I was born and raised in Vernon, BC and have been watching/following junior hockey in Vernon my entire life. My family watched senior men's hockey in Vernon in the 1950's and have been watching/following junior hockey in Vernon since getting a team in 1961. I have two family members that played junior hockey in Vernon. I have had season tickets since 1990 missing only 40 home games. I started and created this blog in 2008 and have over 5.5 million viewers.
I was at tonight's Vernon Vipers-West Kelowna Warriors game, as the Warriors defeated the Vipers 5-3 in front of 1,146 fans at Royal LePage Place.
Starting Goaltenders:
Vernon Vipers: Brendan Gee
West Kelowna Warriors: Angelo Zol
1st Period: This was a pretty even matched period with the hometown Warriors having a slight edge in play. The Vipers had the early edge in play to start before the Warriors rallied with two early goals to open the scoring and take a 2-0 lead just over seven minutes into the opening frame. West Kelowna played very well, looked good, opened the scoring on an early power play, had lot's of puck possession, zone time and created/generated several quality chances. The Warriors had more opportunities over the visiting Vipers. WK capitalized on their chances. The Vipers also played well, had a good start off the opening faceoff, were ahead 3-0 in shots very early, before giving up two quick back to back goals minutes apart. Vernon had some puck possession, zone time and some opportunities, just not as many as the Tribe. It was 2-0 Warriors after 20 minutes of play. Shots were 11-6 West Kelowna.
2nd Period: I thought the Warriors were the better team. West Kelowna looked to have more puck possession, more zone time and just looked better overall. The Tribe was strong on the forecheck, winning the battles/races, played with a bit of an edge, were getting pucks to the net, generating opportunities, also played well defensively/in their own end. The Snakes would get to within a goal early into the middle frame, until falling behind by two again. The visiting Vipers didn't have a lot of puck possession or zone time, struggled in their own end. Vernon did manage to capitalize on their opportunities and get back into the hockey game. The Vipers did come on strong towards the end of the period, having some good shifts. The Vipers were down 3-1, tied the game before giving up a late goal with eleven seconds left in the period. It was 4-3 West Kelowna after 40 minutes of play. Shots were 12-10 Warriors.
3rd Period: The Vipers were by far the better team as the Snakes carried most of the play for most of the period. The Snakes would have a ton of pressure and zone time but had troubles getting pucks to the net, had some good looks/chances couldn't solve Angelo Zol. Vernon would get three power play's but unable to capitalize with the man advantage. The Warriors played very well defensively, saw a lot of time in their own end, took away time and space from the Vipers, but also kept Vernon to the outside, limiting their opportunities. Carter Oakenfold would put the game away in the dying seconds with an empty netter and his second of the night, giving West Kelowna the 5-3 victory. Shots were 8-5 Vernon.
Vernon Vipers Top Players:
Edvin Nilsson (1 assist) I thought played a strong game on the Snakes backend. Nilsson has looked very good this season and been one of the more consistent Vipers early into the new season
Nathaniel Harvey returned to the Vipers lineup after being out with an injury, looked very good in the loss. Harvey was really skating hard, involved in the play, played and looked good in his return
Samuel Charko has really impressed me this season, has looked good in almost every game this season, played well again tonight
Michael Munroe (1 goal & 1 assist) Is another player from last season that has come to play and looked good in almost every game this season. Munroe worked and played hard tonight, was up and down the wing, involved in the play, took a couple of hits along the boards, was engaged all night
Tyler Chiovetti (1 goal & 1 assist) Playing in just his third game with the Snakes, picked up two points tonight, was involved in the play, played and looked good
Lane Sim is a kid who has impressed me this season, doesn't put up the points or make a lot of big plays, but comes to play, is always skating/moving his feet, hard in on the forecheck, battles/competes and was one of the better Vipers tonight
Toms Trockis (1 goal) Is another kid who has played well and looked good on most night's. I thought played well this evening
Antoine Demers was finishing his checks, hard in on pucks, seemed to always be involved in the play, played well
Game Thought's: Vernon Vipers
- Including the preseason, the Vipers are 1-7-1-0
- Tonight was the Vipers first regular season road game
- The Vipers next game is Friday vs the visiting Sherwood Park Crusaders
- This was a fast pace game and very entertaining
- I thought both teams were fairly even with the Warriors having a slight edge in play with more opportunities. The Vipers were ahead 3-0 in shots then went several lengthy minutes without a shot on goal. The Vipers gave up two early goals but held their own in a very fast paced period. I thought Vernon had some puck possession and zone time but didn't get a whole ton of chances
- These two teams will meet again November 22nd in Vernon
