The Warriors are in high spirits as they return from a three-game Coastal road trip.
After earning a single point (OT loss) in Powell River and a victory in Nanaimo, West Kelowna completed the journey with a 6-1 triumph in Cowichan Valley on Sunday afternoon.
Tied 1-1 after the opening period, the Warriors exploded for five goals in the first nine minutes of the second.
Jason Cotton struck twice on the powerplay, but isn’t convinced his team re-invented the wheel in the victory.
“I think we were just keeping it simple” Cotton says of his team’s powerplay units. The Warriors went 3/6 on the powerplay in Duncan, and Cotton suggests simply “getting pucks to the net” was a big part of that success.
Cowichan Valley opened the scoring with a lovely powerplay goal 18:30 into the opening period. However, the Capitals couldn’t beat Andy Desautels the rest of the way, finishing with 35 shots and a 1/5 powerplay success rate.
“I thought we played a pretty good game” Warriors Associate Coach Brent Gough smiled afterwards. He pointed to his team’s powerplay as a big factor in the game, adding “we capitalized on our chances.”
Gough also paid tribute to goalie Andy Desautels, saying “our goaltender was good when we needed him.”
In addition to the pair from Jason Cotton, Jordan Masters, Liam Blackburn, Brett Mennear, and Carl Hesler also scored for the Warriors on Sunday. Francis Marotte was chased from the Cowichan goal after the fifth West Kelowna tally, but returned to the net to start the third period. Between Marotte and Robin Gusse, the Capitals allowed six goals on 43 shots.
Rookie forward Adam Osczevski earned his first BCHL point on Brett Mennear’s tally in Cowichan.
The Saskatchewan product says he feels great about a road trip that saw the Warriors play three games in less than 72 hours.
“It’s a bagger” Osczevski admitted, “but we worked hard all week and we came out here and got five out of six points.”
With Sunday’s win, the Warriors are now three points ahead of Penticton in the race for first in the BCHL’s Interior Division, though the Vees have one game in hand.
West Kelowna plays three of the next four contests on home ice, starting with home dates against Merritt and Prince George next weekend. Friday’s clash against Merritt is ‘80’s night’, with fans encouraged to dress up and enjoy ‘80’s themed entertainment all night long.
Visit The General’s Report for Jon Zacks’ impressions on the West Kelowna Warriors, and complete multi-media coverage of the Tribe.
