Trail, BC – October 10, 2025
The West Kelowna Warriors handed the Trail Smoke Eaters their first loss of the season Friday night, earning a decisive 4–1 victory behind stellar goaltending from Angelo Zol and a dominant second-period surge.
Trail came out flying to start the game, generating several high-quality chances in the opening minutes. However, Zol stood tall for the Warriors, turning aside all 8 first-period shots, including three highlight-reel saves that kept the contest scoreless through 20 minutes.
Despite Trail’s early push, it was the Warriors who took control in the second period. Ethan Merner opened the scoring with a hard drive to the net, with assists going to Ian Alonso and Ruslan Jamaldinov. Just 43 seconds later, Dylan Krayer doubled the lead on a two-on-one rush set up beautifully by Caden Kemkaran-Humble, swinging the momentum firmly in West Kelowna’s favor.
The pressure continued as the Warriors capitalized on the power play late in the frame. Jamaldinov notched his sixth goal of the season and extended his goal streak to five straight games, giving the Warriors a 3–0 cushion heading into the third period.
In the final frame, Carson Pavlowich added his first BCHL goal with a well-placed shot from the point to make it 4–0. Trail would spoil Zol’s shutout bid with just under five minutes to play as Cade De St. Hubert found the back of the net, but it was too little, too late.
Zol finished the night with 17 saves on 18 shots, anchoring a defensive effort that held Trail to just ten shots over the final two periods. The Warriors’ special teams also shone bright, going 1-for-4 on the power play and a perfect 4-for-4 on the penalty kill.
All three stars of the night went to Warriors players:
1st Star: Ruslan Jamaldinov (1G, 1A)
2nd Star: Ian Alonso (1A, two-way presence)
3rd Star: Carson Pavlowich (1G – first BCHL goal)
Following the game, Assistant Coach Wyatt Head praised the team’s defensive effort, particularly on the penalty kill:
“We anticipated plays better and caused a lot of disruption on zone entries, and when things broke down we had good layers and a willingness to block shots.”
The Warriors improve to 5-1-1 and will look to carry their momentum into Saturday night’s divisional matchup against the Cranbrook Bucks. Puck drop is set for 6:00 PM PDT—catch all the action live on FloHockey.
