Salmon Arm dominated the West Kelowna Warriors 4-0 Friday night

Photo: Wayne Moore

The most entertaining part of Friday's BC Hockey League game at Royal LePage Place may have been the first intermission cutest pet contest.

For the West Kelowna Warriors, the rest of the night went to the dogs.

The Warriors offered little in the way of fight in a 4-0 defeat at the hands of the visiting Salmon Arm Silverbacks.

This game was decided really during a two minute, 23 second span late in the first when the Silverbacks erupted for three goals.

Patrick Raftery scored what would prove to be the game winner tipping home a centering pass off what looked to be a harmless rush.

Liam Bursaw doubled the lead a little over a minute later redirecting a point shot past Bor Glavic before Cole Cooksey ripped home a shot from the top of the right circle in the final seconds on a Silverbacks power play.

“I thought we were awful for a period and a half and then we were pretty good for a period. Not good enough to find a way to win but at least we found some legs in the third,” said head coach Simon Ferguson.

“I don’t think we had any punch,” he said of the opening period.

“We had three shots from outside the circle and outside the dots and they had 13 shots from inside the house. We turned the puck over in the neutral zone and they played in our zone.”

The Warriors did have some jump to start the second and generate some chances but never really tested Andrew Ballantyne with any real good, Grade A chances.

Dakota MacIntosh, a thorn in the Warriors side all night, closed out the scoring off the rush beating Glavic from the right circle.

He actually broke his stick blade on the shot but it still found a way in.

It was that kind of night for the Warriors who had won five of seven coming into Friday’s contest.

Despite the loss the Warriors continue to cling to seventh in the Interior Conference, two points up on Okotoks and three better than Spruce Grove.

The Warriors try to climb back into the win column Saturday night when the Vernon Vipers come to town on United Way night.

Fans are encouraged to wear red to the game to support the United Way.

Prior to Friday’s game the Warriors completed a deal sending defenceman Owen Thomas to Langley for future considerations. Thomas was acquired in an off-season deal but injuries kept him out of the lineup until mid-January.