The No.1 Auto Body Bantam ‘A’ Tyees opened tiering round play with a convincing 9-1 victory over the Saanich Braves Sunday afternoon in Victoria.
Campbell River roared to a 5-0 first period lead and never looked back. Kurtis Scriba, Tyson Goebel, and Sage Lim led the attack with two goals apiece while singles went Cole Rennie, Josh Coblenz, and Travis Goodwin. Nick Kirshner turned in a solid effort between the pipes for the locals.
“I thought it was a really good team effort,” said Tyees head coach Peter Martin, “We moved the puck, played unselfishly, and proved we wanted to be the better team.”
All three lines contributed to the offensive explosion and Martin likes the balanced attack.
“The forwards all played well,” he said, “Especially the line of Coblenz, Scriba, and Goebel. They are a nice mix of different elements – speed, hustle, and hands.” The trio combined for five of the nine goals.
The Tyees continue tiering round play with a pair of home games this weekend. Friday night they host the highly-touted Victoria Racquet Club Kings, a team some say may be the best on Vancouver Island. Martin isn’t so sure.
“At this point I have no idea who is the best. All I know is it’s game number two for us and we have to be prepared. We need to focus on the things we’ve been talking about – coming together as a team and executing what we work on in practice.”
The opening face-off is set for 6:15 Friday evening at Strathcona Gardens. The Tyees are back in action at 1:45 Saturday afternoon against Nanaimo.