Penticton, BC: After beginning the season with four games on the road, spread out over three weeks, the Penticton Vees (4-0-0-0) will get to play at home in front of their fans for the first time tonight as they welcome the West Kelowna Warriors (4-2-0-0).
Last weekend, the Vees were on the road in Chilliwack for the Bauer BCHL Showcase. Despite trailing after the first period in both games, the Vees went home with four points in their pocket after a 3-2 win over the Alberni Valley Bulldogs Friday and a 6-3 win over the host Chilliwack Chiefs Saturday.
In Saturday’s game, the Vees had six different goal scorers: Chris Klack, Cassidy Bowes, Nicky Leivermann, Jared Nash, Massimo Rizzo and Owen Sillinger, along with 25 saves from Nolan Hildebrand for the win.
The Warriors meanwhile were last in action on Tuesday when they travelled the Langley to play the Rivermen. West Kelowna fell behind 5-0 before scoring twice in the third period of the 5-2 loss. The big news from the game was forward Matthew Campese receiving a six-game suspension for leaving the bench to join an altercation in the third period.
Last season Penticton went a perfect 7-0 against West Kelowna, outscoring them 31-10. The two teams met twice in the pre-season, with the Vees winning 6-3 on the road, before a 7-5 win at the South Okanagan Events Centre.
The Vees will look to continue their home success from previous years at the SEOC this season. In 2016-17, Penticton played to a 21-5-1-1 record on home ice.
Join us at the SOEC from 5:30-7:00 on the plaza for a BBQ, live music and plenty of family-friendly events. Inside, special player introductions and a banner raising ceremony will take place before puck drop.
Tune in to the game on EZ Rock AM 800, online by clicking on this sentence or watching live on HockeyTV.com. Pre-game show begins at 6:40 with Craig Beauchemin and Scott Austin.
Team stats
Leading scorers
Penticton Vees
Owen Sillinger – 4 G 2 A 4GP
Jonny Tychonick – 1 G 3 A 4 GP
Ryan O’Connell – 0 G 4 A 4 GP
West Kelowna Warriors
Matt Kowalski – 5 G 4 A 6 GP
Parm Dhaliwal – 2 G 3 A 6GP
Stephen Kleysen – 2 G 2 A 5 GP
Power play
Penticton Vees – 22.2% (T-6th in BCHL)
West Kelowna Warriors – 24.2% (2nd in BCHL)
Penalty kill
Penticton Vees – 90.9% (2nd in BCHL)
West Kelowna Warriors – 87.0% (5th in BCHL)
