STEAM STOP WRANGLERS, SALVAGE WEEKEND SPLIT

Jack Mills, Braden Eliuk, Lathan McKinney,
Cole Woodliffe, and Adam Jones celebrate Mills'
first period goal on Saturday against the
100 Mile House Wrangelers
Photo Credit: Sarah Mayer

After a disappointing loss late in the game on Friday night to the Chase Heat, the Summerland Steam were looking for a bounce back on Saturday against the 100 Mile House Wranglers. 

The Wranglers travelled to Summerland after falling 7-3 at the hands of the Kamloops Storm on Friday, and were looking for a bounce back of their own. They were without some key bodies in this game, as Devan Suidy, Jaydon Gilding, Cole Zimmerman, Tavis Roch and Brady Ward all out of the lineup. 

For Summerland, they were looking to do the opposite of what went on Friday night. They got up early, but allowed Chase to battle back each and every time until Chase took the lead in the final minutes on a powerplay goal from Kaleb Boyle. 

On Saturday it was a whole different story for the Steam. With the 100 Mile House Wranglers making their only visit of the season, Summerland opened the scoring courtesy of Jack Mills while outshooting the Wranglers 18-1 in the first period. Mills' goal came just 2:33 into the hockey game after a puck popped loose in the slot after Cole Woodliffe and Braden Eliuk worked it out of the corner. When that puck popped out, Mills was there and had time to corral it, find a hole and wire a shot past Wranglers' starting goaltender Quinn Ferris to stake the Steam to a 1-0 lead.

Riley Pettitt would add his first of 2 on the night with 4:05 to play in the first to extend the lead to 2-0. Pettitt’s first goal of the night was assisted by Jarrett Malchow and Wyatt Gale, who all hail from Whitehorse, Yukon, and have played almost all of their minor and junior hockey together. The play started with a good breakout of the defensive zone for Summerland and a cross ice pass from Gale to Malchow on the right wing. Malchow then saw Pettitt fighting his way through and sent an area pass, much like a quarterback does for a receiver, to a spot where Pettitt could get a stick to it and fire a shot short side. Summerland would carry that lead into the 2nd period, as Steam starter Brett Huber was forced to make only one save in the first period. 

Pettitt would get his second of the night on a second period powerplay with a great shot off the wall to make it 3-0. After the puck was worked up the wall by Tyson Klingspohn, Pettitt waited out the penalty killers and faked a pass to create some space. He then walked off the wall and wired a shot over the blocker of Quinn Ferris.

Not long after, the Wranglers cut the lead to 2 on a hard wrister from Tyler Garcia that beat Brett Huber high over the glove. That’s as close as the Wranglers would get, however, in a game that would turn out to be well played and extremely physical between two teams who sit 2^nd overall in their respective divisions. 

The Wranglers' Tate Page, for the second night in a row, took a run at a player and left him laid out on the ice. On Friday night it was a Kamloops Storm player left on the ice after a 20 foot charge from Page, and on Saturday Coleton Fisher was the recipient of an identical hit. Fisher was slow to get up, and did not return to the game for precautionary reasons.

There was no scoring in the third, though 100 Mile did their best to drive shots through to Brett Huber in the Summerland net. At 7:08 of the third though, the game and its result became secondary. As Riley Pettitt was driving to the Wranglers' net the play turned the other way so he peeled off. The defender that was going to the net with him, Liam Cumberbirch, tried to peel off as well but caught a rut in the ice and went crashing through the back of the net. As Cumberbirch was going in, he folded his leg underneath him while hitting the crossbar with his head.

Initially we thought it might be a head problem that kept Cumberbirch on the ice, and both coaching and training staffs went immediately to the aid of the downed Wrangler. An ambulance was called right away to assist in the aid of Liam Cumberbirch, and shortly after the call was made he was loaded onto a backboard and stretcher and taken to hospital for further observation. Thankfully, the head contact with the crossbar was not what kept Cumberbirch down. It was the leg ailment that had Cumberbirch in so much pain, and rightfully so. As the paramedics arrived, the coaching and training staffs were working to cut the laces of the young man's skate to remove it as well as removing socks and shin pads to assess the damage. We have not received an update on the status of Liam Cumberbirch, but the Summerlan Steam organization wishes all the best in whatever road of recovery is required, no matter the time frame!


