Cranbrook, BC – The Kootrenay ICE scored 4 first period goals in a 5-3 win over the Brandon Wheat Kings in WHL action on Friday night.
Kyle O’Conner and Jaedon Descheneau each had 1 goal and 1 assist and Joey Leach had 2 assists to lead the attack.
The win ended a 7 game home losing streak.
The ICE (6-12-1-0) opened the scoring with Austin Vetterl finding a loose puck behind the goalie and got his first as a member of the ICE.
2:10 later Jaedon Descheneau made it 2-0 as he cruised through the high slot and scored with a wrist shot on the stick side.
33 seconds later the ICE made it 3-0 as Brock Montgomery fed Sam Reinhart in front of the net and his high shot beat the goalie on the glove side.
After the 3rd goal the Wheat Kings took a timeout.
Later in the period the Wheat Kings (9-10-2-1) got on the board with Jace Hawryluk alone in front of the net for a quick shot and a goal.
ICE scored 7 seconds into a powerplay as Collin Shirley from the high slot beat the goalie of the stick side.
Before scoring 4 goals in the first period the ICE season high was 2 goals in a period.
To start the second period the Wheat Kings changed goalies as Curtis Honey replaced Corbin Boes.
Early in the period the ICE scored a powerplay goal as Kyle O’Connor put in a rebound in the crease.
Early in the third period Brandon scored on a 2-man advantage with Ryan Pulock scoring with a one-time slap shot.
Less than 3 minutes later the Wheat Kings cut the lead to 2 goals with Alessio Bertaggia alone in the slot for a wrist shot high on the glove side.
ICE forward Collin Shirley has been named to the Team West roster for the U-16 tournament to be held in Quebec over the holiday season.
Going into the game Brandon had a combined 18 goals from their defenseman this season and the ICE had 4.
Luke Philp returned to the line-up after missing 5 games after having his appendix removed.
The crowd was the biggest of the season for the 2nd Annual School Spirit Night.
The ICE will host Brandon on Saturday.
ICE Scratches – Jordyn Boyd (3rd game, 1-2 weeks), Erik Benoit (4th game, 1-2 weeks), Jakub Prochazka.
Game Summary
Brandon 9-10-2-1 Kootenay 6-12-1-0
1st Period-
1, Kootenay, Vetterl 1 (Martin, O'Connor), 4:47.
2, Kootenay, Descheneau 4 (Leach), 6:57.
3, Kootenay, Reinhart 6 (Montgomery), 7:30.
4, Brandon, Hawryluk 5 (McGauley, Bertaggia), 14:56.
5, Kootenay, Shirley 5 (Dirk, Descheneau), 16:24 (PP).
Penalties-Robinson Bdn (tripping), 16:19.
2nd Period-
6, Kootenay, O'Connor 3 (Philp, Leach), 2:20 (PP).
Penalties-Yaworski Bdn (roughing), 0:38; Wand Ktn (hooking), 3:02; Bertaggia Bdn (holding), 3:52; Seaman Bdn (major-fighting), 8:12; Dirk Ktn (major-fighting), 8:12.
3rd Period-
7, Brandon, Pulock 9 (Roy, McGauley), 6:43 (PP).
8, Brandon, Bertaggia 14 (Seaman), 9:23.
Penalties-Yaworski Bdn (interference), 1:32; Martin Ktn (roughing), 4:54; Simpson Ktn (tripping), 5:50.
Shots on Goal-Brandon 10-10-15-35. Kootenay 15-10-7-32.
Power Play Opportunities-Brandon 1 / 3; Kootenay 2 / 4.
Goalies-Brandon, Boes 7-8-1-0 (15 shots-11 saves); Honey 2-2-1-1 (17 shots-16 saves). Kootenay, Skapski 6-7-0-0 (35 shots-32 saves).
A-3,055
Referees-Matt Kirk (4), Kevin Webinger (6).
Linesmen-Michael Boisvert (111), Jim Maniago (85).