By Vanessa Broadbent
Osoyoos Times
This weekend was a rough one for the Osoyoos Coyotes.
The team suffered two losses, both against teams the Coyotes have yet to beat this season.
On Friday, the Kelowna Chiefs hosted the Coyotes for a match that ended with a 5-2 loss for the Osoyoos.
Kelowna lead 2-0 early on in the night, thanks to two goals from Dylan Kent in the first period.
Coyote Blake Astorino brought in Osoyoos’ first goal of the night at 11:48 in the second frame, but Kelowna managed to add one more only minutes later.
Two scores early in the third period gave the Chiefs a four-point advantage over Osoyoos and a powerplay goal from Tyler Badger managed to slightly close the gap, but Osoyoos still suffered their fourth loss of the season against Kelowna.
The Chiefs dominated the puck for most of the night with 51 shots on goal compared to Osoyoos’ 18.
Coyotes head coach Mark Chase credited the loss to “absolutely no rhythm to the play,” based on the number of penalties called against theCoyotes.
By the end of the game, Osoyoos had 16 penalties that night, compared to Kelowna’s nine.
“I didn’t think it was appropriate the way it was called and I think that significantly impacted us,” Chase said.
“Five-on-five play, we put a lot of focus and emphasis on that and make sure that we play effectively in those situations against strong teams, such as Kelowna.”
If the team had more players on the ice throughout the night, Chase said it’s likely the score would have been closer.
Last time the Coyotes faced the Chiefs, Osoyoos lost 2-1 but almost managed to push the game into overtime.
“For us to perform the way we are against a strong team like that, and then have something else influence the game, it’s really difficult for players and coaches alike to swallow,” Chase said.
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The Coyotes hosted the 100 Mile House Wranglers the following night for a match that was much closer.
With a slow start, the scoreboard remained empty for both teams until the third period when two goals from Wrangler Garrett Hilton gave 100Mile House the lead.
With only 1:39 left on the clock, Osoyoos’ Blake Astorino brought in the team’s first point of the night, but an empty net on the Coyote’s end, and extra player on the ice, for the last 50 seconds of the game wasn’t enough to pull the match into overtime.
The Coyotes have now met the Wranglers three times this season and have yet to claim a win against the team.
The first match was a 6-1 loss for Osoyoos, and the second ended 3-1.
Chase called Saturday’s game a “significant difference” from the previous two.
“In those games, it wasn’t anywhere near as competitive as it was last night, so we give our guys a lot of credit,” he said. “We lost that battle but for 40 minutes of play, we played very, very well.”
Osoyoos goalie Bailey Monteith blocked 29 of 31 shots against him, while Coyotes made 39 goal attempts throughout the night.
Despite this weekend’s results, Chase said the team is “obviously demonstrating improvement.”
“We’re learning and we’re retaining that knowledge and trying our best to apply it every night.”
The Coyotes don’t play again until after the holidays, when they participate in the College Showcase in Kamloops at McArthur Park Arena.
On Dec. 28 they face off against the Castlegar Rebels, and on Dec. 29 they take on the Kimberley Dynamiters.
The next home game in on Jan. 2, when the Coyotes host the Kelowna Chiefs at 7:35 p.m. at Sun Bowl Arena.
