The Nelson Leafs reclaimed their dominance on home ice after a solid defeat of league rivals the Beaver Valley Nitehawks on Oct. 3.

The Leafs finished the game 7-2.

“The whole team played really hard from beginning to end,” said Leafs head coach Simon Wheeldon.

“We out shot them by a ton and deserved the win.”

The Leafs made 34 shots on goal, while the ‘Hawks were only able to make 18 attempts the at net.

However, the ‘Hawks did see the first goal of the night only five minutes into the game. But Leafs forward Connor McLaughlin was quick to respond, scoring on a power play against the ‘Hawks not half a minute later.

There were also goals by Brett McKinnon, Gavin Currie and Gus Correale within the first period, setting them up for the second period three points ahead of the ‘Hawks.

“What’s important is that even when we were ahead, we kept the pressure on,” said Wheeldon.

The second period ticked down without a goal until about five minutes from the end when the ‘Hawks made their second successful shot. Two minutes later Currie scored again for the Leafs.

Then Chris Cucullu had a goal while the team was short-handed and Scott Jago slid one in 26 seconds before ending the second period.

With no goals in the third, the Leafs ended the game five points ahead.

“It’s great to see the guys making clear strides forward in their game,” said Wheeldon. “It’s good to see what we work on in practice come out on the ice.”

Still, Wheeldon said he wants to see the team continue working on its power play before their next weekend’s games.

The Leafs are sitting second in their division with a 5-2-1 record.

They’ll meet two teams for the first time this weekend.

First they’ll be travelling to Grand Forks to play the Border Bruins (1-6-0) on Oct. 9, then they’ll return to home ice to host the Sicamous Eagles (5-2-0) on Oct. 11 at 1 p.m.