The Kelowna Chiefs celebrate after Juanre Naude (10) put the puck past Coyote goalie Daniel Paul on a power play late in the second period Saturday. The goal was the game winner. (Richard McGuire photo)

The Osoyoos Coyotes suffered their second loss in two nights Saturday, losing 6-1 in 100 Mile House to the Wranglers.

The previous night, they were defeated 2-1 by Kelowna on home ice. It was their first encounter with former Coyotes head coach Ken Law, who is now coaching the Kelowna Chiefs.

Saturday’s loss was rough on 16-year-old rookie goalie Bailey Monteith, playing his first regular-season game for the Coyotes.

Monteith faced 34 shots on goal, playing the full 60 minutes, at the South Cariboo Rec Centre.

In the first period, the home team scored three goals to none for the Coyotes, outshooting Osoyoos 14-8.

The first two goals came two minutes apart, just before the halfway mark of the first period. The third goal was scored later in the period on a power play.

The Wranglers added two more goals in the second period to take a 5-0 lead. The second of these was scored on a power play.

Tyler Badger scored the Coyotes’ only goal of the game in the final minute of the second period. Milo Labonte assisted.

Despite the lopsided score, Osoyoos outshot 100 Mile House 16-11 in the second period.

The final period saw only one goal scored when Wrangler Dylan Carr put the puck past Monteith with four minutes remaining in the game.

Law’s return to the Sun Bowl Arena Friday night was his first time coaching a game there since last season’s playoffs.

Law was hired by the Chiefs in the spring after Coyotes owner Randy Bedard opted not to renew his contract. Instead, Bedard hired the much younger Mark Chase as head coach and general manager to give the Coyotes a refresh.

Faced with a team of generally larger players – Chiefs’ defenceman Mathew Alcorn is 6’5” – the Coyotes put up a gutsy fight, hitting back at bigger players.

Their penalty kill was usually effective, and the Chiefs spent a lot of time skating into their own end to recover the puck. That’s a good thing, because the young Coyote team is still taking more penalties than necessary.

In seven power plays for the Chiefs, they only managed to score once, late in the second period, when Juanre Naude tipped the puck into the net while the Coyotes were shorthanded. But it was that goal that cost Osoyoos the game.

The Coyotes appeared energized when they first hit the ice and came close to scoring on a power play early in the first period.

But a string of three consecutive penalties in just over six minutes appeared to sap their energy.

The Coyotes failed to break through the towering Kelowna defence and spent much of the first period hemmed into their own end. The Chiefs outshot them 18-8.

By the time Devin Sutton scored for Kelowna late in the first period, the Coyotes appeared beaten down.

But they came back re-energized in the second period and had several scoring opportunities before Carter Shannon tied the game just past the halfway mark in the period. Brock Marple and Brandon Della Paolera assisted.

At one point, early in the second period the Coyotes enjoyed a two-man advantage for almost a minute and a half. It made for excitement as they hemmed the Chiefs in their end, but they failed to score.

The Chiefs still outshot the Coyotes in the second period, but only by 16-14.

The Chiefs’ power play goal late in the period gave them a 2-1 lead, which held through the scoreless third period.

The Coyotes pulled goalie Daniel Paul for an extra attacker in the final minutes, but neither team could capitalize.

In the final period, the Coyotes outshot the Chiefs 14-9.

The Coyotes play again next Saturday when they host the Revelstoke Grizzlies at the Sun Bowl Arena.

RICHARD McGUIRE

Osoyoos Times

Former Coyotes head coach Ken Law was back at the Sun Bowl Arena Saturday, coaching his first game there since last season’s playoffs. But this time he was coaching the Kelowna Chiefs, who defeated the Coyotes 2-1. (Richard McGuire photo)

Carter Shannon skates in on Kelowna goalie Braeden Mitchell to tie Saturday’s game in the second period. (Richard McGuire photo)

Carter Shannon gets a shove from Kelowna defenceman Isaac Dutka as he celebrates his second-period goal Saturday night. (Richard McGuire photo)

Coyotes skate back to the bench after celebrating a goal by Carter Shannon, number 9. From left are Brock Marple, Nick Nordstrom, Shannon, and Brandon Della Paolera. Marple and Della Paolera assisted. (Richard McGuire photo)

Coyote goalie Daniel Paul thwarts a Kelowna attack in the third period, which saw no new goals. (Richard McGuire photo)