The Kootenay Ice are looking forward to a pair of home games this weekend as their second trip to Vancouver Island in as many weeks ended with disappointing results.
A depleted BC Major Midget Ice team dropped both games to the North Island Silver Tips by identical 4-1 scores on the weekend. Icing just 14 skaters including affiliate player Jesse Ihas, Kootenay had trouble generating offence without forwards Ryan Bennett, Booker Daniel, and Riley Green, and d-men Jackson Bohan and Logan Rast.
On Saturday, Island goaltender Austin Dendl kept the Ice off the board until the third period, when Marty Ingram scored the lone goal for the Ice. But it was too little, too late as North Island’s Ethan Jones and River Fahey put the Nanaimo team up 2-0 in the second period and Davis Frank and Isacc Alvarado added two insurance markers in the third.
North Island proved stingy defensively in Sunday’s match as well, jumping out to a 2-0 fist period lead on tallies from Cody Shepheard and Alvarado. The Island’s Alvarado added his second of the match and fourth of the season for a 3-0 lead through two periods, before the teams exchanged goals in the third with Simon Nemethy replying for the Ice, and Jones for the ‘Tips.
Kootenay Ice earned just two points in their four-games in two road trips to Vancouver Island, and will look to make up ground when they host the fourth-place Fraser Valley Thunderbirds this weekend in Trail. The 9-5-1-1 T-birds are coming off two big wins over the Okanagan Rockets on the weekend with a 2-1 win on Saturday and a 5-3 victory Sunday.
The Ice face off against the Thunderbirds at 4 p.m. Saturday and 9:45 a.m. on Sunday at the Cominco Arena.