Panthers upend Generals for 7th straight win on home-ice

Joe Stafford-Veale had his best night as a Junior on Friday night in a game against the Oceanside Generals in the friendly confines of the Panorama Recreation Centre and his effort helped vault the Peninsula Panthers to their 7th straight home win in a row.  The Club has not felt the pain of a loss at the Panorama since way back on a very warm evening on September 14th and they will look to extend the impressive streak next Friday night when the Saanich Braves head a few miles North for the 7:30 pm start.

The Panthers' leading scorer Josh Lingard was out of the lineup against the Oceanside Generals.  Lingard headed to Port Alberni on Tuesday to practice with the Bulldogs of the BCHL and he jumped on their bus for a three-game road trip to Prince George on Friday and Merritt on Saturday night before finishing up his adventure with an afternoon game in Chilliwack against the Chiefs.

Coach Tippett had a decision to make.  Tanner Wort and Riley Braun needed an able centre to complete the top line with the departure of Lingard and the bench boss punched Stafford-Veale's ticket.  And it paid off in spades!  Stafford-Veale had a goal and two helpers while Wort and Braun both had a goal and an assist in an exciting 4-3 win.  The Panthers dominated the affair outshooting the Generals 37-20 but still had to rely on a short-handed marker by Logan Speirs at the 18:36 mark of the final stanza to put them ahead for good.

"I thought we got a solid effort and we needed all of it as we didn’t have a lot of puck luck," explained Tippett.  "We pushed the flow and pace especially in their end. With three key players out, it offered new roles for other guys and they took advantage of the opportunity. Joe Stafford-Veale fit in seamlessly with Braun and Wort. We had a week off after a long 6 games in a 10-night stretch. Near the end, the fatigue was showing. We had a little more pop in our step tonight and got a boost of energy from the “ Kid Line” Edgar, Gilbertson and Auchterlonie and a few more of Grunert’s booming checks."

The Clubs were tied at 1-1 after 20 minutes were firmly in the books however, the local "Cats" held a 3-2 lead going into the final period.  But the Generals made the most of their chances and at the 4:50 mark of the 3rd stanza, Aleko Karamanis pulled the visitors even once again at 3-3 when he beat Panthers' starter Connor McKillop.  The final frame was an even one with both Clubs having opportunites to take the lead.  At the 17:52 mark and with only 2:08 remaining in the contest, Panthers' defenceman Zack Evans was sent to the sin bin for a couple minutes on a roughing infraction.  It looked as though the Panthers were going to have to work on the penalty kill for the rest of the game with hopes of forcing overtime.  But Logan Speirs had a different idea.  Speirs, who is one of the top penalty killers on the Panthers, busted up a play deep in the Generals' defensive zone and forced a turnover near the half wall to the right of Generals' stopper Jacob Sweet.  Sweet had played a sweet game and along with Stafford-Veale had probably been the story of the game.  But now, Speirs was racing towards the goaltender with nothing between him and the net but a huge patch of white ice.  Speirs looked like he was going to deke to the long-side on the Generals' keeper but instead went to his backhand and roofed it to the back of the cage for the winner.  The Panthers killed off the remaining time, although McKillop was forced to make a big save late to preserve the victory.

The Panthers depth once again paid dividends and even with Lingard, Jake Gajda with a one-game suspension and Alex Benger and Jonah Ragsdale out with injuries, the Club was able to roll out four effective lines and six effective defencemen to earn the win.

The Panthers will head to Westshore on Wednesday to take on the Wolves at the Q-Centre before returning home next Friday night against the Braves.

Panthers tracks....the three stars on the evening were Wort, Stafford-Veale and Braun....Lingard and Gajda should return to the lineup on Wednesday while Ragsdale and Benger are close to returning as well....the recently traded Brendan McTavish suited up for the Saanich Braves on Friday but did not factor on the scoresheet....Garett Gilbertson probably played his best game as a Peninsula Panthers' player as he banged and crashed and showed some effectiveness each time out....a buzz was heard around the arena after the game as fans look forward to the Braves coming in next Friday....only Braun and Evans have played all 20 games the Panthers have been involved in this season....