It was an intense match up at the Eddie Mountain Memorial Arena in Invermere, unfortunately, the Beaver Valley Nitehawks came out at the losing end of an 8-4 Columbia Valley Rockies win.
The Nitehawks started their East Kootenay trip with a thrilling 5-4 overtime victory over the Golden Rockets on Friday, but went into a hostile arena Saturday against a team they’ve yet to beat in their previous two meetings.
The Nitehawks dominated play in the first period, outshooting the Rockies 19-6 but found themselves trailing 3-2 at the first period buzzer on goals from Kaleb Percival and Cooper Ross.
The Hawks switched out goalie Owen Albers in favour of Rossland native Kevin Engman to start period two, but the momentum shifted in the second as the Nitehawks were called for four minor penalties in the frame.
Columbia Valley’s Colby Phillips and Kayde Kinashuck capitalized, each tallying power play goals to give the Rockies a 5-2 lead heading to the third, while outshooting the Hawks 22-7 in the period.
Leading scorer Hayden Stocks scored a power play and shorthanded goal in the third for B.V., but three more goals from the Rockies made the final 8-4.
C.V. outshot B.V. 46-38, as the Rockies improved their record to 8-3-1-1 and sit atop the Mountain Division, while the Nitehawks now stand at 7-4-1-0, tied for first in the Murdoch Division.
On Friday, Stocks scored the overtime winner to lift the Nitehawks to a 5-4 victory over the Golden Rockets.
Just over a minute into the fourth frame, Fruitvale product Austin McKenzie set up Stocks who beat goalie Levi Hall for the team’s seventh victory.
B.V. led 1-0 after one, on Ollie Clement’s fourth goal of the season, as the Hawks carried the play outshooting the Rockets 17-8.
Gavin Tritt made it 2-0 before Golden got on the board with an unassisted effort from Aidan Ballance.
The Nitehawks Judah Makway put B.V. up 3-1 on a shorthanded goal with 1:14 to play in the period, but Henry Loewen replied for Golden on the power play with 32 seconds left.
McKenzie notched his third of the season to make it 4-2 5:10 into the final frame, but goals from Loewen and then Drayden Gibson with just over five minutes to play sent the game to OT deadlocked at 4-4.
B.V. outshot Golden 49-26 in the game.
The Nitehawks are back on home ice for a Wednesday match at the Beaver Valley Arena when they host the Grand Forks Border Bruins, and again on Friday versus Golden. The puck drops at 7 p.m.
Read: Nitehawks beat Border Bruins, fall to Thunder Cats
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