Summerland now has a week of practice to look forward to before playing a home and home with the Princeton Posse on Friday and Saturday next weekend. Summerland will travel to Princeton Friday before hosting the Posse on Saturday. Throughout the week we will keep an eye on the status of Coleton Fisher to assess whether he will be able to play next weekend or not. 

STEAM CAN'T TAKE THE HEAT, PREPARE FOR WRANGLERS

Coming in to Friday night's home game against the Chase Heat, the Summerland Steam were playing their best hockey of the season. They'd won 4 in a row and 9 of their last 10, but were facing a tough team from Chase who has also been hot. Both teams didn't waste any time getting a feel for one another, and Summerland got on the board early before allowing Chase to claw back each time the Steam got up a goal. In the end, it came out as a 4-3 score for the Chase Heat, with the team from Summerland leading on the shot clock 41-19 at the end of the night.

GAME RECAP

I should first start out by saying something about the Chase goaltender, Michael Byer. After a bit of a shaky start and some rebound control issues in the first period, Byer was fantastic in this hockey game, backstopping his team to a victory with 38 saves. 

Early in the first period, just :19 seconds in, Summerland got off to the start they wanted to. After establishing pressure in the offensive zone, Michael McEachern was able to find a lane and take a shot towards the Chase goal. Jack Mills was effective as a screen in front of Michael Byer, and was able to get a tip on the puck to record his 13th of the season and give his team an early 1-0 lead. 

The lead was short lived, however, as Cody Hodges tied the game for Chase just over 6 minutes alter. Hodges' team leading 17th of the season tied the game at one as he beat Steam starting goaltender Spencer Huff on a wrap around. Huff attempted to get over to the post as Hodges came around the back of the net, but he was clipped by his own teammate and prevented from getting there as Hodges tucked the puck in.

As the game went back and forth Summerland continued to pressure the Heat with the game tied. Michael Byer was forced to make several saves in the first period, but Summerland couldn't convert on the many second chances received while Byer was sorting out his rebound control. 

Finally, with just 1:05 left in the period after several minutes of sustained Summerland pressure, Nelson Hurry was able to find a puck off a faceoff win and put it on net. The puck took a misdirection on the way to the net and eluded Michael Byer low to the blocker side. It looked like it might have been tipped by Kendell Wilson on the way to the net, but the officials awarded the goal to Hurry, marking his 4th of the season to give his team a 2-1 lead heading to the break.

Both teams would get a goal in the second period as Summerland continued to hammer the Chase net with shots. It was Chase who scored first in the 2nd frame, at 16:46, when Travis Beaubien was the recipient of a friendly bounce off the end boards. After a shot from Cole Perison was sent wide, it bounced straight off the back boards and out the other side where Beaubien was waiting to fire it into an open cage to tie the score. 

The tie would only last just 1:10, as at 15:36 Cole Woodliffe recorded his 16th marker of the season to restore Summerland's lead. On his first attempt, Woodliffe made an unbelievable move to the front of the net after taking a pass from Jack Mills, only to be stopped by Mike Byer. Woodliffe was then able to pick up his own rebound, circle out into the slot and rip an A+ level shot into the top right corner of the net.

Summerland would head into the third period with a 3-2 lead, and would carry that lead through the first half of the third period. They continued to pound shots at the Chase net, but Mike Byer was ready and made sure to keep his team within one. It seemed, for a while at least, that Chase was more interested in body than puck, but they finally got their break with 7:30 to play. As they dumped the puck into the Summerland zone behind Spencer Huff, Huff went out to play it. As he rimmed it around and attempted to get back to his net he tripped, which left Wesley Matsuda with an open shot from the right wing into an open net to tie the game.

Now a tie hockey game, both teams showed a little more urgency than in the previous minutes. Both were trying to push for a win in regulation rather than just playing for overtime. It looked like Summerland might have an edge in play with just over 4 minutes left, but as Riley Pettitt took a puck to the net he collided hard with goaltender Michael Byer. This sent both teams into a bit of a frenzy around the Chase goal crease, and Pettitt was given (deservedly so) the only penalty on the play, sending Chase to the powerplay.

