New West Picks Up Crucial Win On The Road

The Bellies Beat by Kyle Richardson LANGLEY – The Salmonbellies ended their three game winless streak last night with an 11-9 win over the Langley Thunder. The Bellies hadn’t played three regular seasons games without a win in over four seasons. Sitting at third place in the W-L-A standings and only two points ahead of their opponents going into Wednesday’s tilt, the Bellies needed a sixty minute performance. It may not have been their best game of the season but they will take the win for sure. New West jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period but that evaporated quickly as the Thunder pulled even to start the second frame. After falling behind 6-5 late in the second, Bellies sniper Cliff Smith tied the game, scoring his first goal since returning from injury earlier this month. In the third the Bellies transition game proved to be the winning factor. As Langley took an 8-7 lead five minutes into the final period, New West replied with four unanswered markers, three of which came off the transition rush to go ahead 11-8. Sophomore D-man Peter McFetridge scored two of those goals including what proved to be the game winner with about four minutes to play. Goaltender Matt Roik was excellent in the closing stages of the game, holding the lead for the Bellies and picking up his third win of the season. Roik made 27 saves on 36 shots. Jordan Hall, Ian Hawksbee, Tyler Crompton and McFetride all had three point nights finishing the game with two goals and one assist each. With their losing streak now behind them, New West has to focus on Maple Ridge, who sit only three points behind the Bellies in the playoff standings. Having played nine games, we have now reached the mid-way point of the season. Sitting in second place the Bellies can’t be considered in “Must Win” territory quite yet, but a quick comparison to last year’s team might raise some eye brows for a Bellies squad that was expected to lead the W-L-A again this season. After nine games in 2008 New Westminster had an unblemished 9-0 record, outscoring their opponents 85-55. Through the first nine games this year, the Bellies have a 5-3-1 record, with a 86-75 advantage in scoring. Last year’s leading scorer and co-rookie of the year Jordan McBride led the team with 74 points in 18 games. This year McBride has 30 points in nine games and is on pace for 60 points. Last year’s goalie of the year and team MVP Tyler Richards led the WLA in wins with 13 and an impressive 6.35 goals against average. This year Richards has a 2-2 record with an 8.39 goals against average while his counterpart Matt Roik is 3-1-1 while in the crease with a 7.87 goals against average. With only a few off season additions, this year’s Bellies team hasn’t changed much from the team that came within four wins of a Mann Cup title last September. You would expect similar results, but for some reason the team just hasn’t been clicking for the first half of this year’s campaign. Some might say it’s the “Gajic Factor”. The team has been without their Captain Nenad Gajic and last year’s playoff MVP Ilija Gajic. Nenad recently had ankle surgery and will be out for the remainder of the season while Ilija is finishing up school at the University of Denver and will join the team in a few weeks. Regardless, the teams experience runs deep and there’s a reason the Bellies have been in the W-L-A finals in three consecutive seasons. No matter how poorly you play in May, June and July as long you’re playing your best lacrosse when the playoffs roll around in August and September, you will have a shot at a Mann Cup. The Bellies will look to build on Wednesday’s win, as they get right back at it tonight against the Maple Ridge Burrards at 7:45 from historic Queens Park Arena.