Ryden Evers broke a 2-2 tie late in the third period and Ethan Buenaventura made 17 saves as the Penticton Vees beat the West 麻豆精选 Warriors 3-2 on Friday, March 7, at the South Okanagan Events Centre (SOEC).
Evers scored his 21st of the season at 17:45 of the final frame, finding the back of the net on one knee after his initial wraparound attempt was denied and kicked out.
Louie Wehmann and Tristan Petersen also scored for Penticton (36-7-5-0), which extended its point streak to eight games and remains atop the Interior Conference and BCHL overall.
"We had to grind until the end to pick up a big win,鈥� said Matthew Miller, the Vees' assistant general manager.
Sam LeDrew scored twice for West 麻豆精选 (19-22-5-2) in the middle frame. Philip Monnich Hagen collected a pair of assists and 脡douard Gauthier made 20 saves.
The Warriors are seventh in the Interior Conference, one point up on the Okotoks Oilers. Eight clubs will qualify for the playoffs in the conference.
Friday marked the third time the Okanagan rivals have met in the last three weeks. Penticton has claimed wins in all three meetings.
It was also Feed the Valley Night at the SOEC. Fans were seen donating non-perishable food items in support of the local Salvation Army as they entered the arena.
Wehmann opened the scoring at 6:12 of the first period before Petersen doubled down nine minutes later to give Penticton a 2-0 lead. The latter has scored three goals since signing with the Vees in January from the J20 Nationell league in Sweden.
LeDrew got West 麻豆精选 on the board 23 seconds into the second period. The forward scored again at 17:43 of the second period, his team-leading 22nd marker of the season.
Game notes
Evers has 10 points in six games against West 麻豆精选 this season, The Burnaby product leads the Vees in points with 50.
Wehmann has four goals in his last five games for Penticton.
The Vees home point streak is at 17 games, dating back to Nov. 11.
Penticton won five of six games against the Warriors this season. The Highway 97 foes aren't scheduled to clash again in the 2024-2025 regular season.
Up next
The Warriors are back in action on Saturday, March 8, as they host the Brooks Bandits. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.
Penticton, meanwhile, is off for the rest of the weekend and will gear up to battle the Spruce Grove Saints on March 14, at the SOEC.
