Game Day | TRA at BLA

It’s hockey night in Blackfalds.

The Trail Smoke Eaters open a two-game trek to Alberta against the hottest team in the BCHL.

The Bulldogs’ 4-3 win Wednesday night win over Okotoks is their fourth straight and although the Bulldogs have been out of the playoff picture for months, they are playing a role in determining the first round pairings.

The Smoke Eaters are looking for their fourth straight win tonight after impressive victories at home last weekend over Brooks and Cranbrook.

Trail limited the high-powered Bandits to 21 shots on goal last Friday, while posting a 4-1 triumph and scored four unanswered goals in Saturday’s 6-3 beating of the Bucks, while ending a 0-for-9 run on the power play in the process. The Smokies also extended their run of successful, consecutive penalty kills to 16.

The last time Trail turned up in Blackfalds, they skated away with an 11-0 win, which is tied for the largest margin of victory this season in the BCHL and the six second period goals is also a league high. It’s also when Teagan Kendrick also recorded his lone shutout so far this season and he was tested on many of the 23 saves he made in a wild, wide-open offensive affair.

The 20-year-old netminder will get the start tonight after missing six games over the past four weeks due to illness and a pair of dental surgeries.

Evan Sandar also had his biggest game of the season in Blackfalds with three goals and two assists, while Judah Makway recorded four assists and leads all players in the three-game season series with nine points on four goals and five assists. Christian Kim has five goals and three helpers against the Bulldogs.

All three head-to-head matchups were in December when the Bulldogs were making several personnel changes on the ice and behind the bench.

Assistant Brady Bakke took over from head coach Doug Quinn and the Bulldogs have solidified their roster, including the addition of goaltender Kirill Kapustin.

The 20-year-old from Vladimir, Russia has an 8-9-1 record, a goals against average of 3.48 and a save percentage of .905 with a team that gives up an average of 35 shots per game.

It was wild and crazy the last time these teams met in Trail.

The Smokies were leading 7-3 in the third period when Blackfalds buried back-to-back shorthanded goals just 35-seconds apart. Trail put the game away with a goal on that same power play and recorded an 8-5 win.

This is also a showdown between teams with contrasting streaks.

The Smokies put together a league high 14-game run, while Blackfalds battled through an 18-game winless streak; also the longest this season in the BCHL.

The Bulldogs have been led during their current run by Joey Melo.

The 19-year-old forward is the reigning first star of the week in the BCHL with two goals and four assists in two triumphs last weekend: a 4-0 victory over Vernon and a 4-2 decision over Spruce Grove. Melo also registered an assist Wednesday at home against the Oilers.

The puck drops at 6 p.m. Pacific Time, with all the action on Mixlr and FloHockey.

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