The weekend didn't begin on a positive note for the Surrey Eagles Friday, as the first-place club was shut out 3-0 on home ice by the Alberni Valley Bulldogs, but the resilient Birds rebounded Sunday in Merritt, with a 5-2 win over the Centennials.

An inability to score on the power-play hurt the Eagles in Friday's loss – the team was zero-for-nine with the extra man.

"That's the reason we didn't score. We had opportunities and we just didn't connect," said Eagles head coach Shane Kuss.

In fact, despite their lofty place in the standings, the Eagles haven't exactly been lights out with the man advantage all season. They rank 12th out of 17 teams in the BC Hockey League with a 17.2 per cent efficiency rating.

"It's an area of concern and it's something we have to work on in practice. We have to get more pucks on the net, and get some traffic in front of the goaltender. We're just trying to be too fancy right now, and we're playing too much on the perimeter."

The loss aside, Kuss was impressed with the way his troops bounced back on the road Sunday, led by goaltender Vinny Lessard, who stopped 36 of the 38 shots he faced.

Lessard was good Friday, too, making 21 stops.

"I thought Vinny played well for us all weekend. He was the reason we had a chance to come back Friday, and in Merritt he made a lot of big saves for us," said Kuss.

On Sunday, Surrey got first-period goals from Mike Krgovich and Chris Santiago, with Krgovich's marker coming just 16 seconds into the game.

Santiago added another goal in the second, and rookie Jamus Lane and Jason Grecica also found the back of the net. Brad McGowan had three assists

"I thought we responded well. We played a really solid road game, and Merritt isn't always an easy place to play – it's a small rink and the shots come from everywhere," Kuss said.

"We'd rather have two wins, but the guys did well to get one."

Sunday's road game also marked the return to action of Eagles captain Derek Henderson, who'd been out since February while he rehabbed from a broken leg. He finished without a point, but was a plus-2 and had seven penalty minutes – five of them coming after a fight with Merritt's Derek Hills.

"Derek played a regular shift for us, and really gave us a big boost," Kuss said. "He's a big part of the game, and it was great to see him get back out there."

Henderson's fight was one of five in a spirited third period. Jeff Regier, Tyler Morley, Erik Cooper also dropped the gloves in the final 10 minutes of the contest.

The Eagles remain in first place in the Coastal Conference with 31 points. They're two points up on the Powell River Kings, who they will face Thursday in Powell River.

The Eagles will continue the road swing Friday in Cowichan, and Saturday in Port Alberni before returning home.

- Nick Greenizan