Sam Reinbolt (left) shoots from close range to score the Coyotes’ first goal in their game against Kelowna Saturday night. Reinbolt also scored a short-handed goal Monday against Summerland. The wins over Kelowna on Saturday and Summerland on Friday clinched a first-place finish for the Coyotes, but a loss in Summerland Monday broke the Coyotes nine-game winning streak. (Richard McGuire photo)
The Osoyoos Coyotes had already clinched a first-place regular-season finish Saturday night when their nine-game winning streak came to a halt Monday afternoon.
The Coyotes lost 6-4 to the Summerland Steam, but a 2-0 victory over the Kelowna Chiefs on Saturday makes it impossible for Summerland to finish the regular season any better than second place.
Monday’s game in Summerland was the second time over the long weekend the two teams faced each other at the Summerland Arena. On Friday, the Coyotes handily beat Summerland 4-1.
With the Coyotes safely ahead at 73 points, Monday’s game offered the Steam little more than bragging rights as the season winds down.
Monday’s win gives the Steam 66 points, but even if they win all three of their remaining games, they can’t surpass Osoyoos.
This means the Coyotes will face either the North Okanagan Knights or the Princeton Posse in the first round of the playoffs.
Those two teams are currently tied at 30 points each as they fight for the bottom playoff spot. The Knights have a game in hand.
Saturday’s 2-0 victory over Kelowna at the Sun Bowl Arena was also a personal triumph for Coyotes goalie Liam Aitken, who earned his seventh shutout in 17 games played this season.
Aitken, whose 19th birthday is Wednesday, has played fewer games that fellow goalie Adam Jones, who is a year older and has played 30 games for the Coyotes this season.
Aitken faced 40 shots from Kelowna and was named first star.
Sam Reinbolt opened the scoring for the Coyotes late in the first period, firing a shot from close range past Kelowna goalie Brandon Gaucher. The assists went to Connor Onstein and Hunter Johnson.
The second period saw no goals scored, though both teams had several good opportunities.
With eight minutes remaining in the third period, Colin Bell scored the second Coyotes’ goal, assisted by Ryan Roseboom.
Kelowna pulled goalie Gaucher for an extra attacker as the period entered its final minute, but neither team managed to score.
In Friday’s game at the Summerland Arena, the Coyotes made it 3-0 before Summerland finally managed to score against Jones late in the second period.
The Steam took an early gamble, pulling goalie Matthew Huber several minutes before the end of the game. The move backfired when Johnson scored on the empty net with 2:14 remaining. Colton Rhodes got the assist.
Roseboom once again led the Coyotes’ scoring with two goals less than a minute apart in the second period. His second goal was on a power play.
Assists on Roseboom’s goals went to Kaleb Comishin, Carter Robinson, Judd Repole and Bell.
The other Coyotes’ goal was scored by Reid Wilson late in the first period, with Robinson and Jackson Glimpel assisting.
Summerland took a 2-0 lead in Monday afternoon’s game with power play goals early in the first period and in the first minute of the second.
But a short-handed goal by Reinbolt and later a power play goal by Bell tied the score at 2-2 in the second period.
Roseboom assisted on both goals and Rhodes also assisted on Bell’s goal
Two quick Summerland goals just 44 seconds apart at the end of the second period again pushed the Steam ahead 4-2. The second of these goals was scored short-handed during a Coyotes’ power play.
In the third period, Scott Robinson scored his second power-play goal to make it 5-2.
The Coyotes tried to bounce back with goals by Repole and Roseboom in the third period,
Bell assisted on both goals, while Ryan Allen assisted on Repole’s goal and Rhodes assisted on Roseboom’s, which was scored on a power play.
With the score now 5-4 for Summerland, the Coyotes pulled Jones for an extra attacker in the final minute. It failed to help as Braden Eliuk of the Steam scored into the empty net with just five seconds remaining, ending the game at 6-4.
The Coyotes now just have two games remaining in the regular season.
They travel to Armstrong on Friday night to face the North Okanagan Knights and return to the Sun Bowl Arena Saturday to face the Kelowna Chiefs.
The first round of the KIJHL playoffs is expected to begin early next week. We will keep all Coyotes’ fans up to date about the playoffs on our website at www.osoyoostimes.com.
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
Carter Robinson got a breakaway late in the second period of Saturday night’s game, but Kelowna goalie Brandon Gaucher managed to foil him. It didn’t matter. The Osoyoos Coyotes took the game 2-0, clinching a first-place finish in the Okanagan Division of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. The Coyotes have just two more games this weekend and then they’ll face either Princeton or North Okanagan in the first round of the playoffs next week. (Richard McGuire photo)
Hunter Johnson and Connor Onstein keep up the pressure on Kelowna goalie Brandon Gaucher in the second period Saturday night. Neither team managed to score that period. (Richard McGuire photo)
Linesmen Riley Kouwenhoven and Matthew Frizzy try to pull apart Austin Cleaver of the Coyotes and Landon Gran of the Chiefs as they go at each other in the second period. Both got major fighting penalties and game misconducts. (Richard McGuire photo)
