The Nanaimo Clippers lit the lamp against the Chilliwack Chiefs and are right in the thick of things in the round robin.
The Clips beat the Chiefs 7-3 on Friday at Frank Crane Arena and Nanaimo now has one win and one loss in the third round of the post-season.
"It was important to get a win for a gazillion reasons, bouncing back," said Mike Vandekamp, Clippers coach. "We're in a short little round robin here. We could not have afforded to lose tonight."
The Clippers got goals from all four lines. Corey Renwick scored two goals and Yanni Kaldis, Cole Maier, Sheldon Rempal, Brendan Shane and Brett Roulston also found the back of the net. Guillaume Decelles made 28 saves for the win.
For the Chiefs, Brandon Potomak, Jake Hand and Rory Bell were the goal scorers. David Jacobson made 30 saves in defeat.
Rempal's goal was the highlight of the night, as he skated a lap around the attacking zone, threading between opponents and deking out the goalie. But every goal was important in a round robin where goal differential could be a tie-breaking factor.
"Every line was going and we were able to score a few and that comes up big in this round robin," Rempal said.
He said his team brought a "do-or-die" mindset to Friday's matchup.
"We treated it like Game 7, like we should have, because every game's so key," said Rempal.
GAME ON … The Penticton Vees visit the Chiefs on Sunday (March 29) at 7 p.m. at the Prospera Centre, then the Chiefs travel to play the Vees on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the South Okanagan Events Centre. The Clippers' next game is Thursday, when they host the Vees at 7 p.m. at Frank Crane Arena.
sports@nanaimobulletin.com
Nanaimo Clippers beat the Chilliwack Chiefs 7-3 tonight at Frank Crane Arena… #Nanaimo #Clippers pic.twitter.com/QBJ8HPdvuc
— Greg Sakaki (@BulletinSports) March 28, 2015