Vees, Vipers fit to be tied
Overtime solves nothing as Penticton and Vernon finish deadlocked, 2-2
Jordan Sandhu’s goal with 10:43 to play in the third period lifted the Vernon Vipers to a 2-2 tie with the Penticton Vees in BCHL action in front of 3,053 fans on Friday at the South Okanagan Events Centre.
The arch-rivals battled through 10 minutes of scoreless overtime for their second tie in three matchups this season. Vernon played to a tie for the fourth time in 23 games, while it was Penticton’s second tie in 18 games.
Michael Ufberg scored the other goal and set up Sandhu’s marker, while Grant Cruikshank and 15-year-old forward Jack Finley — a Kelowna product who plays for the Okanagan Rockets, in his first-ever junior hockey game — scored for the Vees.
Ty Taylor made 34 saves for the Vipers and was sensational in overtime as the Vees outshot Vernon 9-2. Adam Scheel was solid for the Vees with 31 stops.
Vernon (15-4-4-0) is unbeaten in its last eight games, while the Vees (10-5-2-1) are winless in their last four, though they did snap a three-game losing skid.
The two teams do battle again tonight in a 6 p.m. puck-drop at Kal Tire Place in Vernon.
After a scoreless first period, the teams traded goal in a space of 34 seconds early in the second.
Ufberg was sprung down the left side on a pass by Jesse Lansdell and his low shot struck a Vees’ defender and caromed between Scheel’s pads at 1:35.
Cruikshank tied it at 2:09, skating off the right boards and overpowering Taylor with a sizzling wrist shot over the glove. Dakota Boutin and Nicky Leivermann earned the assists.
Finley, a 2017 first-round pick (sixth overall) by the Spokane Chiefs in the Western Hockey League bantam draft, put the Vees ahead at 15:36.
Ryan O’Connell made a great play to keep the puck in at the line and Finley ended up beating Taylor with a low snapshot through traffic.
Sandhu tied the game at 9:17 of the third period after the Vees killed off a series of penalties, taking a perfect backdoor feed from Ufberg and picking the corner as Scheel scrambled to get back in position.
The Vees got a power play with 1:21 left and as it carried over to overtime, but Taylor made a terrific lunging stop to deny Vees co-captain Owen Sillinger of what looked like a sure goal.
Vernon got another power-play chance right as Penticton’s ended, but failed to generate a shot.
The Vees came in waves for the remainder of overtime, but Taylor was magnificent to somehow keep the game tied.
Wild 9 Warriors 2: Jasper Weatherby produced a hat trick and two assists as Wenatchee buried visiting West Kelowna.
A.J. Vanderbeck and Sam Morton each scored twice, and Jared Christy and Lucas Sowder also scored for the Wild (12-7-0-1), who led 1-0 and 5-2 at the period breaks.
Chase Dubois and Stephen Kleysen scored for the Warriors (13-9-0), who were outshot 40-16 in the contest.
The Warriors host the Prince George Spruce Kings on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. at Royal LePage Place.