Natan Ethier notches hot trick in debut as Warriors topple Bandits
“After a full day of travel from the East Coast to West Kelowna, you could excuse Natan Ethier if he was less than his best in his West Kelowna Warriors debut.
You might excuse him if he decided to rest and make his debut Saturday night after boarding a plane to head west at 3 a.m. Friday morning.
Instead, he put on a show for those fans who came out on a night when the Toronto Blue Jays had a chance to win the World Series.
Ethier notched a hat trick including the winner on a gorgeous play as the Warriors outlasted the Brooks Bandits 5-3.
With the game knotted at three just past the midway point of the third, Ethier chased down a long stretch pass from defenceman Ian Crowley that seemed to handcuff the defenceman at the Bandits blueline.
“I felt like I had more speed than the D so I poked the puck and when I came to the goalie I managed to put it in,” said Ethier.
He deked the goaltender to the backhand and slid the puck in five hole.
Ethier was at the right place at the right time for his first two.
After Kelsen Podworny was robbed from in tight, the rebound came back to him and Podworny calmly slid the puck to Ethier at the edge of the crease for an easy tap in.
His second, which gave the Warriors a 3-2 lead with 5.1 second left in the first came when a Bandits defenceman tried to glove the puck out of harm’s way from beside his own net. Instead, it fell to Ethier who flipped home his second.
It was a wild opening period. After Ethier opened the scoring midway through the period on a power play, the teams traded four goals over the final four minutes.
Crowley had the other Warriors goal in the period with a wrist shot from the right point through traffic.
But, the Bandits took over in the second, and eventually got the equalizer when Jack Good beat Bor Glavic from the high slot.
Glavic made several outstanding saves to keep the game deadlocked as the Bandits peppered 16 shots his way.
“For most of the first and third I thought we played our game, the second we decided we were going to be something different and they played their game,” said head coach Simon Ferguson.
“We let them dictate the pace. We were lucky to get out of the second tied 3-3 so great work by Bor and we found a way in the third.
“I thought (Brooks) came out and worked, they played simple and were really good in the O-zone.”
A huge third period in which they turned the tables, limiting the Bandits to just three shots allowed the Warriors to get the winner and the clincher from Crowley who tried to relieve the pressure from in front of his own goal and hit the empty net in the process.
Ethier arrived at the rink just a few hours before game time, collected his gear and met his teammates before stepping onto the RLP ice for the first time.
He said his new teammates immediately made him feel at home.
“As soon as I came in every guy came up to me, presented themselves and shook my hand.
“I was feeling like I had been here a long time, not my first day.”
He’ll get a well deserved nights sleep tonight before tomorrow night’s return engagement with the same Bandits.
Friday’s win moved the Warriors into a first place tie with Trail atop the Interior Division East and overall BCHL standings with 22 points.
The have also now gone 11 games without losing in regulation time.”
Wayne Moore. (2025, October 31st). Natan Ethier notches hot trick in debut as Warriors topple Bandits. https://www.castanet.net/news/BCHL/578827/West-Kelowna-wins-its-fifth-in-a-row-5-2-over-visiting-Salmon-Arm
