Luckily, the fog obscured some of the action on opening night.
Otherwise fans at the Nanaimo Clippers' home opener at Frank Crane Arena on Friday would have had a clear view of an ugly 8-2 loss to the Surrey Eagles.
Nanaimo allowed an even-strength goal on Surrey's first shot of the game, then let in seven straight power-play goals to fall behind 8-0 a minute in the third period. Finally the home team got a goal when Sam Labrecque skated free through the slot and wired one home. Soon after, Myles Fitzgerald crashed the net and banged home a loose puck to round out the scoring.
The game was notable for foggy conditions at the renovated arena. But with both teams having to deal with the mist, the Clippers certainly weren't using the fog as an excuse.
"It wasn't foggy for the start of the game so it doesn't really affect the outcome," said Andrew Gladiuk, Clippers alternate captain.
He wasn't sure why the Shipmen weren't ready to play at puck drop.
"We've got to be better, get our heads in the game," he said. "We got a little stupid and got into penalty trouble and it all kind of spiralled from there."
He said the players will be able to put the loss behind them, but not before learning something from the setback.
"It was definitely disappointing," said Gladiuk. "We had a lot of expectations coming in, a lot of hype and we didn't bring our top game."
ICE CHIPS … Charles-Andre Pelletier suffered the loss in goal, allowing five before being replaced by Charles-Alexy Premont … Final shots were 32-27 for Surrey … Kyle Kramer left the game with an undisclosed injury and is listed as possible for the team's next game Friday (Sept. 24) against the Westside Warriors at 7:10 p.m. at Frank Crane Arena.
sports@nanaimobulletin.com
