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Abbotsford Pilots open playoffs Friday

Abbotsford takes on Ridge Meadows Flames in round one
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Pilots goalie Noah Giesbrecht eyes the puck during a scramble in front of his net on Saturday.

The Abbotsford Pilots closed the 2016-17 chapter of their rivalry with the Mission City Outlaws with a win in Mission on Saturday.

Abbotsford dominated for much of the game, en route to a 6-2 win over Mission.

The Pilots opened up the scoring when Jamie Housch scored at 9:18, and Brady Morton made it 2-0 just 68 second later on the power play. Mission's Sammy Zeinab tallied at 13:46 to make it a 2-1 game after one.

Outlaws forward Nicolas Bizzutto tied the game up at 3:32 of the second, but from there it was all Pilots. Mitch Plevy on the power play, Travis Halladay and Mateo Toledo all scored in the second to make it 5-2 after two.

Former Outlaws star Kolby Steen scored the the lone goal of the third period to make it a 6-2 final.

The Pilots power play was buzzing, scoring twice and producing a handful of chances. Abbotsford also outshot the Outlaws 41-22 in the game. Abbotsford goalie Noah Giesbrecht earned his tenth win of the season.

Abbotsford concluded the Pacific Junior Hockey League season with a 5-4 loss to the Port Moody Panthers on Monday.

The game was a make-up contest after poor weather forced the postponement of the game on Feb. 4.

The Pilots jumped out to a 2-0 lead after one, after goals from Philip Gauthier and Brady Morton. Abbotsford made it 3-0 early in the second when Morton scored again.

The Panthers roared back though, scoring three goals in the second period, while Abbotsford's Nate Castonguay added a penalty shot goal in the middle frame to make it 4-3 Pilots after two.

The third period was all Port Moody, as the Panthers outshot the Pilots 18-4 and Chong Min Lee scored a pair of goals to help his team get the 5-4 win.

The Pilots compiled a record of 25 wins, 15 losses and four overtime losses for the season, good for second place in the Harold Brittain conference. Abbotsford now matches up against the Ridge Meadows Flames in round one of the playoffs.

The Pilots won the season series against Ridge Meadows, defeating the Flames in three of the five games. The teams last met on Jan. 6, when the Pilots won 7-2.

Game one of the series goes Friday at 7 p.m. at MSA Arena. Game two shifts to Ridge Meadows on Saturday, with game three scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at MSA. Game four goes back to Ridge Meadows on Wednesday.



Ben Lypka

About the Author: Ben Lypka

I joined the Abbotsford News in 2015.
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