out streak for Quintin Miller, as McCarthy Richardson snapped a wrist shot home on the rush, with assists to Teague McAllister and Zeke Nicholson to make it a 6-1 final.
Shots were 34-27 Chiefs, with Quintin Miller earning the win while Colin Winn took the loss. The Bulldogs went 0 for 4 on the power play, while the Chiefs went 1 for 2.
The teams meet again tomorrow night at the Coliseum, as the Bulldogs look to take a 1-1 series back “home”
