Vernon, BC: The Vipers had two even strength, a shorthanded and a powerplay goal from four separate goal scorers as they rolled to a 4-1 win over the Merritt Centennials on Saturday night.
The Vipers jumped out to an early lead as Zack Tonelli converted on his own rebound just before the 5-minute mark. Five minutes later, Ben Ward evened the game up with a shot from the left circle and over the glove of Ethan David. Less than a minute later Cam MacDonald scored his 13th of the season after putting home his own rebound from a shot that slammed off the end wall to the side of the net. The Vipers had an 18-11 shot advantage after 1 period.
While on a powerplay the Vipers extended their lead as a point shot from Nick Kent was stopped, but Luke Buss slammed in the rebound to make it 3-1. Special Teams were exemplary for the Vipers as their PK rang up some offense as Matt Culling ripped home his 11th of the season making it 4-1 after 2.
The Vipers defended tightly and had a number of good looks in the period but couldn’t solve Peyton Trzaska. Shots finished 46-26 in favour of the Vipers and a 4-1 victory.
The Vipers have a quick turnaround as they head to West Kelowna for the final road game of the regular season.
