Almost 3,000 people were treated to a decisive Penticton Vees victory at the South Okanagan Events Centre (SOEC) on Friday night (Feb. 25).
Josh Nadeau’s two-goal night propelled Penticton (35-7-0-2) to a 5-2 win against the Merritt Centennials, helping the team collect its third victory in a row.
The Vees have lost just one game since Jan. 21, cruising to a first-place position in the B.C. Hockey League’s Interior Conference in the process.
READ ALSO: Penticton Vees shut down Salmon Arm Silverbacks, hold on for 1-0 victory
After a scoreless first 10 minutes, Penticton broke through offensively courtesy of an Aydar Suniev marker at the 13:23 point of the opening frame.
The Vees would then extend their lead to 3-0 in the second period before the Centennials (3-36-2-1) would find the back of the net themselves.
Despite being outshot 21-6 in the middle frame, Merritt’s Ben Ward would cut the Vees’ lead to two with a shorthanded marker.
Penticton would add two more goals in the third period to put the game out of reach, eventually winning by a margin of three — 5-2, the final.
Along with Suniev and Nadeau, Jackson Nieuwendyk and Luc Wilson were the Penticton goal scorers.
The Vees will hit the road once again, travelling to Vernon for a showdown with the Vipers (21-16-4-3) on Sunday (Feb. 27).
To follow all of the action, fans can tune in on Bounce Radio 800 starting at 5 p.m or on BCHL TV.
@lgllockhart
logan.lockhart@pentictonwesternnews.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.