VICTORIA 4 – NANAIMO 2
The Victoria Grizzlies rallied from a two-goal deficit in the second period to down the Nanaimo Clippers 4-2 in a B.C. Hockey League game Friday night before 1,223 fans at Frank Crane Arena in the Harbour City.
Joel Plante and Mike Murtagh staked the Clippers to a 2-0 lead in the second period.
Ryan Watt’s first goal of the season at 8:29 of the middle period started the comeback for the Grizzlies.
Forward Olivier Picard, who came to the Grizzlies from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, finished it off with the natural hat trick and scored his sixth, seventh and eighth goals of the season, the last into an empty net. The 20-year-old native of Sherbrooke, Que., played the last two seasons for the Val d’Or Foreurs of the QMJHL.
Winger Owen Bohen had two assists for the Grizzlies.
The power plays were held off the board with Victoria going 0-3 and Nanaimo 0-4.
Oliver Auyeung-Ashton made 23 saves in goal for the Grizzlies and Aidan Campbell 28 for the Clippers.
The Clippers, BCHL finalists last season, are 8-2 while the Grizzlies climbed to .500 at 4-4-2 with their second consecutive win.
The Grizzlies meet the Chilliwack Chiefs tonight at the Q Centre while the Clippers are in Duncan to play the Cowichan Valley Capitals (3-7), who were 5-3 losers to the Chiefs (3-5-1) on Friday night.
