TRURO – The Brookfield Elks were on the wrong end of an 8-2 thumping from the Valley Maple Leafs Tuesday in the Nova Scotia Junior Hockey League.
The setback cost the fourth-place Elks (12-9-1-1) some ground on the second-place Leafs (12-6-4-2) in the Fred Fox Division, allowing Valley a four-point cushion. A Brookfield win would have pulled the Elks into a second-place tie.
The Eastern Shore Mariners (13-10-2-0), who sit third, are just two points clear of the Elks.
Travis Nevin and Andrew Kennedy did the scoring for Brookfield Tuesday at Don Henderson Memorial Sportsplex and Spencer Scott was tagged with the loss in a 30-save performance.
Rookie Colin Gillis victimized the Elks for a hat trick and added a pair of assists while Jory Uhlman scored twice and also recorded a pair of helpers. Andrew Squires (1G, 2A) and Joe MacDougall (3A) both had three-point nights and David Hayes and Austin Himmelman rounded out the Valley scoring.
Olafr Schmidt needed just 14 saves for the win.
The contest featured some late-game fireworks with four fights in the final six minutes of the third period and another late in the middle frame.
