Coquitlam's Mathew Barzal, left, battles defenceman Ty Schultz for position during the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League's All-Star Game on Friday in Langley.
Photograph by: Troy Landreville , Langley Advance
When it rains, it pours - and for the Vancouver Northeast Chiefs it's raining toonies from heaven.
The B.C. Major Midget Hockey League squad added two more wins to their now eight-game win streak, topping the North Island Silvertips 7-0 and 5-3 in a weekend doubleheader.
"I always expect to win but the zeros are pretty impressive," remarked head coach Doneau Menard. "As a team I thought we really played well, especially on defence, and that's been the goal from the start."
Jeffrey Smith collected his third straight shutout in the opener on Saturday, reducing his goals against to 2.75 per game in the process. The league's top shooter, PoCo's Colton Kehler, opened the scoring 3: 19 into the game on assists from linemates Tim Chow and Mathew Barzal.
Barzal finished with two goals and an assist, while Chow also tallied and set up three others. Also scoring were Jordan Henderson, Matthew Hermany and Michael Willms.
The next day, the Coquitlam-based Chiefs got goals from Barzal and Kehler to open up a 2-0 lead in the first period. After the Silvertips cut the deficit to one, Kehler potted his second of the game and league-leading 35th of the season.
Rounding out the scoring were Lucas Johansen and Henderson. Barzal finished with four assists, giving him a league-high 63 helpers and 88 points.
The victories boosted the Chiefs' record to 20-7-3, fourth place overall but just two points back of the Cariboo Cougars and Okanagan Rockets, who are tied for second.
Prior to the two games against South Island, a handful of Chiefs participated in the B.C. Major Midget All Star Game in Langley.
Forwards Barzal, Chow and Kehler, defenceman Dalton Yorke and netminder Nick McBride were selected for the event, which saw Team White take a 6-2 decision over Team Red, thanks to Kehler's two-goal performance.
The PoCo native was named the game's first star.
The Chiefs host the Greater Vancouver Canadians, who sit sixth overall, on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Coquitlam's Planet Ice. Game 2 of the doubleheader is being played Sunday in Richmond.
