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Buccaneers season over, Braves win game 7 to advance to VIJHL final

Mar 18, 2018 | 11:23 PM

NANAIMO — It was heartbreak for the Buccaneers at the Pirate Ship.

The Saanich Braves beat Nanaimo 5-2 to win the seventh and decisive game of the VIJHL semifinal in front of a franchise record 610 fans at the Nanaimo Ice Centre Sunday night.

A slow start did the Bucs in, as the Braves stunned the hometown crowd with a 3-0 lead after the first period, on goals by Jake Wilhelm, Zach Guerra and Dale McCabe.

Nanaimo’s Booker Chacalias and Clayton Peace trimmed the lead to 3-2 in the second period, setting the stage for an intense third frame. Nanaimo dialed up the heat on Braves goaltender Riley Mathieson, but Saanich withstood the pressure and scored two empty-netters to seal the series.

Bucs head coach Curtis Toneff said they looked nervous out of the gate.

“We saw our fans up there and definitely appreciated it, but I don’t think too many of our guys have played in game seven’s in those situations.”

It was an incredible atmosphere at the Pirate Ship, where 450 presale tickets were claimed earier on the weekend. More than 100 disappointed fans were told the game was a sellout prior to opening face-off.

It was a gutsy performance for the Braves, who won 4 of the series’ final 5 games, after dropping the opening 2 contests in Nanaimo.

Saanich will take on the powerful Campbell River Storm starting Tuesday night on the north island. The winner of that series will advance to the Cyclone Taylor Cup in Richmond, B.C.

After crediting Saanich for a hard-fought series, Toneff shifted his attention to outgoing Bucs owners Phil and Brenda Levesque.

“The countless hours that they put into the rink, the little things that nobody sees behind the scenes, doing the laundry and making sure everything just runs so smooth, it was special being a part of their last year and special being a part of this group.”

The Buccaneers registered a franchise record 37 regulation wins under Toneff’s watch. The 24-year-old rookie head coach is slated to return behind the Bucs bench under incoming owner Clayton Robinson.

Trent Bell is one of six 20-year-olds who played his final junior hockey game Sunday night.

The 21-year-old forward told NanaimoNewsNOW the 3 plus seasons he spent as a Buccaneer made a huge positive impact on who he is today.

“Its meant the world to me, being able to come here and see your best friends every day, its been a blast,” Bell said. “I’ve grown a lot as a person having to balance school, work, hockey and life.”

An emotional Bell said the Levesques not only brought in good hockey players, but good people, which created a genuine family feel.

“I never met Phil before but when I came here its like another grandpa, you know he loves you and cares for everyone,” Bell said as he teared up. “It sucks not being able to win him a championship.”

 

ian@nanaimoNewsNow.com

On Twitter: @reporterholmes