- The West Kelowna Warriors were the better team in the 2nd period. The Tribe carried the better of the play, had more puck possession and zone time, generated several good looks/opportunities. With a 2-1 lead the Warriors catch a big break, got away with a tripping penalty, kept the play in the offensive zone before scoring to take a 3-1 lead. The Warriors played with an aggressive forecheck, that gave the Vipers d-men troubles. WK was hard in on pucks, winning the battles/races. The Vipers bench wasn't happy with the missed call. The Vipers didn't have a lot of puck possession or zone time, did manage to climb back tying the game 3-3 The Vipers struggled in their own end, were turning over pucks, had trouble breaking out of their own end. Vernon couldn't win the draw late in the period, allwed the Warriors to score with eleven seconds remaining to take a 4-3 lead heading into the 3rd
- Vernon went 0-4 with the man advantage
- Defenceman Dome Szongoth made his Vipers debut tonight
- The Vipers didn't play sixty minutes, turned over some pucks in their own end, made some mistakes but overall played well, had their chances, couldn't capitalize with the man advantage, didn't get enough pucks or bodies to the net
- Including the preseason, the Vipers are 0-2 vs the Warriors
- Spotted a few Viper fans in attendance
- The Vipers & Warriors will play each other seven times this season
- Vernon was the better of the two teams in the 3rd as the Snakes carried the better of the play, had loads of puck possession and zone time, but didn't get a ton of shots on goal. The Vipers couldn't capitalize with three power play's, did get some looks/chances. West Kelowna's defence was very good, keeping the Vipers to the outside, blocked shots, took away time and space and limited the Vipers opportunities
- Former Vipers Scout/Assistant Coach Kevin Pederson was in attendance
- Give the Snakes some credit for battling back, down 2-0 and 3-1
- I have said this since the preseason games, Vernon needs to shoot the puck more. The Vipers were in the slot with a good look at the net, but either hesitated or passed the puck taking away a good opportunity
- The Snakes went 3-2-1-0 vs the Warriors last season
- The Vipers struggled with the power play. They had a couple of looks but weren't shooting, making too many passes or poor passes
- The Snakes passing was a bit off this evening. Some soft passes in the offensive zone or defensive zone lead to turnovers
- The Vipers were playing their third game in five days
- The Vipers played a much more disciplined game, taking only two penalties
- Vernon needs to go to the grey area a little more, get more traffic in front of the goaltender
- With the loss, Vernon falls to 1-3-1-0 sits last in the Interior West Division
West Kelowna Warriors Top Players:
Ruslan Jamaldinov (1 goal & 1 assist) Was one of the more dangerous Warriors. Saw a ton of icetime, was hard to contain, hard to defend, is a good skater and always involved in the play
Carter Oakenfold (2 goals) Scored the game winner late in the 2nd period, put the game away late in the 3rd with an empty netter. Oakenfold is a big kid, hard to defend, plays big, played well
Kelsen Podworny (2 assists) A Kelowna native, played very well in the Warriors victory
Ian Alonso (2 goals) Was another forward that was hard to defend, hard to contain, gave Vernon difficulties all game. Very shifty with and without the puck, had a strong game
Max Kelly played well on the Tribe's blueline
Angelo Zol (21 saves) Played well between the pipes, wasn't tested a ton but when, did manage to see the puck, track the puck and make the save
Game Thought's: West Kelowna Warriors
- Tonight is the fourth and final game of a four game home stand
- The Warriors were wearing their red road jerseys
- The Warriors next game is Friday in Blackfalds
- A very entertaining 1st period as both teams were pretty even, with the Warriors having a bit of a slight edge. West Kelowna had lot's of puck possession, zone time, had several good looks/opportunities and the better of the opportunities. WK capitalized on their chances, scoring two early back to back goals, minutes apart to take a 2-0 lead
- West Kelowna's defence was very very good, took away time and space, limited Vernon's opportunities, blocked shots, were in the shooting lanes
- The Tribe went 1-1 with the power play
- A good size crowd for a Tuesday night. Tonight's attendance was announced at 1,146
- The hometown Warriors were the better team in the 2nd period. West Kelowna carried the better of the play, had a ton of zone time, puck possession and were very aggressive on the forecheck. The Warriors were winning the battles/races, forcing Vernon into making mistakes in their own end and turning over pucks. A huge late goal at the end of the period, ends up to be the game winner
- The Warriors are very quick, have a good transition game
- The Warriors next six games are on the road
- This was a fast pace game, very entertaining
- The Tribe opened the scoring and played with a lead for most of the hockey game
- The Vipers were the better team in the 3rd as Vernon carried the better of the play, had lot's of puck possession and zone time, but didn't get a lot of pucks to the net. West Kelowna's defence and goaltending was very very good in the 3rd. The Warriors were blocking shots, closed the shooting lanes, took away time and space, limiting the Vipers opportunities
- West Kelowna's PK was very good
- With the win, West Kelowna improves to 3-1-0-0 sits 2nd in the Interior West Division
Scratches:
Vernon Vipers:
Emils Skeltins (Injured)
Davids Livsics (Injured)
Evan Sundar (Injured)
Deagan McMillan (Injured)
West Kelowna Warriors:
Kurtis Kinoshita
Ian Crowley
Noah Garthe
Caden Kemkaran-Humble
Energy Player of the Game:
Olivier Chan
Three Star's:
1st Star: Ian Alonso (2 goals)
2nd Star: Ruslan Jamaldinov (1 goal & 1 assist)
3rd Star: Carter Oakenfold (2 goals)
Boxscore-Game Summary,
Vernon Vipers @ West Kelowna Warriors Tuesday, September 30, 2025 | BCHL League Site
Game Report,
Text Box Score,
Official statistics powered by LeagueStat.com
Vernon Junior Hockey History website,
