No love lost as Panthers and Cougars meet Friday on Peninsula Co-op game sponsor night

Don’t be late arriving for the 7:30 pm start on Friday at the Panorama Recreation Centre!  The Peninsula Panthers will host the Victoria Cougars and if this game is anything like a breath-taking 4-3 Double Overtime win by the Panthers at home two weeks ago, fans will want to arrive on time.

And making the night even a little more special will be the Peninsula Co-op who will be the main sponsor at the game.  They will be the host sponsor for the game and will provide prizes for the fans as well as on-ice entertainment between periods.  “Having a Peninsula Co-op game night is a great way to show our support for the Peninsula Panthers team and fans.  Last year we gave back over $450,000. To organizations in our community like the Panthers, and this game night is another fun way we can show our support for the local team,” said Colleen Sparrow, Community Relations Assistant for the Peninsula Co-op.  “We would love to see the Panthers come out on top in the game against the Cougars, just as they did a couple weeks ago,” added Sparrow.

The Panthers went down 3-0 in the exciting end-to-end game on October 11^th but after scoring two quick power play goals right at the end of the 2^nd period and then knotting the game at 3-3 early in the final 20 minutes, the stage was set for Tate Coughlin’s winner in the 2^nd five-minute overtime.  And for Panthers Hockey Operations Boss Pete Zubersky, it was a game that the fans were intensely involved.  “It was such a strange night,” explained Zubersky.  “We always have a ton of prizes for our fans and I have hardly ever seen prizes not claimed in the 11 years we have done this.  But not one prize was claimed, fans were so tuned into the game that they did not pay attention to their ticket numbers.”

The Panthers and Cougars have met three times this season, each team winning a game in Double Overtime and the Cougars winning the other in regulation after salting away the victory in the final eight seconds with an empty net insurance marker.  “Yes, the games have had a ton of bite to them,” said Zubersky.  “I have always said that hockey is an emotional game for emotional people and the three games have lived up to all the hype.  I look for our kids to come out from the opening faceoff and play their hearts out.”

The locals did not fair well this past week going into Saanich last Wednesday and coming out with a 4-4 tie before dropping a home-and-home series on last Friday and Sunday with the Campbell River Storm.  But all that will be forgotten with a big effort at home Friday evening and that is just what local fans are hoping to see.  A large crowd is expected for the game.