The Trail Smoke Eaters end the two-week All Star break with tonight’s home ice showdown against the Sherwood Park Crusaders.
Both teams are red hot.
Trail is riding a league-high seven game win streak, while the Crusaders have won three in a row and are coming off a 5-3 beating of Brooks.
Smokies centreman Jason Stefanek has points in seven straight games, including a goal and two assists in their last game, a 7-2 silencing of Okotoks.
The Sherwood Park offensive attack includes the top two point producers in the BCHL.
Jeremy Loranger has 59 points, including 22 goals, while Kale Dach’s 52 points includes a league-leading 41 assists.
Loranger also leads the BCHL with 25 power play points, three ahead of Dach.
Connor Gengle is also tied with Cranbrook’s Bryce Sookro for most points by a BCHL defenseman with 34, including 16 points with the man advantage.
The Crusaders power play is leading the league at 35.7%, while the Smokies penalty kill is third in the BCHL at 84.7%
These teams have only met once this season, with the Crusaders scoring a 6-3 home ice victory on September 28.
Kale Dach led the Crusaders attack with three assists along with a two goal performance from Christian Chouha.
The Smokies trailed 4-0 before scoring late in the second period, their lone goal in the middle frame, despite firing 22 shots at Sherwood Park goalie James Venne, who made 46 saves on the night.
The 20-year-old also stopped two Trail penalty shots in the third period.
It’s a big game in the Interior Conference standings.
The Smokies sit third, five points ahead of the Crusaders.
Game time at Cominco Arena is at 7 p.m. and good seats are still available at Tickets.TrailSmokeEaters.com.
The Smokies have also rescheduled the January 10 game against Cranbrook that was postponed because of a highway closure. They will face the Bucks on Wednesday, February 26 at Cominco Arena.