With that powerplay, the league's best, Chase went to work. Summerland was able to kill the first minute off with relative ease, but after a timeout and regroup by Head Coach Brad Fox and the Chase Heat, the Heat were able to convert. After working the puck feverishly around the zone looking for a shooting lane, Kaleb Boyle was able to slide through the seam down the middle and take a pass from Kolten Moore. The Heat captain made a couple of nice moves to beat two Steam defenders and rifled a shot up over the glove of Spencer Huff for the game winner with 2:35 left on the clock. 

Summerland attempted to get the game tied, firing five shots at Michael Byer in the final 2 minutes. They weren't able to beat him though, and the score stood final at 4-3 in favour of the road team. 

Thoughts:

- Summerland needs to be a little tighter on D headed into their next game. Their zone exits were a little sloppy vs Chase and were the cause of 2 of Chase's 4 goals.

- I thought Nicholas Gnazdowsky was GREAT for the Steam in his debut with the team. The coaching staff put him on a line with Jarrett Malchow and Coleton Fisher in his first game and all three were around the puck all night. 

- Jack Mills continues to pile on the points for Summerland. He's really come on since the departure of Paulsen Lautard and has formed some chemistry alongside his linemates Cole Woodliffe and Braden Eliuk. 

- Cole Woodliffe showed off a big-league wrist shot when he scored his 16th of the season for Summerland in the 2nd period. After an unreal move to get to the net he circled back to the slot and the release was so quick the goalie didn't see it until he fished it out of his net. 

- Cole Williams was steady as ever on the blue line once again. He'll have to be for the next little while, as Alex Williams will be sidelined for the Steam for at least the next 10 days. 

WHAT'S NEXT: THE 100 MILE HOUSE WRANGLERS

After the tough loss last night, it's going to be important for Summerland to have a quick bounce back. After all, they don't have any time to dwell with a very tough test coming up tonight against the 100 Mile House Wranglers. The Wranglers come in sitting 2nd in the Doug Birks division, losing last night at the hands of the first place team, the Kamloops Storm, by a score of 7-3.

The Steam and the Wranglers have locked horns once already this season, that being a 2-1 win in favour of the Wranglers on September 19. The win for the Wranglers came thanks to a stellar goaltending performance from Kristian Stead, who stopped 35 of 36 shots he faced. 

In the previous matchup between these two teams, Summerland played well defensively and pushed the pace, allowing only 15 shots against while outshooting their opponent by more than double. Noted Steam 'killer' Devan Suidy, former member of the Princeton Posse, was at it again in that game as he scored both Wrangler goals en route to the victory. He is currently listed as 'Questionable' to play in tonight's game, as he's currently dealing with a lower body injury.

One guy the Steam will have to look after tonight is former Summerland Steam F Brett Harris. Harris played with the Steam in the 2012-13 season, racking up 43 points in 49 games in Summerland. For the Wranglers this season, Harris has played in 24 games, amassing 10 goals and 28 points to go along with 17 PIMs.

In addition to their captain, Devan Suidy, 100 Mile will also be without Cole Zimmerman, who is up with the Prince George Spruce Kings of the BCHL. Tavis Roch and Brady Ward will also miss tonight's contest due to suspension.

Looking through the numbers the teams are eerily similar. Both sit 2nd in their respective divisions, both have better than + .500 winning percentages in their last 10 and overall, and both get contributions in one way or another from every single player on the roster. 100 Mile is a little banged up at the moment and missing a few bodies, so they'll likely be looking to simplify their game and make their chances count. 

Both powerplays are good, Summerland sitting 8th and 100 Mile House sitting 7th with .47% being the difference between the two. Where they differ is the penalty kill. Summerland sits mid-league with the 7th best penalty kill at 85.45%, while 100 Mile House sits 19th in the KIJHL at a 76.67% success rate while a man down. 

It should be a great hockey game between two evenly matched teams who are coming in ready to play. Puck drop goes at 7:30 at the Summerland Arena, and you can pick up tickets at Nesters Market in advance or at the door prior to puck drop for just $10. You can join Mike and I on the webcast tonight for a full pre-game show starting at 7:15 on www.kijhl.ca. Follow along on twitter leading up to game time as well as throughout the game with us at @SteamKIJHL or myself @Steam_Voice. You can follow the Wranglers at @100MHWranglers, and their play-by-play man, Josh Hall, at @vancan19. 

