PHOTO: Julie Pringle/Snap Photography
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JANUARY 16th, 2018
WEST KELOWNA, B.C. – The West Kelowna Warriors had a tough time getting their offence rolling as they were shutout for the second straight game in a 5-0 loss to the Vernon Vipers on Tuesday night at Royal LePage Place.
The opening period didn’t start on the way the Warriors had intended as Cavin Tilsley was stamped with a five-minute major penalty for fighting and gave the Vipers a five-minute man advantage where they struck for the game’s opening goal.
Jesse Lansdell rushed the puck through the neutral zone and into the West Kelowna end before sending the puck to the left-wing side and an open Keyvan Mokhtari to put into the back of the net on the blocker side of Warriors netminder Nik Amundrud for a 1-0 lead at the 2:47 mark.
The Warriors killed off the remainder of the penalty but the Vipers kept the momentum going as at the 9:17 mark, the lead doubled off the stick of Brett Stapley. A scramble in front of the Warriors net saw Stapley get a rebound of a Jimmy Lambert shot and put it past the blocker side of Amundrud for a 2-0 Vipers lead.
The scoring continued for the Vipers as at the 11:43 mark of the opening frame, Connor Marritt added Vernon’s third goal of the period. Marritt was left alone in the slot and his shot got past the glove side of Amundrud for a 3-0 advantage after the first twenty minutes as the Vipers outshot the Warriors by a 15-8 margin.
The 2nd period saw more pressure from Vernon and extend their lead to 4-0 at the 11:48 mark of the middle stanza, the lone goal of the frame. Jagger Williamson outwaited the Warriors goaltender after a rebound bounced out to him in the right-wing face-off circle and put it by Amundrud for a four-goal lead.
That stood as the only goal of the 2nd period with Vernon outshooting West Kelowna by a 14-7 margin in the 2nd frame and 29-15 over the course of 40 minutes. Amundrud had turned away 26 of the 29 shots he faced through two periods while Vipers goaltender Ty Taylor had stopped all 15 shots thrown his way.
The 3rd period saw the Vipers add one more goal with the Warriors coming on with some pressure but unable to crack Taylor. Alex Swetlikoff took a saucer pass from Connor Marritt and beat Amundrud from the slot for a 5-0 Viper lead at the 12:14 mark of the final period and cemented the final score.
Nik Amundrud stopped 37 of the 42 shots he faced for his 14th loss of the season while Ty Taylor picked up his league leading 7th shutout of the season with 26 saves on 26 shots for his 18th victory of the season.
FINAL SCORE: 5-0 Vipers
FINAL SHOTS ON GOAL: 42-26 Vipers
Warriors PP: 0/4
Warriors PK: 2/4
3 Stars:
1) Jimmy Lambert (0-1-1)
2) Ty Taylor (26 saves on 26 shots)
3) Jesse Lansdell (0-2-2)
Fortis Energy Player of the Game: Michael Lombardi (0-0-0)
ATTENDANCE: 797
The Warriors (21-20-1-1) head back out on the road for their next game action as they take on the Trail Smoke Eaters (26-13-1-3) in the final game of their season series. Puck drop is slated for 7:00 PM with the pre-game show getting underway at 6:45 PM on the Warriors Internet Network and HockeyTV.com with the voice of the Warriors, Trevor Miller.
West Kelowna returns home on Saturday night to host the Salmon Arm Silverbacks at Royal LePage Place. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 PM with tickets available online at wkw.goticketpro.com, at the Warriors office, by calling (250) 769-7051 or at the box office one hour prior to the opening face-off.
