On Wednesday night the Langley Thunder were back in action as they took on their rivals the New Westminster Salmonbellies. This was the second meeting between these two teams. Langley won the first game 12-8.
The game began with Langley flexing their offensive muscle as despite only having 6 shots in the first period Langley were able to build a 4-0 lead. New Westminster though could not get their offense going as they went 0-5 on the power play in the first period. In the second period the two goalies were the stars as Tyler Richards and Steven Fryer were saving everything thrown at them. New Westminster finally beat Fryer with a goal from Ian Hawksbee. Langley wasted no time in responding though as just 27 second later Alex Turner found the back of the net with a beautiful over the shoulder goal. With less than a minute to go in the second period the score was 5-1 but New Westminster would strike to make the score 5-2 and cut the lead to just three goals. Langley though once again quickly responded with a goal from Tor Reinholdt. The score after two periods saw Langley leading 6-2. In the third period Langley’s offense kicked it into high gear as they scored three straight goals to open the period including a beautiful goal from Athan Iannucci as he picked Ryan McMichael’s pass out of the air and scored with just 2 seconds remaining on the shot clock. New Westminster being down 9-2 decided to gamble and pull their goalie at the 12 minute mark of the game to hopefully spark their offense and fight back in this game. The gamble failed though as Tor Reinholdt forced a turnover and scored on the empty net. New Westminster finally started to get their offense going late in the third period as they scored 3 consecutive goals to make the score 10-5 but it was as close as they got as Langley’s defense was able to hold them off. The blood began to boil in the third period as Kerry Susheski fought Ilija Gajic. Langley though would keep their heads and focus on the game while showing great class as they refused to build their lead despite New Westminster having an empty net late in the third period. The final score was 10-5 as Langley emerged victorious. Langley improves to 7-4 on the season and move into first place in the WLA with the win. New Westminster with the loss falls to 5-6 and currently sit in 5th place in the WLA.
The New Westminster Salmonbellies were outclassed tonight as they were unable to find a way to solve Langley’s defense and could not find a way to stop Langley’s offense. If New Westminster could have capitalized on their power play chances early this would have been a totally different game. New Westminster’s offense struggled due to their forwards dropping passes or having their passes swatted down by Langley’s defense. New Westminster needs to go back to the drawing board and find a way to get their offense running or they will continue to struggle. New Westminster’s other major problem is their inability to win on the road as they have only won a single road game this season. This loss marked New Westminster’s fifth consecutive road loss if they cannot find a way to win on the road they will find their chances of making the playoffs slipping away. New Westminster’s next game is on Thursday July 5  against the Maple Ridge Burrards.
Langley showed tonight why they are one of the top teams in the league as they were able to dominate on both defense and offense tonight. Defensively Langley was solid  as they were consistently knocking down New Westminster’s passes and forcing turnovers. Steven Fryer also was spectacular in net for Langley as he stopped 31 of 36 shots on net and was able to make big saves in order to stop New Westminster from fighting their way back into the game. On offense the returning Garrett Billings lead the way as he had 1 goal and 4 assists and was named first star of the game. Langley also received strong performances on offense from Athan Iannucci, Lewis Ratcliff, Shayne Jackson Tor Reinholdt and Alex Turner. Jackson was named second star for his 2 goal 2 assist night while Reinholdt was named third star for his 2 goal and 1 assist performance. Langley’s next game is a big one as they face off against the Victoria Shamrocks on Saturday night in a battle for first place. Langley will once again need to be at the top of their game if they hope to beat the Shamrocks. The game begins at 7pm on Saturday and can be watched online  at sportscanada.tv
