A late third-period goal helped the West Kelowna Warriors beat the Vernon Vipers in a shootout Friday night, Dec. 2.
Vipers goaltender Roan Clarke made 36 saves on the night, but it wasn’t enough as the road team fell in the skills competition by a final score of 4-3 in B.C. Hockey League action.
It was Teddy Bear Toss night at Royal LePage Place in West Kelowna, and the stuffed animals rained down onto the ice after Kailus Green opened the scoring a few minutes into the first period — his seventh goal of the season.
Later in the period, Seiya Tanaka-Campbell was hauled down on a breakaway while shorthanded and awarded a penalty shot. Jonathan Horn took the shot but Warriors goalie Justin Katz made the save.
The second period opened with a bang as Lee Parks scored his eighth goal of the season to tie the game at one goal apiece. Less than a minute later, the Warriors restored their lead as Ben MacDonald scored his eighth of the season, doing a lap around the offensive zone and snapping a shot past Clarke.
Then at the 4:24 mark, Tanaka-Campbell evened the score yet again with a powerplay goal, his sixth of the season.
The Vipers took their first lead of the game a few minutes later when Horn picked up his first goal as a Viper after being acquired from the Wenatchee Wild earlier this week. Horn scored on a wrap-around to give the Vipers a 3-2 advantage.
After a Warriors goalie change, the Warriors penalty kill was tested in the third period, but they rose to the challenge, killing off three penalties in a row. That set up a late game-tying goal as Jaeden Moriello ripped home his team-leading 13th goal of the season with less than four minutes to play to force overtime.
After a scoreless overtime period, the teams headed to a shootout, where Moriello was again the hero. He was the only player to score in the shootout, giving his team the 4-3 win.
With the win, the Warriors moved into second place in the Interior division with 30 points in 22 games. The Vipers are seventh in the division with 22 points in 23 games played.
The Vipers are back home Saturday to face the Wenatchee Wild at 6 p.m., while the Warriors play the undefeated Penticton Vees Saturday at 7 p.m.
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