Panthers win another 2-1 heart-stopper

There were a lot of possible storylines on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Saanich.  The Braves were coming into the game riding high after reeling off five straight wins to start the season, and the Panthers knew that they would have their hands full.  But the Club was coming off a heart-stopping 2-1 win on Friday night against the Victoria Cougars after Jonah Ragsdale hit paydirt with only 23 seconds remaining in Regulation time.  The Club had started slow in terms of wins and losses however, felt they were much better than their record shows and Sunday would be a test the entire group was looking forward to.

Connor McKillop was stellar on Friday night between the pipes and he once again drew the start on Sunday.  After the game was in the books, he would prove he was up to the task on Sunday as well.  And veteran forwards Joe Stafford-Veale and Carson Cox, who were healthy scratches on Friday, drew back into the lineup and appeared to have just a little more fire than they had shown over the past couple games.  Both played well with Cox scoring a goal and Stafford-Veale buzzing all night and being one of the better forwards for either team.

There was no scoring in the1st stanza and it would be Braves' forward Graeme Getty who would draw first blood when he beat McKillop late into the 2nd period.  Kyle Mace was awarded an assist on the play.  The game went back and forth and finally at the 13:16 mark of the final frame, it was the Panthers turn to light the lamp.  Sixteen-year-old David Edgar lugged the puck down the left wall and deep into the Braves' zone and then he tossed it back to defenseman Zack Evans.  Evans in turn found Cox in the high slot and the big and strong forward ripped a shot past Braves' starter Connor Cheyne to tie the game at 1-1.  Nothing would be decided as regulation time ran its course and the two squads headed to the five-minute 4-on-4 Overtime.  Both teams had a couple of chances; perhaps the Braves had the better ones but both McKillop and Cheyne held firm as time ran out in the inital overtime stanza.  The two Clubs lined up at Centre Ice for the 2nd OT period, this time five minutes of 3-on-3.  The Panthers controlled the play off the face-off and then it was Evans turn to lug the puck down the left side with mate Josh Lingard streaking right down Main Street towards Cheyne.  Evans delicately fed Lingard, who was stopped from point blank range, however a juicy rebound landed right on the stick of Evans 7 feet in front.  Evans went low glove side for the win but Cheyne was up to task with perhaps the biggest save of the affair.  The Braves cleared the zone and skated through the neutral zone however, Panthers' defenseman Skyler Diamond-Burchuk had other plans.  He broke up the play, romped down the left side and from in close snapped a low shot that Cheyne was able to block.  The rebound came out to Lingard and this time from about 5 feet out he buried it to win the game 2-1 and to start the celebration once again.

McKillop was named the Panthers' player of the game and blocked 43 of 44 shots on net.  And Cheyne was the Braves star taking care of 36 of 38 Panthers shots.

Head Coach Brad Tippett on the weekend games, "Obviously a big weekend for us as a team. I thought not only did we play hard, we played smart and we played for each other. We had players blocking shots, timely saves, a relentless physical forecheck, discipline and looking to make safer plays.  Although we are still having scoring issues we are getting better chances. Hitting the net with lower shots - like the winning overtime goal today - will go a long ways to putting more goals on the scoresheet."

The Club will head to Nanaimo for another test on Thursday night when they play the Buccaneers.  The Bucs are 5-2 in the win/loss column however, their only two losses were actually wins against the Campbell River Storm and the Oceanside Generals.  But the Bucs had used an illegal player during those two contests and the VIJHL decided to take the wins away.  For all intents and purposes they are 7-0 and the Panthers are aware that they will have their hands full and will need a big effort.

On Friday night the Club will be right back where they belong, in the friendly confines of the Panorama Recreation Centre when the curtain will rise at 7:30 pm.  In on Friday will be the visiting Kerry Park Islanders.