The Penticton Vees’ winning streak was upheld last night in their game against the Merritt Centennials at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena.
Alex DiPaolo was the first to score for the Vees, with help from Jay O’Brien and Evan McIntyre, at 4:54 in the first. The goal, which beat Centennials goalie Ryan Winter on his blocker side, was DiPaolo’s first of the season.
Merritt was quick to respond, tying the game at 6:28 when Rylan Van Unen beat Vees goalie Yaniv Perets from the slot. Tristan Amonte returned the Vees’ lead just 2:07 later, thanks to a pass from David Silye at the blue line. Amonte was able to get the puck past Winter’s glove with a quick switch from his backhand to his forehand, giving the Vees a 2-1 advantage at 8:32.
Cade Webber scored his first BCHL goal in the last 10 seconds of the first period, extending the Vees to a 3-1 lead heading into the second. Webber beat Winter glove side after he jumped on the rebounded puck that Jackson Niedermayer sent heading for the high slot from the blue line.
READ MORE: Penticton Vees off to a strong start this season
The Vees hold a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes of play! Alex DiPaolo, Tristan Amonte and Cade Webber have the goals for Penticton! SOG 15-9 Vees#BCHL pic.twitter.com/GdE4p47AcS
— Penticton Vees (@PentictonVees) September 14, 2019
Penticton’s offence didn’t let up in the second frame, going on to score four more times. First, Danny Weight made use of a power play and jumped on Lukas Sillinger’s rebound to beat Winter on his blocker side at 1:57. Then, Vincent Nardone followed up with another goal at 7:31 from the left face-off circle. Nardone was successful thanks to a linesman who ran interference on a Merritt defender, allowing an opening for Nardone to beak Winter blocker side and score his first BCHL goal.
Weight made his second goal of the game when he got the puck on the left-wing side and wrapped the puck around on the glove side of Winter. This power play goal marked Weight’s third of the season and gave Penticton a five-goal lead against Merritt.
Finally, late in the second period, Lach Hadley deflected a shot by Colton Kalezic from the left point into the net at the 16:07 mark. This would mark the end of scoring for the Vees in this game.
READ MORE: Big offensive night helps Vees to back-to-back wins in Trail
In the third period, Dylan Kosik took the net for the Centennials, who were able to score twice. Brett Roloson scored at 8:14, and then Troy Quinn followed suit with 50 seconds left in the period. The final score was 7-3 for the Vees.
Perets stopped 26 of 29 shots on net while Winter turned aside 27 of 24 shots in the first two periods. Dylan Kosik was able to stop all five shots on net in the final period.
The Vees are off to take on the Prince George Spruce Kings tonight, with puck drop at 7 p.m. Fans can tune into the game on EZ Rock AM 800 or at www.hockeytv.com, beginning with the pre-game show with Trevor Miller.
To report a typo, email: editor@pentictonwesternnews.com.
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