Adanacs Defeat Timbermen to Reclaim Second Place

Shawn Slaght

I've been a professional journalist since 2005 and I've covered sports across Saskatchewan and Alberta including World Cup Alpine Skiing, national and world curling championships and junior hockey. I've been cover lacrosse and the Saskatchewan Rush since 2017.

The Coquitlam Adanacs earned a 13-8 win over the Nanaimo Timbermen on Sunday night, reclaiming second place in the WLA standings.

With the victory, Coquitlam improved to 7-2-1, leapfrogging the Victoria Shamrocks (6-1-1) into second place. New Westminster remains undefeated atop the standings at 8-0. However, both Victoria and New Westminster hold two games in hand over the Adanacs, keeping the race for second place tightly contested.

Nanaimo made things interesting in the second period. After trailing 4-1, the Timbermen went on a four-goal run to take a brief 5-4 lead. But the Adanacs responded with a dominant 9-3 stretch to close out the game..

Jack Royer and Kean Moon each recorded hat tricks for Coquitlam. Clark Walter added two goals and an assist, while Brett McIntyre led all scorers with one goal and four assists. Goaltender Christian Del Bianco turned aside 48 of 56 shots in the win.

Ryan Sheridan led the Timbermen with a hat trick and one assist, and Luke Pilcher added a pair of goals. Colby Bowman got the start in net and made 44 saves on 57 shots.

Adanacs Grab a Slight Lead

Neither team found the net until the 5:18 mark of the first period, when Walter opened the scoring for the Adanacs.

Sheridan answered on the power play at 7:22 to tie the game 1-1.

Matthew Delmonico struck in transition at 15:34 off a slick assist from Del Bianco. Royer closed the period with a goal at 16:15 to give Coquitlam a 3-1 lead at the first intermission.

Wild Momentum Swings in the Second

The second period was filled with momentum swings as both teams went on four-goal runs.

Royer scored just 2:07 in to make it 4-1 Coquitlam.

But the Timbermen stormed back. Pilcher ignited the comeback at 3:35, then added another unassisted at 5:03. Olsson tied the game at 6:21, and Vaesen gave Nanaimo a 5-4 lead with a goal at 9:08.

The Adanacs answered with a four-goal run of their own. Walter scored on the power play at 11:31, and McIntyre reclaimed the lead at 14:45. Just 29 seconds later, Riley Isaacs added another, followed by Moon at 18:26 to give Coquitlam an 8-5 advantage heading into the third period.

Adanacs Solidify Second Place

Nanaimo struck quickly in the third period as Noah Manning scored just 33 seconds in to cut the lead to 8-6.

But the Adanacs responded with authority. Moon scored at 3:23 to start another four-goal run, followed by Chaster at 4:33. Moon completed his hat trick at 8:54, and Royer added his third at 10:07 to stretch the lead to 12-6.

Sheridan added two more for Nanaimo, scoring unassisted at 12:16 and again on the power play at 14:48, but it wasn’t enough to close the gap.

Jacob Saunders capped the night with a transition goal off a pass from Del Bianco with just five seconds remaining, sealing the 13-8 victory and placing the Adanacs in second place once again.