The importance of heading into the Christmas Break on a winning note was paramount for the Vernon Vipers as they looked to crown the Powell River Kings. After getting out to a 1-0 lead through 1 period, the Kings came on with two in the second before an outburst of offense from the Vipers that saw them score 4 in the third period and take the game 5-3.
The Vipers needed a much better effort in the first period than they received on Friday night. They were moving their feet early, chipping pucks and keeping their game simple. It was a pretty tentative start from both sides with just a total of 4 shots through 8 minutes. The Vipers would receive an early powerplay, but couldn’t generate much offense. They would get a second opportunity and just before it expired, Colton McCarthy would tip in a shot from Steve Jandric to give the Vipers a 1-0 lead. The Vipers would kill off a penalty of their own thanks to a couple of saves from Andrew Shortridge and a goal post. The Powell River Kings came out much stronger after the media timeout and tested the Vipers, but no more goals would be scored and the home side would lead 1-0 after 1 period.
The Kings came out firing in the second period and thanks to their forecheck were able to tie the game up as Gavin Rausers shot from the bottom of the left circle would beat Shortridge on the glove side to make it 1-1. The Vipers had a nice response and didn’t seem to let that goal get them down. The Kings would take the lead at 7:50 as Jeremy Leclerc let a shot go from the left side that eluded Shortridge to make it 2-1. Things got a little feisty as two Viper rookies would drop the gloves starting with Callum Volpe sparring with Andy Stevens, then just a minute later Darren Rizzolo would square off with Curtis McCarrick. Both players held their own in what would be described as spirited draws. The period would end with the visitors leading 2-1.
With one final period to go before the Christmas Break it was time to leave it all on the table. The Vipers tied the game up at the 6 minute mark when a shot block found its way to Hunter Zandee and he deposited into the empty cage to make it 2-2. Just over 2 minutes later the Vipers were able to gain the zone with speed and after a nice pass Jagger Williamson deked Jeff Smith and went 5 hole to make it 3-2 Vipers. The lead didn’t last very long as Jonny Evans was able to tie the game up at 3 just under 2 minutes later. Some hard work along the boards with just 6 minutes to play resulted in a centering pass to Colton McCarthy and he was able to slide it in to give the Vipers a 4-3 lead. The Vipers would then get a powerplay and Christian Cakebread snapped a shot from the red line off a leaning Jeff Smith to make it 5-3. Things got a little nasty at the end, but overall the Vipers were able to skate away with a 5-3 win.
Scoring Summary:
Period 1
VER – Colton McCarthy (16) – Jandric, James 11:44 (PP)
Period 2
PR – Gavin Rauser (6) – Hawes, Protopoulos :40
PR – Jeremy LeClerc (7) – Leipsic, Halagian 7:50
Period 3
VER – Hunter Zandee (6) – Williamson, Michalowski 6:00
VER – Jagger Williamson (4) – Zandee 8:02
PR – Jonny Evans (7) – Halagian, Mullin 9:48
VER – Colton McCarthy (17) – Sacco, Jandric 14:02
VER – Christian Cakebread (9) – Pellah, Charleson 16:55 (PP)
AUDIO BITS
#19 HUNTER ZANDEE says the team was competing hard.
Game Stars
Powell River – Nick Halagian – 2A, 6PIMS
Nick Halagian plays the game with an edge. That edge was evident all game long as he was extremely physical and in the face of a number of Vipers. Playing that way sometimes leads to penalties, but the intensity sparked his team on a number of occasions. He stood out for a lot of good reasons including helping his team tie the game up in the third period when the Vipers looked like they had taken the momentum for good.
Vernon – Colton McCarthy – 2G, 4 PIMS, GWG, 1st Star
When Colton McCarthy is on, there aren’t many as big, physical and offensively gifted as the Salmon Arm product. He’s got a nose for the net and that has directly resulted in every goal he’s scored this season. His ability to get under the oppositions skin is evident, and despite ending up in the box himself a few times was able to chip in offensively at key times.
Final Thoughts
Overall, this is exactly the way the Vipers wanted to wrap up a rough first half of the season. The Christmas Break couldn’t be coming at a better time as its time for all involved to get home, recharge and regroup for a light month of January featuring a number of important divisional matchups.
