Pucks and teddy bears – both seemingly by the hundreds, were flying at
Royal LePage Place Saturday.
On a night when hundreds of stuffed animals were raised for the West
Kelowna Food Bank, the Warriors played their most complete game on home
ice in weeks in a convincing 5-1 win over the visiting Coquitlam Express.
The final score flattered the visitors as the Warriors buzzed around the
Express net from the opening whistle and, if not for the play of
netminder Chris Tai, the Warriors may have hit double digits.
Jason Cotton scored twice and added an assist for the Warriors. Liam
Blackburn, Andrew Johnson and Jordon Masters added singles.
Brett Mennear chipped in with a pair of assists.
"I felt we played a really good hockey game. I think there was maybe a
lapse there in the third period where they kind of brought it to us but
that is going to happen sometimes in those kind of games," says Warriors
assistant coach Brent Gough.
"It's good to get a good home win here. We're going to have two of the
next three at home so we're going to have to be better and this is a
step in the right direction."
After Masters, Mennear and Brayden Gelsinger had glorious chances to
open the scoring it was Blackburn who finally got the Warriors on the board.
Blackburn snapped a short side wrist shot from the right circle on the
Warriors third power-play opportunity of the first.
The teddy bear toss goal was special for Blackburn.
"Yea, everybody before the game was asking who wanted to get the teddy
bear toss goal. I was sort of hoping I could get one – not trying to
make it too obvious," says Blackburn.
"Getting that goal was pretty special because you only get one
opportunity in a year to get that."
Johnson doubled the lead five minutes into the second. Michael
Buonincontri did most of the work driving the net with the puck but was
unable to get a good shot away.
He stayed with the puck, gathered it up behind the net and fed it in
front where Johnson one timed a shot from the low slot.
Coquitlam had a couple of chances to get on the board after Johnson's
goal but rang a pair of shots off the goalpost.
Masters gave the Warriors some breathing room eight minutes into the
third with his eighth of the season off a faceoff in the Express end.
Coquitlam ended Scott Patton's shutout bid 14 seconds later and gave the
Express some jump.
Jason Cotton ended any thought of a Coquitlam comeback with a pair of
late goals.
The Warriors, who won the night before in double overtime in Trail, had
been challenged by the coaching staff to be more involved physically,
especially early in the game.
Gough says the Warriors were able to do that again Saturday.
"With our team I don't think it means you have to run guys into the
fifth row but I think guys are getting harder on pucks and not cheating
on the offensive side of pucks and being responsible that way," says Gough.
"I thought it was a good effort by all and it's good to get that win."
The coaches also challenged the veteran players to step up and Blackburn
says players are starting to follow the lead of veterans like Masters
and Cotton who have played really well the past number of games.
The Warriors came into Saturday's game without the services of starting
netminder Andy Desautels who will be out a couple of weeks after he
underwent an emergency appendectomy Saturday.
Gough says the procedure went well.
"They caught it before it actually got really bad. It looks positive.
He'll probably spend the night in the hospital and hopefully be out
tomorrow. I thought Pats (Scott Patton) came in – and he hasn't played
in a while because Andy has been playing great hockey for us – and he
shuts the door and allows one goal…and made the saves he had to."
The Warriors, winners of two in a row and three of their last four play
host to Trail Tuesday before closing out the pre-Christmas portion of
the schedule with a home and home set with the Vees Friday in Penticton
and Saturday back at Royal LePage Place.
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