Panthers leave Cougars with Catscratch Fever drubbing them 5-2

When the final buzzer went off there were a lot of happy Peninsula Panthers players, but none had a bigger smile than Matthew Sheeran.  The Club had played a solid 60 minutes and were full value for a 5-2 win over the visiting Victoria Cougars.  The 6'4" 200 lb. veteran defenceman has only set up stake in the Panthers den for three weeks but his addition has anchored an already big, talented and solid defensive corps.  It was Sheeran who took special joy in the win as he had previously toiled with the same Victoria Cougars team as a 17-year-old.  "That was a lot of fun tonight," said Sheeran standing just outside the Panthers dressing room.  There was a lot more to be said but the beat of Country and Western pouring out of a boom box dominated the space.  But if a smile was worth a thousand words, there was not really that much more to say.

The visitors ran into penalty problems as the game reached the 7:00 minute mark of the 1st frame and the Panthers were hoping to capitalize on a lengthy two-man advantage.   The puck was moved crisply in the offensive zone and it was Sheeran who found the puck on his stick as he drifted in from the blueline to the high slot.  With traffic in front of Cougars netminder Connor Beauchamp, Sheeran snapped one that found nothing but net which allowed the cats from the Peninsula to draw first blood. Cody Breitenstein and Zack Smith were awarded with assists on the play. But late in the period, Dave Daughtry and David Marshall scored goals less than a minute apart and it would be the Cougars who would skate to the intermission with a 2-1 lead.  The first period featured physical play from start to finish, but it was clean and hard and Referee Jordy Davis was invisible, letting the players play.

The 2nd frame was much like the 1st, hard and fast.  The two Clubs exchanged some good chances and it was Stephen Heslop who came up with a couple key saves, one that looked like a sure goal after a cross-crease pass.  At the 10:14 mark, Rookie rearguard Sean Buchanan walked down from the blueline and sent a lazer past Beauchamp high on the glove side to knot the game at two.  For Buchanan, it would be his 8th goal of the season but he clearly saved a bit more for later.  Connor Logan and Spencer Loverock  garnered helpers on the big and young defenceman's tally.  And only two minutes later, Loverock fed the puck down the left wall in the offensive zone to Brandon Story and he deftly moved towards the Cougars cage.  The puck slipped past a Cougars defenceman to the slick puck-handling Logan and he made a cute move before depositing the puck to the back of the Cougars net.  The goal would turn out to be the winner.

The fireworks were not over.  Coming out for the 3rd period with a slim 3-2 lead, a determined Panthers group put the pedal to the metal and dominated the final 20 minutes.  They were rewarded at the 8:13 mark when Buchanan would score his second marker of the game and 9th of the season.  Buchanan is currently setting the pace for goalscoring from the back end in the entire VIJHL.  Jackson Skerratt and Smith would add assists on the play.  The Panthers controlled the play and as the clock moved closer to the 20:00 minute mark, Beauchamp was removed for an extra attacker.  But Smith gathered in the puck and hit paydirt at the 18:48 mark of the final stanza.  There was the usual push and shove in the final minute of play and a couple players were sent to the sin bin but for all intents and purposes the final chapter on the evening had long been written.

Beachamp blocked 32 of 36 shots sent his way while Heslop was solid all night long stopping 27 of 29 attempts in picking up the win.

"I thought our guys played a solid 60 minutes," explained Head Coach and General Manager Brian Passmore.  "We were solid on Wednesday in Westshore against the Wolves and I thought we were solid again tonight.  They had the one shift where they scored both of their goals and I am sure Sloppy (Heslop) would have liked the first one back but he answered back with some really solid play for us.  We will hopefully have a real hard working week of practice and get ready for a pretty darn good Nanaimo team who is coming in here next Friday.  They lead the VIJHL right now so this will be a good measuring stick to show us where we are at."

The Panthers welcome in the Nanaimo Buccaneers next Friday with the puck set to drop at 7:30 pm.

Panthers Tracks....the three stars on the night were Buchanan, Heslop and Loverock....Nick Kean took a puck in the chin and was leaking as he left the ice and was probably in need of some thread....Reece Costain laid out the biggest hit of the game, crunching a Cougar forward in the neutral ice zone bringing ooohs and aaahs from a partisan crowd....Kelowna Rockets scouting staff were at the game getting a close look at their prized 16-year-old Tate Coughlin....Coughlin did not hit the scoresheet but was creative all night long and played a big hand in at least two of the goals that were scored....the scout also commented on Costain's play and was very impressed....due to a myriad of injuries, the Club played with only 16 skaters, two under the maximum....