STEAM ROLL ON HOME TO HOST THE 'BIRKS DIVISION

Looking at their record, you could say the Summerland Steam head into this weekend's home games on a roll. Coming off a 3-2 win against the Kelowna Chiefs on Tuesday the Steam have won 4 in a row and 9 of their last 10 games. Since November 1st they've recorded just two regulation losses and an overtime loss in 12 games. The boys in red, white and black sit comfortably in 2nd place in the Okanagan Division, with a 9 point lead on the Princeton Posse and a 12 point lead on the 4th place Chiefs. The Steam also have 3 games in hand on the Chiefs heading into weekend play this weekend.

The first opponent staring the Steam in the face are the Chase Heat, who come to the Summerland Arena for their only visit of the year on Friday night. Chase comes in having lost their last game by way of a shutout to the Sicamous Eagles on Wednesday, 4-0.

Summerland hasn't seen Chase yet this season but have something to prove against teams in the Doug Birks Division. As it stands, Summerland has the same amount of losses (3) to the Doug Birks Division as they do to their own Okanagan Division. Pretty impressive from the Okanagan Division standpoint as the only losses they've recorded are to Osoyoos within the division. Having lost to 100 Mile House, Kamloops and Revelstoke already this season, however, the Steam want to change it up quickly and turn their fortunes around. The only victory they've recorded against the Doug Birks Division this season was on the 2nd night of regulation play in a 5-0 blanking of the Kamloops Storm.

In the first meeting of the year with Chase, the Summerland Steam will have to deal with some familiar faces from last season on the Heat roster. Their leading scorers from last year are again their leading scorers this season as Cody Hodges, Connor Venne, and Kaleb Boyle are amongst the top of the list. Logan Mostat will also be a concern for the Steam after switching allegiances from the North Okanagan Knights to the Chase Heat in the offseason. All are above the 20 point plateau for the season, which means Chase will offer up a balanced scoring attack and give the Steam all they can handle in the D-Zone.

For Summerland, there's only one key: Stick to the status quo.

If the Steam continue to do what they've done since November 1st, they're going to be just fine. As previously mentioned, the Steam are on a 4 game winning streak and have won 9 of 10, giving up more than 3 goals on only three occasions during that span. If the boys from the South Okanagan can continue to play a strong game in their own zone, they're going to be just fine.

We won't know until game day who starts in goal for Summerland, but it doesn't really matter if it's Brett Huber or Spencer Huff. Huber has been solid for the past 2 seasons for the Steam and continues to be steady eddy in the Summerland crease, while Huff has been nothing short of great since joining the team.

Alex Williams and Rylan Sideroff will once again be game time decisions for the Steam and everyone else is expected in the lineup come time for puck drop on Friday night.

Game time is 7:30 from the Summerland Arena, and you can catch a full pre-game show with myself and EzRock Summerland's Mike Swanson starting at 7:15. You can catch a more in-depth weekend preview tomorrow morning when I join SoCountry Internet Radio's Dennis Walker at 7:40 for some hockey talk. I'll also join Mike at EzRock on Friday morning for a preview of the game vs the Chase Heat!

MCKINNEY SCORES LATE WINNER AS STEAM ROLL ON

After a busy week last week that produced 3 wins and 6 points, the Summerland Steam started another busy week on Tuesday night in Kelowna. Summerland would find out early in the day that they would be without defenseman Alex Williams for the 4th time in 5 games, as well as Rylan Sideroff for the 3rd time in 4 contests. Affiliate Player Sam Jones, from the Okanagan Hockey Academy, would draw in on defense for the Steam and play alongside his brother Adam.

For the Chiefs, a couple of key components were missing from their starting lineup. Defencemen Kevin Roth and Cole De Jonge both missed the contest with upper-body injuries, per play-by-play man Justin McCartney. Nick Josephs also missed Tuesday's contest with the same lower-body injury that has limited him to just 11 BCHL games this season. Josephs has yet to play a game with the Chiefs after re-joining the team on December 1st, but hopes to draw back into the lineup sometime this weekend.

The game at hand on Tuesday was won by the road team, 3-2, and was played completely to the contrary of the season series thus far. There were only 5 minor penlaties taken in the hockey game, no fighting majors, no misconducts, and no visits to angry coaches at either bench from referee Dustin Minty.


GAME RECAP

There really wasn't too much to write home about in the first period of this hockey game. Both teams kept each other in check while going back and forth throughout a period of hard, clean hockey. Both goaltenders were good early, making saves in the first few minutes and getting comfortable inside their respective areas of blue paint.

