While the visiting Kitimat Ice Demons got on the board first Oct. 29, the Steelheads quickly established they were not having anymore of teams coming into their barn and taking home a W.
Down 1-0 approaching the end of the first period, Brendan Devries evened the score on passes from Lane Vienneau and Fraser Cameron.
Graham Fast would follow that marker up just 11 seconds later when he combined with Devries and Devon Booth to take a 2-1 lead into the second period.
The home team would put more distance between themselves and the visitors early in the second period on a second goal from Devries, this time from Fast and Michael Lynch.
About halfway through the second, Lynch would make it 4-1 with an assist from Fast, his third point of the game.
Within seven seconds of that, Kitimat tried to claw their way back into the game with one of their own, but then Smithers opened the floodgates again.
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Devries completed his hat trick unassisted at 13:52, followed by Jonathan Cresswell (from Lyndon Dykens and Brady Chartier) at 14:28 and Josiah Cunningham (from Vienneau and Mathew Deveau) at 14:45.
The Ice Demons managed to tack on another before the end of the period, but Smithers still took a commanding 7-3 lead into the final frame.
The third period was all about goaltending. Kitimat came out of the dressing room on fire peppering 18-year-old CIHL rookie goaltender Nick Garcia with 16 shots. But the young recruit was good on 15 of them making the final 7-4.
The win puts the Steelheads solidly on top of the CIHL East Division with a record of 4-1-0-0. However, both the Quesnel Kangaroos (2-0-0-0) and Williams Lake Stampeders (0-2-0-0) have three games in hand.
In the western division both Prince Rupert (5-0-0-0) and Terrace (3-0-0-0) are undefeated. Kitimat has not won a game yet.
The Steelheads’ play next in Hazelton Nov. 12. Their next home game is not until December 11 when the defending league champion Terrace River Kings come to town.
editor@interior-news.com
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