CHILLIWACK – Red-hot Kamloops, B.C. native Brady Milburn scored the game-winner for the Chilliwack Chiefs as they beat the Langley Rivermen 5-1 on Sunday BCHL action.
Austin Peters worked his way around the net while fighting off Rivermen defencemen, and found a path to pass to Brady Milburn. The BCHL All-Star Weekend hopeful took a powerful shot off his knee that went over the left shoulder of goaltender Charlie Tritt. The 2-1 goal was Milburn’s seventh of the season. He now has points in three of the last four games.
The Chilliwack Chiefs (12-9-1) had goals from five different players, while the Langley Rivermen (7-16-2) lost their third in a row.
As the Rivermen often do against the Chiefs, they scored first. At 3:16 in the first period, Aaron Reierson (5) buried the rebound after Luke Ashton and Ryder McIntosh got the puck in front of the net. In four games played against each other so far this season, Langley has put the first one on the board in all four games.
The Chiefs tied it up a little less than three minutes into the second period. Matt Argentina stayed committed to the scoring opportunity by bringing the puck into the zone and patiently waited for his opportunity to pass to Mateo Mrsic. The assistant captain shot the puck five-hole, which slowly slid through and made its way in.
In the third period, defenceman Olivier Beaulieu got the insurance goal for the Chiefs on a powerplay to make it 3-1. Beaulieu sat back and waited for the play to come to him. He did not miss his shot, sending it through traffic and into the back of the net. Nathan Morin got an assist and Peters recorded his second point on the night.
The Chiefs were still threatening after going up by two. Only one minute and 25 seconds later, the always productive Brian Morse sent a pass from the blue line that was backhanded into the net by Dylan Kinch.
Matt Argentina sealed the deal when he scored the empty netter.
Another solid performance by Austin McNicholas led the Chiefs to victory. Since Vladimir Nikitin left to play for Kazakhstan at the Division I World Junior Championship, the 19-year-old has started in five games and earned the win in all of them.
Tritt gave up four goals on 32 shots.
It was Youth Hockey Night at the Coliseum. Plenty of players and fans filled the seats to celebrate the game they love. The excitement extended past the final whistle when those youth took the ice with the Chiefs in a Sunday postgame skate.
Chilliwack plays two games next weekend, the first against the Surrey Eagles on December 8th. The second is ‘Toque Toss’ night against the Coquitlam Express at the Coliseum on Saturday, December 9th. Contact the Chief’s office at 604-392-4433 or stop by the Chilliwack Coliseum to purchase your tickets. Tickets are also available anytime online.
