Goaltenders Shine In Overtime:

This is posted on the Vipers website:

Goaltenders shine in overtime

by Don Klepp | Added 2010-12-03

On Teddy Bear night in Vernon on Friday night, the visiting Westside Warriors held the Vipers to a 2-2 overtime draw.

Kevin Boyle stopped 36 of 38 Viper shots and saved the game with three big stops in the waning seconds of overtime. He was the hero at the end, but his work had been overshadowed in the first overtime by Vernon’s Blake Voth, who robbed Kyle Singleton at the goalmouth as Westside took a power play into overtime.

High drama in the form of a Bryce Kakoske penalty shot occurred at 1:44 of OT after Alex Grieve had dislodged his team’s net as Kakoske’s shot was on its way toward the yawning cage. The play ended less dramatically as Kakoske lost the puck while attempting a forehand-backhand deke.

, Westside, which has the BCHL’s third best power play (operating at 25.41 percent) went up against the Viper’s 15th ranked unit (16.67 percent.) However, the Vipers opened the scoring while enjoying a two man advantage.

At 14:16 of the first period, Dylan Walchuk one-timed a Steve Weinstein pass through goalie Kevin Boyle and the Wesbild ice was littered with teddy bears.

The Warriors took a series of undisciplined penalties in the period, and with a minute remaining in they had to kill a 5 on 3 Viper advantage for 48 seconds. This time they escaped unscathed as several Viper one-timed shots missed the net.

They opened the second period by killing the remainder of the second penalty and then scored a brace of power play goals of their own.

The first came at 5:29. Power forward Shawn Hochhausen deflected a Tom Kroshus point shot into Blake Voth’s pads and then shoveled a backhand past Voth.

Ten minutes later, Grayson Downing notched his 9th power play goal of the year, and his 21st overall. As he came through the right faceoff circle, he snapped a shot over Blake Voth’s catching glove. Voth was screened on the play.

At the other end of the ice, Kevin Boyle made two big stops on Adam Thompson point shots during a Viper power play and robbed Aaron Hadley twice on the doorstep.

Although the Vipers out shot the Warriors 12-6 in the period, the visitors made the big statements with their two goals and several big hits. One of those hits sent Pat McGillis to the trainer’s room. McGillis, who was playing his first game in a month because of injury, did return in the third period.

Max French earned a boarding penalty for the hit, but Boyle held the fort for the Warriors.

In the third period the Vipers had more jump than the Warriors, but Boyle was very good and his defencemen cleared rebounds. However, Dylan Walchuk’s second goal of the night tied the contest.

Walchuk followed a Mike Zalewski net drive and beat Shawn Hochhausen to the rebound at 15:42.
The goal set the stage for the two goalies’ late heroics.