Panthers advance to VIJHL Championship series with a heart-stopping double overtime win

It was probably the way it was supposed to be.  The Comox Valley Glacier Kings and the Peninsula Panthers had tied for 2nd place in the VIJHL standings over a 48-game regular season each garnering 65 points along the way.  The Glacier Kings had advanced to the 2nd round routinely dispatching of the Saanich Braves in four straight games while the Panthers found themselves in deep water with the Westshore Wolves but managed to best them 4-1.  But it would take Game 7 and a couple of extra frames before the Glacier Kings would allow the Panthers to spill over the boards and onto the ice and race towards Cole Glover who had jammed home the winner at the 8:33 mark of the 2nd overtime period.

The play evolved when the puck was dumped into the Glacier Kings corner to the right of stopper Michael Hails.  Grayson Vickers was the first in and after coming up with the puck, he skated up the wall to the hashmarks before powering into the high slot.  Vickers was having a bit of a time controlling the puck but he somehow managed to shovel it towards the Glacier Kings cage where a crowd was forming, including 17-year-old Connor Logan and Glover.  Hails went down in the scramble that ensued and somehow Glover managed to push the puck past him and into the Glacier Kings cage to set off the Game 7 celebration in front of the large crowd, many who had travelled from the Peninsula to witness the contest.  It was a fitting end to the game for Glover who had been the best forward over the 5 periods for the Panthers.  The customary handshakes followed the celebration but this took much longer than the usual.  The series had been hard-fought and it appeared as though there was a lot of respect as the players sifted past each other in the neutral zone before leaving the ice to a loud ovatation.

The Glacer Kings opened the scoring at the 9:04 mark of the 1st period when former Panthers player Wil Finlay beat goaltender Stephen Heslop from the slot.  It was the first shot of the game however, it would be the last one to beat Heslop as he faced down the remaining 30 attempts sent his way, some of them in dramatic fashion.  Connor Logan knotted the score at the 18:25 mark of the period when he completed a pretty 3-on-2 with helpers going to Tylor Branzsen and Reece Costain.  And then everyone sat and waited and waited and waited for the next goal to be scored.  And then they waited a bit longer.

"That was a great playoff game, the way it should go," said an excited but drained Panthers Coach Brian Passmore.  "We thought that it would come down to a mistake but Hails and Heslop erased a couple of these and it was really going to take a greasy goal to win it.  Vickers made the play, Glover finished it off.  I thought my heart was going to come out of my chest.  What a feeling!"

"I woke up on Saturday morning before the game and checked my email messages," explained Pete Zubersky.  "And there was one from former Panthers player Ryan Hunter who moved back home to Ontario to play Junior A.  Ryan had scored the double OT winner two years ago in the 2nd round against Saanich in game 7 and he wished the boys luck and wondered if it could happen again.  He mentioned Glover, Vickers, Heslop and Cody Allison in his email and I thought that was pretty cool.  He said that he will never forget that game and the feeling he had.  I bet that Glover will be the same."

Zubersky felt there were others who played well.  "Rylan Ball was a man out there tonight, so much poise.  I thought we allowed the 1st goal by Finlay as we had a player not attack the puck at the Glacier Kings blueline and it allowed them to skate it into our end.  But for the most part, there were very few mistakes.  I thought both teams were tight throughout the game with all the chips on the table but this experience will help them for the next series and in their hockey careers.  That was a lot of fun."

The VIJHL Championship Series will once again feature the defending champion Victoria Cougars and the Peninsula Panthers in what most believe will be a long and competitive series.  These two Clubs have a rivalry that has gone on for well over a decade and there will be a lot of anticipation going into Game 1 which will go at the Archie Browning Arena on Thursday night.  Game 2 will be right back at the friendly confines of the Panorama Recreation Centre Friday evening.  The schedule has now been set for this best-of-7 tilt.  It should be a doozy!

Game 1  Thursday, Mar 20 @ Esquimalt - 6:30 warm-up; 7:00 game time

Game 3  Sunday, Mar 23 @ Esquimalt - 6:00 warm-up; 6:30 game time

Game 5  Thursday, Mar 27 @ Esquimalt - 6:30 warm-up; 7:00 game time

Game 7  Sunday, Mar 30 @ Esquimalt - 3 warm-up; 3:30 game time