A penalty-filled affair

Photo: Cherie Morgan

The West Kelowna Warriors dropped a 4-2 penalty-filled decision to the Penticton Vees Saturday night.

The scoreless first period at the South Okanagan Events Centre went by without much offence from either team.

But Warriors defencemen Jake Harrison was struck high with either a stick or skate and did not return to the game. 

The Warriors opened the scoring 1:43 into the second period when Connor Sodergren hit the net just as a power play expired. 

The Vees tied the game at the 8:56 mark of the second off a goal by Vees captain Nicholas Jones.

Penticton took the lead at 16:01 of the middle stanza as Owen Sillinger fired in a shot from the left face-off circle on an expiring power play. 

The Warriors tied the game at 1:12 of the final period as Chase Stevenson scored his fifth goal in seven games. 

But the Vees took the lead back three minutes later as Grant Cruikshank took an indirect pass off the boards and got behind the Warriors defence, beating net minder Gabriel Morency through the five hole. 

They added another at the 5:51 mark of the third with a power play goal by Chris Klack.

Then, things got ugly.

The Vees' Ryley Risling was assessed a five-minute major penalty for a blow to the head that started a ruckus and saw the Warriors' Scott Allan and Vees' Kenny Johnson drop the gloves. All three received game misconducts.

Nic Jones and Connor Sodergren traded blows later in the period, and the game ended with Chase Stevenson being assessed a blow to the head major penalty.