Gericks Sports made a move in the right direction in Trail Commercial Hockey League action last week, shutting out OK Tire on Thursday, 1-0, before dismantling Re/Max 6-2 on Sunday.
Gerick’s forward Craig Clare notched the winning goal one minute into the second period, beating Re/Max goalie Chris McIsaac for a 3-1 lead, for Gericks second win in as many games.
The four-points moves Gericks up the standings and in striking distance of the final playoff spot, as fourth-place Arlington lost to Re/Max on Thursday.
Gord Aiken scored two goals in the first period to give Gericks a 2-1 lead heading into the middle frame. After Clare notched his 18th goal of the season, David Moorehead sniped his sixth at 9:10 for a 4-1 second-period Gericks lead.
Devyn Hill brought the realtors within two at the 3:10 mark of the third, but goals from Travis Drake and Curtis Wabelin iced it for the sportsmen.
In Sunday’s other match, OK Tire bounced back from just its third loss of the season, to skate to a 5-3 victory over Allstar. Cam Ferguson scored what proved to be the winner with 30 seconds remaining in the first period, as the Tire rolled out to a 4-1 lead on the way to its 16th win of the season.
A power play op opened the scoring for OK Tire, before Allstar’s Scott Davis tied it at 14:30.
Justin Adrian tallied his 24th point on a set up from Peter Sheets and Kyle Boutin to give the Tire a 2-1 lead. Sheets and Darrin Kissock then combined for the assists on the Tire’s leading scorer Shane Drake’s 12th of the season with 4:50 to play.
Scott Morrisseau tallied two straight midway through the second period to draw Allstar within one, but that was all they would get, as Joel Graf rounded out the scoring for the Tire converting another Kissock offering for the 5-3 victory.
On Thursday, a lone goal from Eric Hill 15:30 into the second period stood up as the winner, as Gericks road a stellar performance from goalie Mike Kooznetsoff for the 1-0 upset victory over the league-leading Tire.
In Thursday’s other match, Re/Max beat the Big A, 8-5, on the strength of an unlikely hat trick from the speedy but slight Justin Bedin. Graham Proulx pitched in with two goals and an assist for the realtors, while defenceman Grant Tyson had a career game netting two points with a goal, his first of the season, and an assist. Hill rounded out the scoring for Re/Max.
The Arlington meanwhile slipped one point behind Allstar in the standings, despite a four-point night (2G, 2A) from Jeremy Robinson, a pair of goals from Mike Broyd, and a goal and two helpers for Pat Iannone.
The TCHL resumes play Thursday night with Gericks taking on Re/Max at 7:15 p.m. and Arlington facing off against Allstar at 8:30 p.m.