Ryan Roseboom takes the puck right to Kamloops goalie Jason Sandhu. Roseboom didn’t manage to score this time, but he persisted and 20 seconds later he flipped the puck into the net to tie the game. (Richard McGuire photo)
The Osoyoos Coyotes took two narrow wins on the weekend to maintain their five-point lead at the top of the Okanagan Division of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League.
On Friday, they beat the Chiefs 3-2 in Kelowna. The following night, they came back from a two-goal deficit to beat the Kamloops Storm 4-3 at the Sun Bowl Arena.
The winning goal on Saturday was scored by Sam Reinbolt with just 24 seconds remaining in the third period.
Saturday’s game started badly for the Coyotes. Just over a minute into the game, Kamloops scored their first goal. Five minutes later, it was 2-0.
Approaching the halfway mark in the first period, the Coyotes seemed to find their feet and Carter Robinson scored the first goal for the home team, skating out from behind the net.
Assists went to Connor Onstein and Reinbolt.
Just past the halfway mark in the second period, Kamloops took a penalty and the Coyote power play was relentless.
Ryan Roseboom parked himself in the face of Kamloops goalie Jason Sandhu, firing several close-range shots before he managed to flip the puck into the top right corner of the net.
Assists went to Colin Bell and Austin Steger.
With four minutes remaining in the second period, Hayden Dick of Kamloops skated in on Osoyoos goalie Liam Aitken and once again the Storm took the lead.
Early in the third period, Colton Rhodes of the Coyotes tied the score at 3-3, and that’s where it stayed for most of the period. Reid Wilson got the assist.
As the game came down to the wire, Reinbolt gave the Coyotes the lead for the first time with just 24 seconds remaining. Robinson and Daniel Stone assisted.
Kamloops pulled goalie Sandhu for an extra attacker in the final 17 seconds, but neither team managed to score and the Coyotes eked out a 4-3 victory.
Friday night’s game in Kelowna got off better for the Coyotes.
Judd Repole scored the only goal of the first period right at the 10-minute mark. Bell and Rhodes assisted.
The first period was the only one in which the Coyotes outshot the Chiefs – with 16-12 shots on goal.
Early in the second period, Wilson gave the Coyotes a 2-0 lead, assisted by Bryson Cecconi and Steger.
A few minutes later, Kelowna got their first goal on a power play.
The game barely resumed when mayhem broke out with several fights. Roseboom and Hunter Johnson of the Coyotes and Tyson Taylor and Ty Dornn of the Chiefs all took game misconducts and other major and minor penalties.
Late in the second period, while the Coyotes were shorthanded, Jackson Glimpel made it 3-1 for the Coyotes. Steger got the assist.
With just 32 seconds remaining in the period, Kelowna scored to make it 3-2, but the third period remained scoreless throughout and the game ended with a win for Osoyoos.
The Coyotes now have 61 points in 38 games, putting them in the number two spot in the entire league. Only the hugely successful Beaver Valley Nitehawks, with 67 points, are ahead.
The Coyotes have just nine games left in the regular season. Next weekend they travel to Summerland to face the second-place Steam on Friday, before returning to the Sun Bowl Saturday to face the Sicamous Eagles, who are at the bottom of the Doug Birks Division.
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
Ryan Roseboom flips the puck into the top right corner of the net (above the head of No. 25, Brendan Lane). The second goal for the Coyotes on Saturday night tied the game. Osoyoos beat Kamloops 4-3. (Richard McGuire photo)
Ryan Roseboom often parks himself right in the face of the opposing team’s goalie, as he did Saturday night with Jason Sandhu of Kamloops. Brendan Lane, No. 25, wasn’t happy about where Roseboom was parked. Earlier in the game, Roseboom took a penatly for goaltender interference. (Richard McGuire photo)
Colin Bell (right) had an open net, but the angle was too sharp and the puck just slid along the goal line. (Richard McGuire photo)
