Panthers claw Cougars 4-1

November 5, 2021
North Saanich, B.C.

Prior to the game between the Peninsula Panthers and the visiting Victoria Cougars on a somewhat warm and overcast evening in North Saanich, Owner Pete Zubersky stated the obvious.  There was a bit of a logjam between the pipes and the Club was looking for anybody to jump forward and grab the position.  Ashton Lukan made a big step forward in doing just that on Friday night in the friendly confines of the Panorama Recreation Centre as he blocked 21 of 22 Cougars' scoring attempts and in the process, collected the all important 4-1 win.

"I suppose it has been no secret that we have been looking for a better performance between the pipes," quipped Zubersky.  "We brought in a 19-year-old goaltender this week in Brady Kelly who hails from Saskatchewan and Coach was debating if he should go with Lukan or Kelly this evening.  He decided on Lukan and we both knew it was an important game for him.  He did exactly what we expected he would do when we made the deal for him.  I thought he was a bit tentative in the 1st period but got his feet under him in the final 40 minutes and was an important factor in the game.  We have three tenders now on the Club, there is nowhere to hide from here on in.  Coach just posted the lineup and Lukan will go again tonight, he earned the start."

Lukan was named the Panthers Player of the Game, the only goal he allowed being a snapshot that Cougars Ethan Roworth potted when a defensive miscue left him romping in all alone on the Panthers starter.  Roworth was feeling some backchecking pressure and snapped off his shot from the hashmarks and the bullet beat Lukan on the glove side.  It was probably a shot that the stopper would have liked to have a re-do but it was the only mistake that mattered as he held the fort the rest of the way.

The Panthers Matt Seale opened the scoring 8:11 into the first frame on a cute wrap around before tucking the disk past Cougars starter Jonah Chambers.  Denver Maloney started the play deep in his own end when he tossed the puck rinkwide to Owen Cox.  Seale joined the rush and picked up the puck on the left side before scoring his first of two on the evening.

With the score knotted at 1-1 going into the middle stanza, it would be the home side that took control.  The VIJHL's top line got to work at the 13:49 mark and scored the prettiest marker of the evening and one that eventually proved to be the winner.  League Rookie of the Year candidate Payton Braun snapped a shot past Chambers after work from linemates Logan Speirs and Payton's brother Riley left him in the slot 14 feet out.  A loud and partisan crowd showed their appreciation for the effort resulting in the North Saanich Fire Department having to be called out to locate the roof of the Panorama which probably landed somewhere in the vicinity of Dean Park.

With both teams going back and forth in the final frame and with the game hanging in the balance, recently-acquired Tristan Rosenblood sank a sharpened stake deep into the heart of a Cougar.  Seale moved the puck to Davey Moody and he in turn found Rosenblood parked just to the right of Chambers and this Cat demonstrated a pair of soft mittens and made no mistake as he hit lit the lamp for his first goal in his Junior career.  And it was fortunate that the Fire Department had yet to find the roof as it would have come off once again!  With just 2:32 remaining in the affair and with Chambers anchored on the Cougars bench for the extra attacker, it would be Matt who would Seale the deal.  The defenceman capped a stellar game when he broke up a Cougars' attack and then sent the disk down the ice which ended hitting paydirt.  The goal was the final nail in the Cougars' coffin on a night where the Panthers were the better of the two teams.  A small skirmish broke out with only 32 ticks left on the clock, but for the most part it was an insignificant part of an entertaining Friday night on the Peninsula.

Bench Boss Brad Tippett was beaming after the effort from his troops and discussed the game in the comfort of his office after the contest was in the books.

"Our pregame meeting revolved around the prior game against the Cougars. We zeroed in on how well we matched up and had played in spite of the OT loss. We reminded the players there would be ebbs and flows in the game. How we managed those emotions would be critical. The Cougars do a great job on the penalty kill. We tried some different options and got shut down there. There was a puck that hit the linesman and the play quickly turned back, resulting in the Cougar goal. Importantly there was no frustration. I thought we took a very business-like attitude into the game and got stronger as the game went on. Lukan stayed focused in spite of not seeing many shots and came through with a huge save on a 2-0 breakaway in the third period. Robson Scott and Malcolm Fletcher ran as our third pair and chewed up minutes with smart safe plays. The same could be said for our fourth line of Moody, Rosenblood and Phillips. They were a great example of an “energy line” and got rewarded with Rosenblood’s first VIJHL goal. It was an all-round great team effort."

Roworth picked up the Player of the Game honour for his side.  Chambers blocked 31 of 34 shots sent hurtling in his direction but was collared with the loss.  Riley Braun continues to lead the VIJHL in scoring while Speirs and Payton Braun are also in the top five.  Speirs extended his scoring streak and has now tallied at least a point in all 21 games the Panthers have played thus far.

The Panthers toyed with their newly purchased replay equipment during the latter part of the game and with a tweak here and there, replays should now become a regular feature during home games.  

"We are quite excited about what we have added and I know our fans are absolutely going to love this extra bit of entertainment," said Zubersky.  "I had quite a number of fans approach me during the game really pleased about the addition of replays."

The Club also rolled out a new pre-game feature compiled by play-by-play commentator Will Bryant and Photographer Christian Stewart.  The two have teamed to bring a two-minute report at 7:22 pm prior to the puck drop which is played over the in-house PA system with Stewart's photos on the big screen bringing this feature to life.

"We have a bunch of ideas as to how to improve our game presentation each time out and I know that we are getting better and better," stated Zubersky.  Our goal is to have every single fan wanting to come back into the barn the next time we hit the ice at home and we are really getting to that point.  Coach has a great product out on the big sheet and it's a fantastic combination with our off-ice staff working on the other side of the glass.  It's hard to get people away from their 60 inch TV but I have seen our crowds starting to grow and I want to get back to when we had a full house each night.  We have no restrictions on crowd size at this point and historically Friday's at Panthers games have always been the place where everyone in the community gathers to enjoy each other's company and to enjoy watching the Club compete.  We are on our way back to getting things back to normal, I see it happening more and more."

The Panthers will travel up to Mill Bay to take on the Kerry Park Islanders on Saturday evening at 7:30 pm, a game which will see Lukan looking to post his second win in two nights.  Then the Club  travels to Saanich to take on the Predators before returning home Thursday afternoon, November 11th at 2:00 pm to take on those same Predators.  And next Friday they will complete three games in three nights when they host the Islanders for a 7:30 pm start.