On a night of upsets in the B.C. Hockey League, the Mainland Division-cellar-dwelling Surrey Eagles kept up their part of the bargain with a convincing 4-1 defeat of the division leaders, the Coquitlam Express, at the South Surrey Arena. Fellow last-place clubs the Victoria Grizzlies (Island) and the Merritt Centennials (Interior) also posted victories on Friday night.
The Eagles were led by first-line forward Holden Katzalay who scored the hat trick, including the clincher into an empty net, and newly-installed center Wyatt Schlaht, who scored his first BCHL goal.
Victories have obviously been hard to come by for Eagles this season, who with the victory improved their record to 6-11-0-1, but the manner in which they outplayed the Express for the most part surprised even head coach Cam Keith. He watched as his rookie-laden team took the first 14 shots on goal in their three-goal second period, then essentially denied the Express any chance to get back into the game with an effective shut-down third period.
“I can’t really explain why they came out with so much energy today as compared to other days,” said Keith in a justifiably upbeat Eagles dressing room post-game. “Our compete level and heart were just there tonight. I think everyone, individually and as a team, was just getting beat up, beat up, beat up, and for whatever reason today, the mindset changed and they just played like they’re capable of. We finally saw the plays these kids are capable of making. They’re all good hockey players. That’s been the most frustrating part.”
Keith was also relieved to see how the Eagles scored—from close range, starting with Schlaht poking one home from close range to open his BCHL account. “He didn’t play very much last year, was mostly used on the 4th line in USHL,” noted Keith. “But he’s a good skater and a great kid. I think he’s just starting to feel confident. I inserted him into center tonight and he was good down low. That’s what we’ve been preaching in the room is getting to those hard areas and finding those second-chance opportunities.”
Katzalay’s first also came from right in front of Coquitlam goaltender Jack Watson, who singlehandedly kept his team in the game in the first period with a number of stellar saves. Katzalay’s second, which gave Surrey a two-goal lead, came shorthanded following a disastrous Coquitlam turnover at the Eagles blueline. Brandon Santa Juana sent the lanky Eagles forward in all alone from center ice, and he went backhand-forehand on Watson, then pushed the puck past him after Watson made the first save. Although the goal light went on, the goal was immediately waved off, only to be subsequently determined valid following a length huddle by the officials. Katzalay now leads the team in both goals (9) and points (19).
Surrey looked like a veteran squad in the third period, holding the Express to a measly three shots in the first 12 minutes, and seven in total. Powered by their 18 shots on goal in the second period, a season high, the Eagles outshot the Express 35-23 overall, snapping a 13-game streak which had them on the short end of that statistic.
“I rolled four lines tonight, which I haven’t done for awhile,” said Keith, “so that helped with our energy in the third. The guys really shut it down. They played disciplined hockey, made really smart plays out of the defensive end, and really didn’t give them much. That’s a good hockey team and they couldn’t do much tonight.”
The Eagles were playing in their first game since trading captain Cody Schiavon to the Trail Smoke Eaters on Thursday. Defenseman Kieran O’Hearn, whom Keith recruited when he was coaching the Smokies, came as advertised, and provided a lot of grit and solid defensive play. Twenty-year-old forward Liam Freeborn, the other player acquired in the swap and who had been playing on the Smoke Eaters’ top line, has yet to report for the Eagles. It was also the first game Hudson Schandor played with the ‘C’ on his jersey.
Surrey returns to the ice on Sunday with a matinee tilt in Chilliwack against the Chiefs to round out their schedule in what has been a trying month before playing six of their first seven games in November at ‘The Nest’.
