Vees are going to the RBC Cup
The Penticton Vees never do things the easy way.
Nicholas Jones scored twice and assisted on the winner by Grant Cruikshank as the Vees held on for dear life to shade the Chilliwack Chiefs 3-2 in the RBC Cup national championship ‘Play-In’ game in front of 3,011 frenzied fans Sunday at the South Okanagan Events Centre.
“There is no such thing as easy with this team,” said Vees GM and head coach Fred Harbinson, who guided Penticton to the RBC Cup (May 13-21 in Cobourg, Ont.) for the second time in three years and third time in his 10 years at the helm. “It’s always exciting.”
Was it ever. The Vees had already beaten the Chiefs in one ‘do-or-die’ encounter, triumphing 1-0 in overtime of Game 7 in the BCHL championship series two weeks earlier in Chilliwack.
Since the Vees were the host team of the Western Canada Cup, the Chiefs earned a berth as the BCHL representative.
When the Vees beat Battlefords North Stars in the qualifying game and Brooks Bandits beat the Chiefs in the WCC final on Saturday, it set up another showdown between Penticton and Chilliwack for the second West region berth to the RBC.
“Chilliwack is a great team, but we were the league champs and I felt like we deserved to go (to the RBC),” said Harbinson. “We played great right from the drop of the puck these last two days. I’m just real proud of these guys.”
The Vees survived six of those do-or-die games — three straight Game 7s in the BCHL playoffs and three more at this week’s five-team WCC competition.
“We’ve had to do it a whole different way than any of the other three championship teams we’ve had here,” said Harbinson. “Nobody has had to endure what these guys have had to endure.”
Jones, the heart-and-soul captain who once again willed Penticton to victory, said the Vees have built a determination and resiliency after being in so many close games and series.
“We always feel like we’re in one-goal games,” said the hero of Sunday’s huge win. “We’ve been in these situations right through the playoffs and even during the regular season. We focus on ourselves, not the opposition. We’ve had a goal all along of getting to the RBC and winning it, and now we’re on our way to Ontario. It’s an amazing feeling.”
Jordan Kawaguchi and Will Calverley scored for the Chiefs, who were outshot 28-18 in the contest.
Kawaguchi’s goal with 2:23 left in the first period gave the Chiefs the lead and it appeared as though they’d nurse it right into the final 20 minutes.
But up stepped Jones to rifle a high shot off the rush on the blocker side of Mark Sinclair with just 16.6 seconds left in the middle stanza.
“That goal was absolutely . . . huge,” said Harbinson. “We had carried the play and put in so many heavy shifts in the second. It gave us a big lift going into the third period, knowing we didn’t have a deficit and didn’t have to chase the game.”
Penticton, after having to deal with an early 5-on-3 Chiefs power play, dominated much of the third.
Jones rammed home a rebound from the left circle at 6:07 and then set up Cruikshank, who beat Sinclair with a quick, spin-a-round shot from 15 feet out at 9:14 to make it 3-1.
The Vees kept coming in waves after that, but the Chiefs got one back out of nowhere as Calverley connected from the right point after a rare faceoff in Penticton territory at 14:51.
There was a terrifying moment for Vees fans with three minutes left as defenceman James Miller blew a tire skating back for the puck and allowed Kawaguchi — the Chiefs superstar — to race in on a breakaway. But Mat Robson denied the gifted sniper with a superb blocker save.
“That’s a big reason why you go out and recruit a top-notch, veteran goaltender — for moments like that,” said Harbinson. But it wasn’t over. Chilliwack got Sinclair to the bench for an extra skater with 1:40 left and hemmed the Vees in the entire last minute of regulation.
Harbinson said defenceman Griffin Mendel made a vital block of Kohen Olischefski’s blast from the slot as the Vees barely survived the onslaught.
“We give out a special belt each game to the guy who plays a key role in a win,” said Harbinson. “We’re giving the belt to our entire defence corps after this one. They were unbelievable.”
After celebrating the moment and saluting a boisterous and appreciative crowd after the game, the Vees retreated to their room to savour their incredible post-season run. At least for one night. “The support we got from our fans this entire season, through 17 playoff games at home, it was just incredible,” said Harbinson, noting the Vees attracted a record 136,000 fans in 2016-17.