A goal by Dallas Farrell in the third period just after his teammate, Pito Walton, stepped out of the penalty box, gave the Coquitlam Express a 4-3 victory over the Chilliwack Chiefs on Wednesday.
It was the team’s first win at Chilliwack’s Prospera Centre since March 1, 2014.
More importantly it gives the Express a little more breathing room over the Langley Rivermen in the run for third place in the BC Hockey League's Mainland Division. Coquitlam now has a six-point cushion, although they’ve played one more game than their pursuers.
The Express, who were coming off two straight losses to Langley that lifted the Rivermen into a race for third place, opened the scoring less than four minutes into the game when Connor Gregga converted a pass from Christian Sanda past Chiefs’ goalie Daniel Chenard.
Chilliwack tied it exactly a minute after that then took the lead less than two minutes later on goals by Carter Wilkie and Nathan Kelly.
Joshua Wildauer’s 24th goal of the season got the Express back on even terms in the second period and Danny Pearson put them ahead by a goal early in the third.
The Chiefs tied the game on a power play goal by Harrison Blaisdell just over five minutes later as Coquitlam’s Jordan Schulting cooled his heels for checking from behind. He was also assessed a misconduct penalty.
Farrell’s winning goal came off a nifty pass Walton threaded between a pair of Chilliwack defenders that the forwarded then deposited into the Chiefs’ net with a forehand-to-backhand deke.
Kolby Matthews stopped 25 shots to earn the win, while his teammates fired 25 shots at Chenard.
The Express, who've already clinched a spot in the playoffs, head north to Prince George for a pair of games against the Spruce Kings, Friday and Saturday.
