The Chilliwack Chiefs made it look easy Wednesday night, taking game two of their first round playoff series in one-sided fashion.
The home team dropped the visiting Coquitlam Express 6-2 at Prospera Centre, getting goals from six different skaters.
Goalie David Jacobson was once again outstanding, stopping 34 pucks as his team took a 2-0 lead in this best-of-seven series.
The Chiefs got the scoring started just 2:53 in on a goal by Jake Hand.
The 20 year old sniped his third of the playoffs on a power play, benefiting from a lucky bounce. Hand fired a rising wrist shot on net from the top of the left faceoff circle. The puck looked to be heading high and wide before hitting the left arm of Coquitlam defender Daniel Fritz. Changing direction, it snuck past Express keeper Chris Tai.
The visitors took eight and a half minutes just to record a shot on goal, but it turned into a goal by Jackson Cressey.
Brett Supinski put the puck on net from left point and the rebound rattled around the goal mouth until Cressey swept it home.
The Express stormed back on the shot clock, helped by three first period power plays.
After a way-too-polite game one Tuesday night, both teams came out ill-tempered. Kurt Black set the tone, slashing the stick of Thanvir Bandesha several times on an offensive zone faceoff. Scott Davidson delivered a thundering check to Dustin Cave, breathing life into the series.
Shots on goal through 20 minutes favoured the Chiefs 14-13.
Three goals in 2:01 midway through period two helped Chilliwack break this one open.
First, it was Tipper Higgins pursuing a loose puck into the blue paint, poking it past Tai for his first of the playoffs.
Then, it was Higgins flinging a harmless shot on net from the right wing. Tai reached out with his glove but misplayed it badly. Jordan Kawaguchi crashed the crease, punching it in for his second of the postseason.
One shift later it was Brandon Potomak scoring a pretty one.
Charging down the left wing, he pulled the puck inside on Express defender Jivan Sidhu. With Ryan Bowen bulling his way to the net to provide a screen, Potomak finished with a hot shot from the slot.
Up 4-1, the Chiefs suffered a rare defensive lapse.
For just a split second, Chilliwack let Corey Mackin slip away from coverage, and that’s all the time he needed to dart into the blue paint and slip the puck through the legs of Jacobson.
Still, the Chiefs skated into the final frame with a two goal lead and a 28-24 edge on the shot clock.
Chilliwack got a little more breathing room at 8:46 of period three.
Hand, making a good case to be known as Mr. March, got the assist on Davidson’s first of the postseason. The big forward skated down the slot, out-muscling a Coquitlam defender and tipping a Hand shot through the legs of Tai.
The game ended with some ugliness from Express forward Brendan Gulka.
The 20 year old lost his composure and delivered a mugging to Chilliwack defenceman Vincent Desharnais. He earned two minutes for high sticking, two for roughing and a game misconduct, screaming at Chiefs fans on his way off the ice.
Craig Puffer scored on the ensuing power play, getting his stick on a Dennis Cholowski point shot to wrap up the scoring.
The three stars were Hand (first), Mackin (second) and Kawaguchi (third).
The Fortis BC Energy Player of the Game was Luke McColgan.
Announced attendance was again on the small side at 1,466.