Penticton, BC: The Penticton Vees (21-10-1-2) defeated the Trail Smoke Eaters (12-17-5-3) 2-1 in a shootout Friday night, and now head to Trail looking for the weekend sweep.
Ryan Sandelin scored the only goal in regulation for Penticton in the second period Friday night. It came on a 5-on-3 power play as he took the puck from the goal line to the net, creating a scramble in the crease. With multiple players in the crease, Sandelin was able to jam it home for his 23rd of the year.
Carter Jones evened the game early in the third period with a shot off the rush that snuck under the arm of Jack LaFontaine and into the net.
With the Smoke Eaters taking two goalie interference penalties in the third, Max Kryski was given a game misconduct and will be suspended for Saturday’s rematch.
The second penalty came with a minute left in regulation, giving the Vees an excellent chance to end the game. Adam Marcoux came up with a miraculous pad-stack save against Cassidy Bowes to keep the game alive.
The Smoke Eaters had a power play of their own in overtime but the Vees penalty kill did an excellent job taking away scoring chances, allowing just one shot in overtime.
Sandelin and Jackson Niedermayer scored in the shootout for Penticton and LaFontaine robbed Tyler Ghirardosi with the glove hand to seal the win for the Vees.
The win pushed Penticton’s record to 4-0 against Trail so far this season, and sweep all three games at the South Okanagan Events Centre. The two teams meet in Trail Saturday at 7:00, and then won’t see each other again until mid February.
Team Statistics
Leading Scorers
Penticton Vees
James Miller – 15G 29A 34GP
Eric Linell – 20G 20A 36GP
David Silye – 13G 27A 31GP
Trail Smoke Eaters
Carter Jones – 11G 19A 37GP
Chase Stevenson – 13G 15A 36GP
Braeden Tuck – 10G 17A 37GP
Special Teams
Penticton Vees
Power Play – 20.5 per cent (3rd in BCHL)
Penalty Kill – 83.1 per cent (6th in BCHL)
Trail Smoke Eaters
Power Play – 18.6 per cent (11th in BCHL)
Penalty Kill – 76.1 per cent (16th in BCHL)
Season Series
November 10, 2018 – Vees 4 vs Smoke Eaters 3 OT Boxscore
November 20, 2018 – Vees 7 @ Smoke Eaters 4 Boxscore
December 1, 2018 – Vees 3 vs Smoke Eaters 2 Boxscore
December 14, 2018 – Vees 2 vs Smoke Eaters 1 SO Boxscore
December 15, 2018 – Vees @ Smoke Eaters
February 13, 2018 – Vees @ Smoke Eaters