Brett Huber, the starter for the Steam, faced 13 shots and stopped them all, while Kelowna 'tender Brady Lenardon saw 10. Lenardon was beaten on a late-period 2 on 1 when Jack Mills feathered a pass cross-crease to Cole Woodliffe, who went high into the top corner. Woodliffe's 14th of the season netted the Steam a 1-0 lead headed to the second period. The only penalty of the period came at the 20:00 mark, as Dylan Jamieson took a roughing penalty at the buzzer. 

Starting the 2nd with the powerplay, the Steam weren't able to convert. After the initial 2 minutes with the man advantage the Steam continued to press the Chiefs without any success in finding the back of the net. For the next few minutes there wasn't much flow or even much pace to the game. The pace finally picked up after Brett Huber was forced to make a five-alarm save on a 3-on-1 near the mid-mark of the period. 

After the save, the puck went the other way and Riley Pettitt nearly converted a rebound that popped loose at the side. Pettitt couldn't get enough wood on it though, and the score remained 1-0 until just a couple of minutes later. On a Steam powerplay not long after the Pettitt miss, Cole Woodliffe would convert on his 2nd of the night and 15th of the season to pad the lead for the road team.

After the puck was worked down into the corner, Jack Mills found Woodliffe cruising through the slot and he was able to bury the powerplay marker with a low, hard shot through Brady Lenardon. 

Just a couple of minutes after the Steam took a 2-0 lead, however, Austin Dorn cut the lead back to 1 as he scored for the Chiefs. Dorn moved through the neutral zone with the puck and was able to beat a Steam defender wide. He then was able to move laterally across the crease in front of Brett Huber and tuck a puck five-hole for his third of the season to cut the Steam lead back down to 1.

Riley Pettitt would take a penalty with :10 to play in the period which Summerland would promptly kill off to start the third. After the Steam ratcheted up the pressure again early in the third, Kelowna pulled even against the run of play. Dakota Kittle was the recipient of an angled dump in to the right of Brett Huber, and he was able to find some daylight high over the blocker on the short side to knot things up at 2. 

Despite Kelowna tying the game up, Summerland continued to press as they had before, knowing Huber was there to stand strong when needed behind them. After they completed a powerplay without success, the line of Coleton Fisher, Jarrett Malchow and Cody Egilson spent a solid minute in the offensive zone. This caused Kelowna to panic with the puck and fail to clear, with the puck popping into the slot. While lying there like loose change, Lathan McKinney found himself all alone and walked into the game winner with 8:32 to play in the third. The hard slapper from McKinney beat Lenardon low to the glove side and rounded out the scoring. 

Huber was magnificent late, helping the Steam kill a penalty to Cole Williams with just under 5 to play. He stopped 28 of 30 for the second straight game, and was definitely in consideration for a nod in the 'Stars of the game' category.


GAME THOUGHTS: 

- Brett Huber was great in this game, particularly on a 3 on 1 in the 2nd and late in the third period.

- Cole Woodliffe, Jack Mills and Braden Eliuk continued to roll on and show why Head Coach John Depourcq shows faith in them night in and night out. Woodliffe scored twice while Mills added 2 assists and Eliuk recorded an assist.

- The line of Coleton Fisher, Jarrett Malchow and Cody Egilson are beginning to find some chemistry and were very good (and very noticeable).  stood out for the 3rd or 4th game in a row.

- Michael McEachern showed what he can do with his speed all game long, starting rushes and becoming a catalyst at driving play forward out of the Steam defensive zone.

WHAT'S NEXT

The win for the Steam over the Kelowna Chiefs makes them 4 for 4 in the season series thus far. The two teams won't meet again until January 13th at the Rutland Arena when the season series resumes. The positive result for Summerland makes 4 wins in a row and 9 of their last 10, with the only blemish being the 7-2 loss to the Osoyoos Coyotes. 

The Steam will now have a couple days of practice before playing their only set of back-to-back home games of the season. Those two games come against Doug Birks Division opponents on Friday and Saturday. The Steam host the Chase Heat on Friday night before welcoming the 100 Mile House Wranglers on Saturday, December 13th. Both games are 7:30 starts from 'The Station' and tickets are just $10. You can pick those up in advance at Nesters Market in Summerland, or at the door prior to puck drop! 

