Bellies sink Shamrocks with 12-6 Victory; Earn Berth in the Final

The New Westminster Salmonbellies are headed to the WLA Finals after a dominant 12-6 win over the Victoria Shamrocks in Game 4 at the Q Centre. The road win was the largest margin of victory in the series and sealed a 3-1 semifinal series win for the Bellies, who now await the winner of the Coquitlam versus Maple Ridge semifinal.

Just like the previous three games, the opening period was tightly contested. New Westminster opened the scoring four minutes in, with Tyler Pace finding the net. Victoria answered at 7:46 with a sneaky shot from Marshall King, their only tally of the frame.

Special teams played a key role early. The Salmonbellies killed off two penalties and capitalized on their lone power play, with Will Malcom scoring at 11:27, the first of his four goals on the night.

But the second period was the turning point. Tye Kurtz struck twice, first on the power play at 7:57 and again at 11:35. Although Victoria responded just four seconds later with a quick strike from Zach Manns, the Salmonbellies quickly reclaimed momentum. Haiden Dickson responded just 52 seconds later, followed by goals from Malcom, Adam Wiedemann, and Mitch Jones. In total, the Salmonbellies exploded for six goals in the frame, taking an 8 to 2 lead into the dressing room.

Victoria opened the third with goals from both King brothers, Jesse scoring one minute in and Marshall adding a power play marker at 3:18. But that would be the Shamrocks’ only power play goal of the night, and any comeback hopes were quickly dashed. Soon after, Kurtz completed his hat trick, and Will Malcom added his third as well.

Jesse King added one more for Victoria, followed by a Kyle Pepper snipe to make it 10-6, but that ended Victoria’s scoring. New West wasn’t done. Will Malcom buried his fourth of the night, and brother Tony added his first to close out the scoring just seconds after.

There were a few moments of rough stuff that looked like it might end the series on a negative note as Nate Wade tangled first with Adam Wiedemann and then Jeff Henrick, before getting sent to the showers.  Any possibility of further conflict ended there, and the game ended with the sort of intensity and mutual respect these two titans have managed to bring to their games over a 75 year period.Tye Kurtz finished with three goals and three assists to earn first star, while Will Malcom had four goals and one assist for second star. Will Johansen earned third star honours for Victoria in a strong defensive effort.

But the truth is that New Westminster’s defensive unit was a major factor all night and deserved a star of their own. Reece Callies, Jordan Gilles, Adam Wiedemann, Jeff Henrick, Drew Belgrave, Conner Cook, Tony Malcom, Jeff Cornwall, Brett Mydske, and Zach Masson formed a relentless wall in front of goaltender Frank Scigliano, who made 48 saves on 54 shots for an outstanding 88.9 save percentage.

At the faceoff dot, Tyrell Hamer-Jackson only got stronger as the night went on, finishing 16-5 including a perfect third period.

Beyond Kurtz and Malcom, the scoring was well-distributed.  Mitch Jones had one goal and four assists and so did Haiden Dickson. Tyler Pace was close behind with one goal and three assists. Adam Wiedemann and Tony Malcom each added a single.

The Salmonbellies know that they will begin the WLA Finals on August 12, but they don’t know where.  The finals could begin either at home or on the road depending on the outcome of the Coquitlam and Maple Ridge series.  A Coquitlam win would mean we host Game 2 (Aug 14), but a Maple Ridge win means a home game on the 12th.  That series is currently 2-1 in Coqultlam’s favour, with game 4 happening Friday night at Cam Neely Arena.

No matter who they play, the calibre of playoff lacrosse this year has been special. 

Tickets will go on sale at Salmonbellies.com as soon as possible.  Don’t miss a moment!

Photo: Paul Horn