3rd period barrage by Panthers gives club 2-1 series lead

There was more than a little buzz around the friendly confines of the Panorama Recreation Centre on Friday night as the Peninsula Panthers prepared to host the Westshore Wolves in Game 3 of their Best-of-7 series.  As a large crowd began to filter into the barn on a chilly night, there was plenty of chitchat about the game at hand but also about the Canadian Men's Olympic Team and their heartstopping 1-0 win over the USA earlier in the day.  Former Panthers' star Jamie Benn was the lone marksman for the Canadian squad but it was good enough to push the Club into the Gold medal game on Sunday.  And as the fans spoke of the exciting win and the chance for Gold, the oldtimers talked about when Benn skated for the Panthers in the 2005/06 season. 

Prior to the game, Brian Harrison - who is the Director for Junior B hockey in the Province of British Columbia - was on hand to present Alex Milligan with the VIJHL award as he was named the League's "Top Forward."  And then Sue McDonald - who is on the executive of the League - presented the VIJHL's "Rookie of the Year" award to 16-year-old Tate Coughlin, the Saunders Subaru Award to Jackson Skerratt for "Community Leadership" and finally the "Coach of the Year" award to Panthers' Bench Boss Brian Passmore.  The awards are voted on by the teams in the VIJHL however, Teams are not allowed to vote for players or coaches within their Organization. 

After the 12-minute ceremony, the puck was dropped and all of the pre-game ongoings were quickly put into the rearview mirror.  Both sqauds looked ready to play on the night and a fast-paced game was evident right from the opening faceoff.  It was the Wolves who would be first to capitalize when Kyle Richter opened the scoring at the 9:39 mark late in a Wolves powerplay opportunity.  But the lead did not hold up for long.  Rylan Ball blasted a shot from the right point at the 11:00 minute mark.  Zack Smith had stationed himself in front of Wolves netmider Matt Chester and the tip off the stick of Smith was just enough to put the biscuit past Chester to knot the score at 1-1.  Both Clubs split a couple other scoring chances however, went to the dressing room after 20 minutes had been played tied at one each.

And each team would add another goal in the 2nd frame.  Wolves Connor Krupa intercepted an errand pass just inside the Panthers blueline and then weaved his way towards Stephen Heslop making the start between the pipes for the Panthers.  Krupa made a crafty move while right on top of Heslop and then deposited the puck behind him to give the Wolves a slight one goal cushion.  This set the stage at 18:59 for Rylan Ball to score the prettiest goal of the game.  Ball picked up the puck at the right point and beat a forward down the wall.  He walked in from the point and unloaded a blast that beat Chester high to the glove side on an absolute lazer beam.  The goal seemed to give the Panthers a lift as they went to the room after the 2nd stanza was over and as the Zamboni pulled out to grease the sheet for one final time on the evening.

The 3rd frame was all Peninsula Panthers.  Alex Milligan gathered in a puck high near the left wall and he sent a shot that Chester should have easily gloved.  But the puck somehow rolled off the end of his catcher and stopped only when it had reached the back of the Wolves cage.  The goal came only 2:02 into the final stanza but it was a huge one.  With the score 3-2 and only a couple minutes later the Panthers moved the puck sweetly in the offensive zone finally setting up Ball to the right of Chester.  Ball sent a one-time into a wide open net however, Chester somehow managed to get the paddle of his stick over in time to make the improbable save.  It was undoubtedly the stop of the series through the three games.  But the Panthers were not to be denied on the evening.  Reece Costain romped down the left side on a 2-on-1 with just over five minutes left in affair and as he wound up for a blast, Chester came out to challenge.  Costain deftly fed the puck over to Tylor Branzsen and he neatly tucked the puck into the yawning cage.  And then with just over four minutes to go, Ball sent a wrist shot from the point towards the net and Skerratt was on the spot to once again redirect another puck past a bewildered Chester.  The goal was the final nail in the Wolves' coffin and it sent the visitors home smarting after being collared with the loss.

Heslop, Ball and Cole Glover were named the three stars.  Heslop blocked 20 of 22 shots directed his way while Chester was good on 31 of 36 opportunities by the Panthers.

"I finally enjoyed a period of this game," explained Panthers Head Coach and General Manager Brian Passmore.  "We banged a bit, moved the puck nicely and worked hard.  We went to the front of the net and were rewarded.  There were a lot of kids that worked hard and their names did not show up on the scoresheet.  Jordan Law skated miles and won a lot of face-offs for us tonight.  Grayson Vickers stuck up for Heslop when he was slashed late in the game.  Vickers is playing big for us right now and it makes a huge difference.  This series has a long way to go, we know that."

The Panthers and Wolves will meet on Saturday evening at 6:00 pm at the Q-Centre for Game 4 in the series and will then be back at the Panorama Recreation Centre on Monday night for Game 5 with the puck set to drop at 7:30 pm.