When The Hockey Gods Say “It’s Not Your Night”

This is posted on the Vipers website:

When The Hockey Gods Say “It’s Not Your Night”
 
Wednesday, February 27, 2013 - Submitted by Don Klepp

“The strangest bounce you’ll ever see” was how Jason Williamson described the spring-loaded puck that led to the West Kelowna’s opening goal in a 2-1 win over the visiting Vipers on Tuesday evening.

Shawn Hochhausen crossed the red line and dumped the puck in. Austin Smith came out of his goal to smother it, but it took a high sideways bounce over Smith’s shoulder for a shocker, 4:37 into the contest.

“When it happened,” said Williamson in his post-game interview on KISS FM, “I looked down the bench to see how the players would react. It’s the kind of thing that can deflate a team that’s been working hard and not getting rewarded. But they buckled down and played a solid game. Even when we got down by two, there was no quit in the guys. I’m proud of their effort.”

The game stats support Williamson’s statement. The Vipers led in shots (35-32), scoring chances (18-14), and hits (35-25). However, they had very little luck around Steven Myland’s net. Myland was solid in his 8thstart of the year, but several times when he was down and vulnerable the Vipers could not get the final touch to finish off their hard-won chances.

Their lone goal came at 13:14 of the second period. At the tail end of a chaotic scramble incited by Ryan Renz and Liam Board, Jason Bird nipped in from the point to slip the disk into a half-open net. It was essentially the only kind bounce the Vipers got all game.

The winning goal, as it turned out, was scored by Devon Hascarl at 11:32 of the first period. His accurate one-timer from the low slot was set up by a precise pass from the back boards by Matt Anholt.

Two third-period incidents took the sheen off a sportsmanlike, well-played game. At 8:32, Geoff Crisfield was assessed a boarding major and a game misconduct for crushing Marcus Basara into the boards at the Warrior bench. Max French jumped in to defend his team mate, which drew a roughing call. Less than a minute later, Shawn Hochhausen took a tripping penalty, so the Vipers had a brief power play and then had to kill off only about three minutes of the major.

The other incident came late in the game. Jason Bird took a Warrior shot in the throat and was taken to Kelowna Hospital as a precaution. He was examined and released, sore but with no long-term effects.

Two other Vipers preceded Bird to the sick bay: Braedan Russell’s shoulder injury and Logan Mick’s flu-like symptoms kept them out of the lineup. Cortlan Proctor, a 96-born forward who plays for the Midget AAAA Okanagan Rockets, played his third game in a Viper uniform and looked comfortable doing so.

The Vipers’ next game is Friday in Prince George. They then go to Merritt on March 6 and finish the regular season with home dates versus Penticton on March 8 and Merritt on March 9.