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A roundup of junior hockey results from the Okanagan and area.
The Kelowna Rockets’ weekend trip south of the border didn’t go as planned — losing to the Spokane Chiefs on Friday and getting shutout for the first time this season by the Wenatchee Wild on Saturday.
In Saturday’s loss, the Wild played a solid shut-down game against the WHL’s third-highest scoring team. Netminder Daniel Hauser was dialled in from the drop of the puck, stopping all 30 shots he faced, and the team’s penalty kill was a perfect seven-for-seven on the evening.
The first period saw just one goal, a powerplay marker from Kenta Isogai who deposited his eighth tally of the season. The Wild’s special teams came through again in the middle frame as Evan Friesen scored a shorthanded marker.
With just two seconds left in the second period, the Rockets couldn’t catch a break. A shot from the Wild’s Graham Sward found its way through Rockets’ netminder Jari Kykkanen, and the home team went into the third period up 3-0.
Just 1:04 into the final period, Miles Cooper put the Wild up 4-0, which would stand as the final score. The Rockets now hold a record of (7-6-1-0) and will look to erase a two-game losing skid when they welcome the Victoria Royals to town on Friday at 7 p.m.
Saturday’s results
- Brandon 2, Saskatoon 1
- Calgary 7, Red Deer 4
- Edmonton 5, Portland 4
- Kamloops 5, Tri-City 2
- Medicine Hat 6, Seattle 3
- Moose Jaw 5, Prince George 1
- Prince Albert 4, Swift Current 2
- Everett 6, Spokane 2
- Vancouver 3, Victoria 2
Sunday’s games
- Prince Alberta at Moose Jaw
- Prince George at Regina
- Kamloops at Vancouver
- Portland at Calgary
The West Kelowna Warriors managed to sneak out a victory on the road against the Cranbrook Bucks after blowing a big first-period lead.
The Bucks entered Saturday’s affair looking to bounce back from a three-game losing streak, but it was the visiting Warriors who stormed out to a 3-0 lead in the opening frame, thanks to a pair of goals from Felix Caron, and another tally from Brennan Nelson. The hot start led to a goalie change at the start of the second period, after Bucks netminder Danick Leroux allowed three goals on seven shots.
In the second period, the Bucks began their comeback. Noah Urness buried his eighth goal of the campaign, while Luke Pfoh scored his first, and it felt like the momentum had shifted in Cranbrook’s favour.
On the powerplay just under six minutes into the final period, the Bucks fired home the game-tying goal courtesy of Loke Södergren, but the deadlock was short lived. Just 18 seconds later, Jackson Kyrkostas restored the one-goal advantage for the Warriors, and they would hold on for a 4-3 win.
Warriors’ goalie Matthew DellaRusso set aside 26 of the 29 shots he faced, while Carter Capton, who entered the game in relief for Leroux at the start of the second period, stopped 17 shots of the 18 throw his way.
With the win, the Warriors now sit three points behind the first-place Penticton Vees in the Interior Conference and hold a record of (9-3-1-0.) The Warriors’ next game is against the Centennials in Merritt on Friday.
SALMON ARM 3, POWELL RIVER 2 (OT)
The Salmon Arm Silverbacks got the result they were after against the struggling Powell River Kings Saturday night.
The Kings entered the game on a four-game winless streak, but they came out of the gates determined to change their fate, scoring the first goal of the game and the only goal of the first period. It came on the man-advantage thanks to Alexi Van Houtte-Cachero, who scored his ninth goal of the year.
In the second period, the Silverbacks found life less than three minutes in, but the Kings had an answer just minutes later to regain their one-goal lead, and they headed into the final period up 2-1.
With less than seven minutes remaining in the game, the Silverbacks scored the equalizer. Neither team would score again in regulation time, so this game was off to sudden-death overtime.
The Kings, desperate for a win, wouldn’t get one on this night, as Maddux Martin snapped home the game-winning goal for the Silverbacks, and it was a happy bus ride home for the visitors. With the win, the Silverbacks improved to (7-5-0-0). Their next game is at home on Saturday against the Prince George Spruce Kings.
Saturday’s results
- Victoria 4, Cowichan Valley 0
- Chilliwack 6, Nanaimo 4
- Trail 7, Prince George 3
Sunday’s games
- Vernon at Merritt
- Coquitlam at Surrey
© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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