Bulldogs Toss Vipers Another Loss:

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Bulldogs Toss Vipers Another Loss
 
Sunday, December 9, 2012 - Submitted by Don Klepp

With some good fortune, including a strange penalty that led to the winning goal late in the third period, the visiting Alberni Valley Bulldogs edged the Vipers 4-3 on Saturday.

The Bulldogs' opening goal, 1:51 into the game,  resulted from a weird bounce off the back boards that found Ryan Lough all alone in front of Austin Smith for an easy tap-in.

The Vipers bounced back with a superb effort by former Oakville Blades teammates at 5:09. Along the left boards in the Alberni zone, Braedan Russell's nifty stick handling and spin move allowed him to find Liam Board, who roofed a backhand over Jay Deo's left shoulder.   Dexter Dancs also drew an assist on the play, his first point as a Viper.

Then the teddy bears flew, leading to a long delay that robbed Viper momentum. Play was even for a few minutes, but the Bulldogs started to initiate chippy play that took the Vipers off their game and eventually led to a fight between Brendan Persley and Mitch Crisanti.

Referee Ward Pateman imagined that the fight had been staged, so he handed each player a game misconduct. The staged fight rule also carries a three-game suspension, which might be overturned by league officials who were present at the game.

After an incident behind the Bulldog net at 16:41, two Vipers and one Bulldog received roughing calls. The Vipers killed the penalty well, until 18:17, when the puck bounced out to Ryan Lough again. The Bulldogs' leading scorer shot the puck through a maze of bodies and over Smith, who had gone to his knees to deal with chaos in front of him. 

The Bulldogs added to their lead at 18:17. From Jon Bruwell's faceoff win, Matt Hansen slapped a one-timer that gave Smith no chance to react.

The Vipers were the better team for the closing 40 minutes and they eventually tied the contest, thanks to the work of their recent acquisitions, Dexter Dancs and Andrew Tegeler.  

At 7:30 of the second period, Dancs tucked in a loose puck after Tegeler's shot had hit the base of the post. They were abetted by a slick pass from Adam Tambellini, who centered the pair when Jason Williamson shook up his line combinations.

They struck again at 4:20 of the third period. This time, Tegeler swept in a rebound  of a Dancs shot after Brett Corkey's end-to-end rush.

The animosity between the teams bubbled over again the third as rookies Logan Mick and Jon Brumwell fought at 7:39. Brumwell completed the Gordie Howe hat trick at 17:34, right at the end of a power play that was perpetrated by referee Pateman's inexplicable unsportsmanlike call on Mitch McAllister at 15:34.

Goalie Jay Deo embellished the slight contact when McAllister went to the net looking for a rebound. McAllister then was grabbed and flung to the ice by a Bulldog defenceman.  Pateman signalled double roughing calls, but apparently changed his mind as he skated to the time keeper's bench.

The bizarre call eventually led to Brumwell's tally. Tryg Strand floated in a wrister that trickled down Austin Smith's chest and pads. Brumwell got his stick on the puck to roll it between Smith's skates.

The Viper coaches were understandably livid about the penalty, believing that the referee did not have a feel for the game. At worst, there should have been offsetting penalties. 

Their frustration was no doubt exacerbated by what had transpired the previous evening in West Kelowna. In the third period,  the Warriors scored the go-ahead goal that resulted from Colton Sparrow being eliminated from the play by a cross check. Referee Mike Langin apologized for missing the call, but the damage had been done.