Western Capitals’ offence remains red hot

MacKinnon scores second straight hat trick in win over Fredericton

Summerside Western Capitals forward Carson MacKinnon has a close-in chance on Fredericton Red Wings goaltender Erik MacInnis of Stratford, P.E.I., during a Maritime Junior Hockey League game at Eastlink Arena in Summerside on Saturday night. The Red Wings’ Patrick Musico hustles back on the play. MacKinnon scored a hat trick to lead the Caps to an 8-2 win. - Jason Simmonds

SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — The Summerside D. Alex MacDonald Ford Western Capitals’ high-powered offence is firing on all cylinders.
The Caps, led by Summerside native Carson MacKinnon’s four-point night, trimmed the Fredericton Red Wings 8-1 on Saturday night to improve their Maritime Junior Hockey League-leading record to 31-5-1 (won-lost-overtime losses). That victory followed the Caps’ 8-2 home-ice win over the Edmundston Blizzard (23-8-6) on Thursday night in a battle of the top two teams in the overall standings and Eastlink North Division.

Back-to-back hat tricks
Before 1,045 fans at Eastlink Arena, Carson MacKinnon scored a hat trick and added an assist to pace the Caps’ offence.
MacKinnon, who had three goals and two assists against Edmundston after signing with the Caps following 4 ½ years in the Quebec Junior Hockey League, has nine points in his first two games with the Caps. His linemates, Brodie MacArthur and Kallum Muirhead, each added three assists against Fredericton and the trio has combined for 27 points in the last two games.
Rookie Colby MacArthur scored twice while Marc-Andre LeCouffe (1-2), Brodie MacMillan (1-1) and Marc Richard also scored for the Caps, winners of seven games in a row and eight of their last nine. Theo Citrullo, Cameron Roberts, Riley MacDougall and Zach Thususka added single assists.

Charlottetown native Declan MacEachern netted the lone goal for the Red Wings (21-14-2).
The Caps, the eighth-ranked team in the latest Canadian Junior Hockey League rankings, jumped out to a 3-0 lead after one period and took a 4-1 cushion into the final 20 minutes.
Dominik Tmej earned the goaltending win with a 36-save performance. Erik MacInnis of Stratford, P.E.I., faced 47 shots in the Fredericton goal.
The Caps were 0-for-4 on the power play and the Caps went 1-for-2.
The game’s three stars were:
1. Carson MacKinnon (Caps), 2. Kallum Muirhead (Caps), 3. Brodie MacArthur (Caps).

Upcoming Games

Upcoming games for Summerside Western Capitals:
Thursday, Jan. 23
7 p.m. – Capitals at Fredericton.
Friday, Jan. 24
7:30 p.m. – Capitals at Grand Falls.
Thursday, Jan. 30
7 p.m. – Miramichi at Summerside.
Friday, Jan. 31
7 p.m. – Capitals at Campbellton.
Sunday, Feb. 2
3 p.m. – Capitals at Fredericton.
Saturday, Feb. 8
7 p.m. – Capitals at Miramichi.
Thursday, Feb. 13
7 p.m. – Campbellton at Capitals.
Friday, Feb. 14
7 p.m. – Capitals at Campbellton.
Sunday, Feb. 16
7 p.m. – Truro at Capitals.