Vernon, BC: Its a rivalry that is 8 months in the making as the Vipers and Vees get a chance to play for something meaningful, albeit in an exhibition tournament as they battle for bragging rights and the Okanagan Cup Trophy.
The Vipers (4-6-1-2) were able to secure their spot in the finals thanks a tightly contested 2-0 win over the West Kelowna Warriors last night. JoJo Tanaka-Campbell had the game winner in the first period and Koen MacInnes was perfect with 31 saves. The penalty kill was a big factor last night killing off all 5 West Kelowna powerplays.
The Vees (13-1-0) were outshot pretty heavily last night, but the offense was more than up for the challenge as they knocked off the Salmon Arm Silverbacks by a 5-2 score. The Vees have been a well oiled machine in this tournament suffering just one loss. The powerplay has been a lightning rod for the offense operating just under 30%.
The Vees took all 4 round robin games, but they were closer than the scores would indicate. These two played a week ago in a highly entertaining game.
These two teams were looking forward to a playoff matchup in March, before the shutdown. It won’t be the same, but you have to think both organizations are looking forward to this.
You can catch all the action at 5:45 on HockeyTV, 107.5 Beach Radio and Vernon Matters.
