SUMMERSIDE, Prince Edward Island – The Summerside Western Capitals scored three unanswered goals in the first period and it was enough to beat the Edmundston Blizzard 5-2 on Friday night in the island city.
With a 2-0 lead in the first, the host team was awarded a penalty shot which led to Trentyn Crane’s second goal of the game. The score turned to 3-0, a heartbreaking goal for Simon Olivier’s troops. The decision to allow the penalty shot was probably one of the worst decisions made by a referee in a very long time in this kind of situation. A Western Capitals forward was held up by a Blizzard defenseman near the board as the two skaters were head to head. A time penalty, at most, should clearly have been awarded.
Crane completed the game with two goals and two assists. Ed McNeill, Sid McNeill and DonHeaven Veilleux had the other goals for the Western Capitals (8-2-0-0). The Capitals led 3-0 and 4-1 after the first two periods.
Noah Matulu (5th) and Alex Arsenault (8th) were the only Blizzards (6-7-0-1) to beat goaltender Chad Arsenault. The Capitals brought in Arsenault, a goaltender who played 20 games with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan last season, posting an excellent 2.75 goals-against average. On Friday night, he stopped 24 of 26 shots against him, earning the game’s first star.
Samuel LeBlanc was in front of the Blizzard cage. He faced 23 shots.
The two teams will come to grips again on the Credit Union Place ice rink on Saturday, October 29, starting at 7 p.m.
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Photo
Alex Arsenault scored Blizzard’s second goal on Friday night. Photo archives Percy Picard
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Contact: Hugues Chiasson, vice-president communications – The Edmundston Blizzard; (506) 740-0623 – cell phone