STEAM WIN BOTH ON WEEKEND, PREPARE FOR BUSY WEEK AHEAD.

On Sunday afternoon the Summerland Steam finished up a perfect week in Armstrong against the North Okanagan Knights. After a hard-fought 2-0 win over the Knights on Tuesday, the Steam came away with a slim 5-4 win over the Columbia Valley Rockies on Friday night. The boys then headed up the road on Sunday for a return matchup with the Knights and came home with a 3-2 win. Adam Jones recorded his first KIJHL goal in the first period on a shorthanded dump in, Riley Pettitt added a backhand beauty in the second frame, and Jarrett Malchow blasted his 2nd of the season past Mitch Profeit in the third. Malchow's tally would stand as the winner in the middle of the third period after North Okanagan got one to make the score 3-2. Brett Huber recorded the win in net, stopping 28 of 30 shots faced on the night.

Sunday's game was one of those ones where there was a lot going on without much actually going on that was worth noting. Wyatt Gale took an early shower after a fight with Austin Garrington in the first period, and Adam Jones and Mitch Lukacs did the same in the 2nd. The two teams combined for a whole lot of penalty minutes, as usual, but it seems as though the powerplay and penalty kill numbers on the box score don't quite match up to the score sheet as far as powerplay opportunities are concerned.

After the win on Sunday, there won't be much practice time for the Steam. It's the start of another three game week for the team, as they will travel to Kelowna on Tuesday before playing back to back home games on Friday and Saturday against the Chase Heat and the 100 Mile House Wranglers. These 3 games are equally as important as the 3 games last week, as Summerland tries to keep pace with the Osyoos Coyotes and close the gap between first and second. While they want to catch Osoyoos, they're also working at lengthening their lead over the 3rd place Princeton Posse and the 4th place Kelowna Chiefs by making full use of their games in hand.

Summerland will start the busy week and go toe to toe with the Kelowna Chiefs on Tuesday night as they make their first visit of the season to the Rultand Arena. They have already seen the Chiefs three times at home this season, winning all three at the Summerland Arena. Since the two teams last met, Kelowna has gone out to get some firepower, adding Ryan Swanson in a trade from Columbia Valley that sent Nick Evdokimoff to the Rockies.

The Chiefs also welcomed back one of the KIJHL's career leaders in points per game, Nick Josephs. Josephs returns from the BCHL's Salmon Arm Silverbacks after leaving the Chiefs for the 'Backs at the trade deadline last season. Josephs has not played a game yet for the Chiefs in 2014/15 as he has been sidelined with a hip injury. The Calgary, AB native played only 11 games for the Silverbacks before being released at the December 1st roster deadline. When healthy, he'll be an imposing figure in the lineup for the Chiefs and a player that every single KIJHL team will need to watch in their matchups headed forward.

Summerland's strategy won't change with the additions the Chiefs have made. As has been the case all season, the Steam will be looking to make sure they keep their defence tight and get all five guys on the defensive side of the puck as often as possible on Tuesday night. Now that every player on the Steam roster is finally healthy, it will make things easier for the coaching staff to set their lines and play the matchup game against their opponents best.

For the Steam, who head into Kelowna for the first time this season, they'll really have to make sure to keep their composure. It's an extremely tough building to play in with good crowds at every game, and with a very strong, physical team opposing them it'll be important to get a good start and make sure to stay out of the penalty box.

Faceoff is 7pm at the Rutland Arena, and you can catch all the action with Justin McCartney on the KIJHL webcast at www.kijhl.ca.

STEAM GET UP EARLY, HOLD OFF ROCKIES

Summerland Steam defenseman Michael McEachern &
Columbia Valley Rockies Forward Sam Young engage in fisticuffs
in a December 5th game at the Summerland Arena.
Photo Credit: Sarah Mayer

For the second game in a row, the Summerland Steam were set to play a home game against a team with less than 6 wins on the season on Friday night. That team, the Columbia Valley Rockies, had only one road win all season coming into Friday's contest, but they didn't play like it. From the very beginning the teams were evenly matched, with both teams getting some opportunities early in the hockey game. The game ended in a 5-4 Summerland victory, but it was an adventure getting to the final score as Summerland at one point held a 4-1 lead in the third period before enduring a comeback from the Rockies.

