Starting Goaltenders:
Vernon Vipers: Samuel Diblasi
West Kelowna Warriors: Ethan Sawyer
1st Period: The hometown Warriors jumped on the Vipers early and were by far the better team in the opening frame. The Tribe carried the better of the play for most of the period. West Kelowna was skating, physical, moving the puck, generating offence, were hard on the puck and winning the battles. The Warriors scored twice on their first two shots and looked pretty good in the teams first preseason game. The Vipers didn't get off to a good start and just couldn't recover. The Snakes saw a lot of action in their own end, looked slow and sluggish this afternoon. The Vipers struggled defensively, were slow moving or getting the puck out of their own end, took way too many penalties, struggled offensively, didn't get any real sustained pressure in the offensive zone, had a couple of good shifts but otherwise played most of the 1st period in their own end. It was 3-1 Warriors after 20 minutes of play. Shots were 10-6 West Kelowna.
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2nd Period: The Snakes had a good start to the middle frame, looked a little better and played a little better early on as both teams were fairly even early. Vernon was finally able to generate a little more offence in the period, but again no sustained pressure in the offensive zone. The visiting Vernon Vipers had a couple of good shifts, but unable to capitalize. The Snakes switched goaltenders midway through the period. Samuel Diblasi gave up three goals on sixteen Warriors shots. Leandro Djuric finished the remainder of the hockey game. West Kelowna played with the same pace, were again still physical, moving the puck quickly up ice, getting pucks to the net and were strong on pucks and the body. Overall the Tribe had a slight edge in play and was still the better team. It was 4-1 West Kelowna after 40 minutes of play. Shots were 12-8 Warriors.
3rd Period: It was all Warriors as they basically owned the 3rd period, were all over Vernon. WK looked very strong and continued to play the right way. The Tribe basically dominated the period, were skating circles around the Vipers, winning the battles, forcing turnovers, getting pucks to the net and creating loads of offence. The hometown Warriors were also very aggressive and very good shorthanded, forcing the Snakes into several turnovers which resulted in several quality opportunities. The Vipers didn't have a good 3rd at all as it was all Warriors. Vernon had a couple of good shifts late in the game but otherwise looked terrible. The Vipers with three power plays coughed up the puck which resulted in several shorthanded opportunities, didn't look good with the man advantage. The Snakes were losing most battles, turned over the puck often, were making mistakes, went at least close to ten minutes without a shot on goal, just couldn't get anything going. The Warriors come away with a 5-2 victory. Shots were 13-7 West Kelowna.
Vernon Vipers Top Performers:
Mason Kim (2 assists) Recently signed with the Vipers over the summer, was by far Vernon's best player. This kid isn't the biggest kid but has some wheels, skill and very dynamic. Kim was one of just a few players who were skating this afternoon. Really loved this kids energy and compete level, very exciting to watch, does a lot with and without the puck
Game Thought's: Vernon Vipers
- Today was the Vipers first of four exhibition games
- I wasn't very impressed with both goaltenders
- Spotted a few Vipers fans in attendance but not many
- The Vipers & Warriors will meet seven times during the regular season
- Vernon went 1-5 with the power play
- The Snakes didn't have a great 1st period as West Kelowna was by far the better of the two teams. Vernon looked slow and sluggish, had trouble moving and getting the puck out of their own end, allowed two goals on two shots, struggled offensively, no real sustained pressure with the puck, were outhit and outworked
- The Vipers next preseason game is Tuesday in Salmon Arm
- Vernon didn't dress a single veteran from last season
- Samuel Diblasi got the start in goal, allowed three goals on sixteen Warriors shots was replaced by Leandro Djuric midway through the 2nd period
- The Snakes looked a little better and played a little better in the 2nd period. Vernon was finally able to generate some offence as both teams looked fairly even but overall the Tribe was still the better team
- Vernon's PK actually looked not bad
- The Vipers were wearing last season's third jerseys
- The Vipers were outhit and outworked for most of the afternoon
- Not many players stood out this afternoon
- Before today's game the Vipers traded 19 year old defenceman Liam Magnuson to Cranbrook for a Player Development Fee
- The Snakes PP struggled, gave up several shorthanded opportunities
- Down 4-1 heading into the 3rd the Vipers showed little fight as it was all Warriors the final twenty minutes. Vernon looked terrible
- Leandro Djuric gave up two goals on nineteen shots, did make a couple of big saves in the 3rd or West Kelowna could have easily had another two or three goals
- With the loss, Vernon falls to 0-1-0-0 in the preseason
West Kelowna Warriors Top Performers:
Kylen Martens I thought played well on the Tribe's blueline
Kelsen Podworny (3 goals) Was by far West Kelowna's best player in the win. The veteran forward scored three times, was hard to contain, hard to defend and gave Vernon's defenders all kinds of trouble in the offensive zone
Trevor Oishi (1 assist) Played well on the backend
Nolan Oxtoby (1 assist) Has some size, played with a lot of jump/energy
Olivier Chan (1 goal & 2 assists) Was dangerous and hard to defend this afternoon. Is quick on his feet, has some skill and a good skater
Game Thought's: West Kelowna Warriors
- This afternoon is the Warriors first of two preseason games
- The Warriors penalty kill was very strong and aggressive, causing lots of turnovers which resulted into several quality chances
- West Kelowna had the early jump and were by far the better team in the 1st period. The Tribe carried the better of the play, were skating, moving the puck, generating offence, scored twice on their first two shots on goal, were hard on pucks, physical, looked very good in the teams first exhibition game
- A real good size crowd for an afternoon game on a long weekend
- The Warriors went 1-5 with the man advantage
- The Warriors dressed several veterans from last season, all having their name bars on their jerseys
- WK never stopped skating, were moving the puck and on top of Vernon most of the afternoon
- Both teams were pretty even in the 2nd period but overall the hometown Warriors were still the better team
- The Warriors defence played very well, keeping the Snakes to the outside, limiting their shots and chances
- West Kelowna's next preseason game is Wednesday in Salmon Arm
- The Tribe were the more physical team, laying the body and finishing their checks
- The Warriors dominated the 3rd were all over the visiting Vipers. The Warriors PK was very good, forcing lots of turnovers as was their defence, limiting Vernon's time and space. WK never stopped skating or took their foot off the gas
Scratches:
Vernon Vipers:
No scratches were announced
West Kelowna Warriors:
No scratches were announced
Boxscore-Game Summary,
Vernon Vipers @ West Kelowna Warriors Monday, September 07, 2026 | BCHL League Site
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Vernon Junior Hockey History,
2 comments:
Thanks for the recap Diehard! I changed my mind and didn't go as I am going to wait for the start of the regular season
Thanks for this Diehard! I couldn't make it to the game today as me and my wife had relatives in town this weekend.
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