By: Dylan Webb
In a game with a variety of implications for the BCIHL playoff picture, SFU produced one of their most complete 16 minutes of hockey of the season. At the Bill Copeland Sports Centre, they cut down the Trinity Western University Spartans in a 4–2 victory. The win sets up a potential playoff spot clinching game next Friday in Victoria against the team the Clan would be eliminating from playoff contention, the University of Victoria Vikes.
Other than one early hiccup, the first period was all SFU. Though the Clan fell behind 1–0 less than a minute into the game, they immediately recouped it when forward Mitch Newsome scored two power-play goals within two minutes. In the dying seconds of the period, forward Graham Smerek made a heroic short-handed shot, securing a two-goal lead for the Clan heading into the second.
While the Spartans responded in the second period, coming within a one-goal margin on a tally by Logan Casavant, the Clan cemented their win in the third period with an insurance marker from forward Mitch Ledyard. While SFU was dominated on the shot clock by an energized, restless Spartan team, the Clan netminder’s stellar performance allowed the team’s offensive attack to end in a huge two-point lead; the team’s forwards played with a killer instinct sharp enough to score four goals on just 18 shots.
Between the pipes, Ryan Sandrin was a major factor in the win. Stopping 36 of 38 shots, Sandrin saw his record climb to 4–1 on the season. As the team continues its battle for playoff positioning, they will need this type of performance from its goaltenders if they want to climb above the last playoff seed.
After the game, we asked Sandrin what this win meant for the team in terms of confidence heading into the final stretch of the regular season. Sandrin didn’t mince words: “It was a huge game and a huge win,” he said simply.
With the win over TWU, the Clan now look ahead to a Vancouver Island road trip with games in Victoria and Nanaimo. As mentioned, the Clan can formally clinch a playoff spot and eliminate the UVIC Vikes from playoff contention if they can win on Friday in Victoria.
Admittedly, this is something of a formality at this point. It would be hard for SFU to lose their spot to the Vikes; not only would UVIC have to earn a perfect 6–0 record in their final regular-season games, but SFU would have to lose seven of their last eight games. Even so, there is no doubt the Clan would like to formally punch their ticket to the first round of BCIHL playoffs so they can start focusing on positioning and potential first-round opponents.
When asked about the impending clinch possibility and the enormous implications for playoff positioning on the horizon, coach Mark Coletta said that he has a lot of confidence in his team in their ability to execute and increase their intensity levels to match the importance of the next half-dozen games.
Following the Vancouver Island road trip this coming weekend, the Clan returns to Nanaimo once more the following weekend before coming back to Vancouver for their next home game: another matchup with the TWU Saints, on Monday, February 18 at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre. Puck drop is 3 p.m on Monday — the Family Day holiday.
