A round-up of results from junior hockey teams in the Okanagan and surrounding areas.
WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Victoria 2, Kelowna 1
At Kelowna, Kaid Oliver scored twice for Victoria, and Shane Farkas turned aside 32 shots, as the Royals edged the Rockets on Friday night.
Oliver opened the scoring with a nice shot at 13:32 of the first period, then closed out the scoring by deflecting a centering pass with his skate at 14:21 of the third.
The win was Victoria’s fourth in a row, as the second-place Royals (21-12-2-0, 44 points) moved three points ahead of third-place Kelowna (19-14-1-2, 41 points) in B.C. Division standings.
The Rockets are 4-6 in their past 10 games while the Royals are 7-3.
Kaedan Korczak, with his seventh goal of the season at 8:17 of the second to make it 1-1, replied for Kelowna. Colin Basran made 23 saves.
In post-game comments, Rockets head coach Adam Foote said his team needs “more dirty goals, get to the paint, and maybe it would have been a different story.”
Victoria was 1-for-3 on the power play while Kelowna was 0-for-4, though Korczak’s goal came two seconds after a penalty to Victoria’s Tarun Fizer for interference expired.
In other WHL action from Friday, Kamloops beat Vancouver 2-1 in overtime.
Zane Franklin, with his 21st goal of the season, netted the game-winner for the division-leading Blazers (23-11-2-1, 49 points). Notably, Vancouver (17-16-2-1, 37 points) was outshot 47-20.
On Saturday, Kelowna hosts Vancouver. Game time at Prospera Place is 7 p.m.
B.C. HOCKEY LEAGUE
Penticton 5, Salmon Arm 2
At Salmon Arm, Jack Barnes and Jackson Niedermayer both scored twice for Penticton as the Vees outpaced the Silverbacks on Friday night.
David Silye also scored for Penticton (29-10-1-1), as the Vees tallied four unanswered goals in defeating Salmon Arm. Silye also had two assists for the winners.
Silye made it 2-2 at 19:43 of the second, with Barnes making it 3-2 at 1:02 of the third and Niedermayer pushing Penticton’s lead to 4-2 at 1:28. Barnes then closed out the scoring at 18:59 with his second of the night.
Daniel Rybarik, who opened the scoring at 3:34 of the second following a scoreless first, and Noah Wakeford, at 11:00 to make it 2-1, replied for Salmon Arm (21-16-1-1).
Yaniv Perets stopped 40 of 42 shots for Penticton, with Ethan Langenegger turning aside 40 of 44 shots for Salmon Arm.
The Vees were 1-for-3 on the power play while the Silverbacks were 1-for-1.
Coquitlam 4, West Kelowna 3
At West Kelowna, the Warriors tried hard in getting new head coach Simon Ferguson his first win, but came up short against the league’s best team.
Massimo Rizzo, Greg Lapointe and Adam Trotman, with his team’s final two goals, scored for Coquitlam (34-5-0-0, 68 points). The Express trailed 1-0 after the first period, but scored twice midway through the third to take a 4-2 lead.
Max Bulawka, Wyatt Head and Lucas Cullen replied for league-worst West Kelowna (7-24-5-2, 21 points).
Bulawka scored at 14:35 of the first to open the scoring, with Head making it 2-1 at 4:23 of the second. Cullen closed out the scoring at 19:40 of the third.
Clay Stevenson stopped 30 of 33 shots for Coquitlam, with Brock Baier making 32 saves on 36 shots for West Kelowna.
The Warriors announced Ferguson’s hiring on Dec. 27, as the team fired GM and head coach Brandon West. Ferguson, who played in the WHL with the Kelowna Rockets, was named the team’s interim head coach.
That West Kelowna challenged Coquitlam — despite the Express having 47 more points — suggests that with Ferguson now on the bench, the Warriors may have turned a corner in their losing season.
Saturday’s Games
- Victoria (15-25-0-0) at Penticton (29-10-1-1), 6 p.m.
- Coquitlam (34-5-0-0) at Vernon (20-16-1-1), 6 p.m.
- West Kelowna (7-24-5-2) at Chilliwack (18-12-5-4), 7 p.m.
Sunday’s Games
- Wenatchee (20-16-3-1) at Vernon, 2 p.m.
- Coquitlam at Salmon Arm (21-16-1-1), 3 p.m.
KOOTENAY INTERNATIONAL JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Friday’s Results
- Revelstoke 2, Chase 0
- Castlegar 6, Grand Forks 2
- Kamloops 5, Sicamous 1
- Summerland 4, Osoyoos 2
Saturday’s Games
- Kelowna (24-8-1-0-0) at 100 Mile House (14-15-1-0-0), 7 p.m.
- Summerland (15-15-0-0-4) at Chase (20-11-0-0-2), 7 p.m.
- Columbia Valley (16-11-2-0-4) at Grand Forks (11-22-0-0-2), 7 p.m.
- Revelstoke (23-3-1-0-2) at Sicamous (11-19-1-0-0), 7 p.m.
- North Okanagan (10-18-0-0-4) at Princeton (15-12-1-0-3), 7 p.m.
Sunday’s Games
- Osoyoos at Princeton, 2 p.m.
- Kelowna at Kamloops, 5 p.m.
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