GAME STORY

From the drop of the opening faceoff, the Summerland Steam seemed to have the Columbia Valley Rockies under control. Summerland started with early pressure in the offensive zone and were rewarded just under 6 minutes in thanks to Braden Eliuk's 5th of the season. Eliuk was able to cruise down the middle, take a pass from Riley Pettitt and bury a shot through the five-hole of Rockies' starter Patrick Ostermann. 

It looked as though Summerland had the game under control and were about to build on their lead right after the goal, but just 1:16 later newly acquired Columbia Valley forward Kale Johnston scored his first as a member of the Rockies to tie the game at 1. After a dump in and a good forecheck by the Rockies, the puck popped loose into the high slot where Johnston found it and one-timed it through Steam starting goaltender Spencer Huff.

After the goal to tie the game at 1, Summerland was given their first powerplay of the game, and connected on Jack Mills' 11th of the season. After a bit of passing back and forth the puck came to Mills on the right wing where he fired one past Ostermann to regain the lead for the Steam. 

Leading 2-1, both teams had a couple of chances as the intensity began to amp up. Tension began to mount, and with 7:05 to go in the first period it boiled over as Michael McEachern and Sam Young had a spirited scrap that saw both sent off to an early shower. It started with a clean hit that Young took exception to, and it looked like it was going to pass without incident until Young took a lumberjack swing at the back of McEachern's legs a little under a minute later. McEachern of course took exception to the attempt to chop his legs off, and the two got into a long, spirited tilt that saw Young take the extra 2 for slashing to put the Steam on a 5-on-3. 

While on that powerplay they would capitalize, as Riley Pettitt took a pass from Lathan McKinney and buried his 7th of the season past Ostermann to extend the Summerland lead to 3-1. They would take the lead into the intermission, and come out looking for more in the 2nd frame.

In the first couple of minutes of the 2nd, the Steam had good pressure in the Rockies' zone and were rewarded with another goal, this time Cody Egilson with his 4th of the season on the powerplay. Egilson took a pass on the half-wall and was able to curl out and take a shot at the net. His initial shot was stopped by Ostermann, but the rebound popped up and landed at the side of the net for Egilson to chase down and bang home to extend the lead to 4-1. This ended the night for Patrick Ostermann, as Giovanni Sembrielaz would take over the crease for the Rockies. He got a rude welcome from the Steam, as on the first shot he faced Braden Eliuk beat him with a hard wrist shot low to the glove side, but the goal was called off and Riley Pettitt was given a penalty for goaltender interference. Instead of going up 5-1, Summerland took to the penalty kill and successfully knocked the 2 minutes off the board. 

The Egilson goal ended up rounding out the scoring in the period, but it didn't end the fireworks. After Jack Mills and Columbia Valley's Nick Evdokimoff were given 2 minutes each for yapping at one another, the Rockies' defenseman was given a Gross Misconduct by referee Shane Hillman for an obscene gesture and vulgar language towards the scorekeepers that separated he and Mills at the penalty bench.

Evdokimoff was ejected in the same situation with the same off-ice officials last week while still playing for the Kelowna Chiefs. He was traded two days later to the Rockies in exchange for Ryan Swanson. 

Looking ahead to the third period it looked as though the Summerland Steam were comfortable with a 4-1 lead. To begin the third, Braydon Barker cut the lead to 2 just under 3 minutes into the period before Kellen Marchand made things interesting at the 14:29 mark pulling the Rockies to within 1.

Columbia Valley did a great job of coming back in the third period on this night, and looked like they were going to push to tie the game until the 3:11 mark of the third when Coleton Fisher was able to locate a loose puck in front of Sembrielaz and poke it home to restore a 2 goal lead for Summerland. 

Malcolm Fenelon would get a late one for the Rockies with 1:36 remaining, but the 2 goal lead was insurmountable as the Steam went on to take the final 5-4. 

A FEW THOUGHTS

- Braydon Barker and Kellen Marchand were the best Rockies on this night, no question about it.

- Giovanni Sembrielaz was sold in relief of Patrick Ostermann and gave his team a chance to come back and make this game close.

- Coleton Fisher was good for Summerland, once again, as he's turned into a very valuable piece for Head Coach John Depourcq, particularly in the defensive zone. Not only did he notch the game winner, he was arguably Summerland's best in the faceoff circle as well.

