Powell River, BC: The Penticton Vees (31-12-1-2) scored three times in the second period and held on for a 4-3 win over the Powell River Kings (28-17-1-0) to kick off their three-game road trip. It was the Vees seventh win in a row.
Cole Shepard opened the scoring for the Vees, finishing off a two-on-one rush with Massimo Rizzo by taking a saucer pass and beating Mitch Adamyk on the blocker side 12:35 into the first period.
Ryan Sandelin, back in the lineup after missing the first seven games of 2019, got on the scoresheet halfway through the second.
Standing in front of the net on the power play, Sandelin was able to jam at a loose puck and slide it under Adamyk for his 24th of the season to make it 2-0 Vees 11:07 into the period.
The lead was quickly cut in half as Levi Glasman beat Jack LaFontaine on the glove side off the rush just 1:33 after Sandelin’s goal.
Three minutes later the Vees would regain their two-goal lead. Rizzo had the puck along the left win in the Kings zone, then spotted Brendan Harrogate coming off the bench. Rizzo fed him the puck and Harrogate was in alone, pulling the puck to his backhand and beating Adamyk to make it 3-1.
David Silye then capped off the scoring in the period for the Vees, while shorthanded. After clearing the puck to centre ice, Silye raced after it and picked it up on the left wing. He skated into the Kings zone before cutting to the slot and firing it over Adamyk’s blocker for his first goal in 11 games.
The third period wasn’t so kind to the Vees. Rowan Miller cut into Penticton’s lead when he found a loose puck behind LaFontaine four minutes into the period.
Just seconds after he stepped out of the box, Matthew Byrne then cut the Vees lead to one by deflecting a centring pass from Ryan Brushett past LaFontaine with nine minutes remaining.
While the Vees were outshot 18-7 in the third, they held the fort to pick up their seventh straight victory with the 4-3 final score.
The Vees will now travel over to Vancouver Island where they’ll face the Alberni Valley Bulldogs (16-27-3-0) Saturday at 7:00. Penticton hosted Alberni for their home opener September 29, a 2-0 Vees win.
