Warrior 9 - Trail 4

The West Kelowna Warriors flexed their offensive muscle in a big 9-4 win on Friday night at Royal LePage Place, and coupled with a Salmon Arm loss to Vernon, the Warriors are now tied for 2nd place in the Interior division, while the 'Backs still have 3 games in hand with a big match-up looming on Saturday in the Shuswap.

Brett Mennear made a triumphant return to the lineup, opening the scoring shorthanded on a break with Kylar Hope. Mennear crashed the net and put the puck past Bailey MacBurnie to make it 1-0 West Kelowna.

The Warriors got two more quick ones in the first part of the opening frame, as Jonathan Desbiens finished off a beautiful three-way passing play into a wide open goal, before Kyle Marino got into the act, shorthanded as well when Liam Blackburn spun around and sent the pass across for the marker.

Kienan Scott got Trail on the board on a bit of an unfortunate bounce for Keelan Williams, as it slipped between his legs, before the Warriors finished off the period with another two girls. First, Desbiens scored his 2nd of the night on a rebound from Hope to make it 4-1, before Connor Sodergren put home a cross-crease pass from Quin Foreman to make it 5-1 heading to the first intermission.

The Warriors got an early power-play goal in the second period, when Blackburn buried one on the man advantage to go up 6-1.  Trail responded with two in a row, scoring shorthanded and on the powerplay, but West Kelowna would get the last two of the period once again.

Foremen went top shelf from the bottom of the circle to make it 7-3, while Jonathan Desbiens went on a rush up the left wing after a Williams save, and buried his hat-trick goal with a quick shot. Williams picked up an assist.

In the 3rd, Reed Gunville put home a rebound in front of Linden Marshall, before Trail made it 9-4, which is how this one ended up.

Game Thoughts:

• The Warriors put the pedal to the metal early on in this hockey game, getting three quick goals and running away with it from there. Brett Mennear was a catalyst in this game, his first after missing five in a row, as his penalty killing lead to the first goal, and changed the dynamic of the Warriors forward group with his return.
• Jonathan Desbiens. Called the purest goal scorer in Rylan Ferster's time in West Kelowna by Ferster himself, didn't disappoint. He had a good laugh after the game over his first goal, as he took his time to make sure he hit the empty net on a great passing play. Two goal scorers goals were his other tally's, with quick hands on a rebound and then burying one off a rush for his hat-trick.
• Garrett Forster laid the biggest hit of the hockey game in the opening period, flattening Blaine Caton in the neutral zone. However, it was Forster who was knocked out of the game later in the opening period, being hit awkwardly into the side boards on a dangerous hit. Another lineup note, Rylan Yaremko played just a few shifts in the opening period and did not return. No word on their status for tonight in Salmon Arm.