- AP players Mitch Torrens and Tristan Bukovec didn't look out of place for Summerland, once again, as they filled in for the injured Alex Williams and Rylan Sideroff. 

- Spencer Huff looked good again in his 2nd straight start, coming off a shutout on Tuesday of the North Okanagan Knights. He made 25 saves on 29 shots in Friday night's win, but came up big when his team needed him in the 3rd period to secure the win.

- Jack Mills continued his strong play and big-time point production, as he busted a slump a couple of weeks ago and has put up 9 Pts (5g + 3a) in his last 6 games.

WHAT'S NEXT

No rest for the wicked, as Summerland plays their 3rd game of the week Sunday afternoon in Armstrong against the North Okanagan Knights. Puck drop is 3PM at Nor-Val, and you can catch all the action at www.kijhl.ca. The Steam then go to Kelowna to play the Chiefs on Tuesday, December 9th, and return home for back-to-back home games on Friday and Saturday against the Chase Heat and the 100 Mile House Wranglers. Both games will be a 7:30 start.

Steam Prep for Rockies

After a 2-0 win over the North Okanagan Knights on Tuesday, the Summerland Steam are set to host the Columbia Valley Rockies on Friday night. Though the score was close on Tuesday night vs the Knights thanks to goaltender Mitch Profeit, the game wasn't as close as the score would indicate. Summerland dominated the puck possession game all night long and ended up putting 32 shots on Profeit, who was good enough that he probably deserved at least a point for his team.

On Friday when the Rockies pay their only visit to the Summerland Arena, the Steam will look for the same type of work ethic. Like the Knights, the Rockies are in the midst of a tough season, collecting just 5 wins through their first 27 games. What doesn't come to your attention until you dive into the advanced stats is that Columbia Valley has only recorded one win away from 'The Eddie' in Invermere where they play their home games. That win came on October 4th in Armstrong against the North Okanagan Knights, so the Rockies will surely be looking to get back in the win column on the road when they come in on Friday.

The Steam and the Rockies have met once previously this season, in Invermere on October 18th. That game saw the two teams go back and forth, ending in a 4-3 OT win in favour of Summerland thanks to a game-winner from Riley Pettitt.

Since that meeting, both teams have made changes. For Columbia Valley, of the three goals scored against the Steam the last time they played, only one goal scorer remains. That player is Carter Melnyk, as both Doan Smith and Dondre Watson have moved on to other teams. Smith now plays his games with the Fernie Ghostriders, while Watson moved on to Jr A in the AJHL.

As for the changes the Steam have made, the last time these two teams played the Steam got 4 points from then-captain Paulsen Lautard. He has now moved on to play with the Trail Smoke Eaters in the BCHL, so the Steam will look elsewhere for some scoring punch on Friday night. Alex Kong was the goaltender of record in the overtime win for the Steam, and he has also moved on to play for the Abbotsford Pilots of the PIJHL.

For both teams, Friday is an important night. Both are looking to climb the standings as we near the midway mark of the season, and with the holiday break looming every point is important. Summerland is trying to distance themselves from the Princeton Posse and the Kelowna Chiefs while attempting to catch the Osoyoos Coyotes, while the Rockies are trying to climb out of the basement and back into the race in the Eddie Mountain Division.

Columbia Valley seems to be in the same boat as the Summerland Steam, battling a bit of an injury bug. Malcolm Fenelon, Taran Mathieson, Chase Anchikoski and Tyson Kapty are all listed as day-to-day on the KIJHL website, so we'll see if any or all of them end up in the Rockies' lineup when the puck drops.

As for Summerland, they'll likely be without Rylan Sideroff and Alex Williams for a 2nd straight game as they both recover from upper body injuries. Michael McEachern and Lathan McKinney, who also missed Tuesday's contest, will draw back into the lineup. Expect to see AP's Tristan Bukovec and Mitch Torrens again as well for the Steam in place of Williams and Sideroff. Both have played with the Steam this season and played well, both having no problem adjusting to the speed or intensity of KIJHL hockey.


The puck drops at 7:30 at the Summerland Arena, and you can pick up tickets in advance at Nesters Market or at the door prior to puck drop! If you can't join us in rink, join us on the KIJHL webcast at about 7:20 as I'll have a pre-game show on the go prior to game time!