Scott Koch/Contributor
The KIJHL Conference Final features the Osoyoos Coyotes versus the hometown Chase Heat for the Okanagan/Shuswap Championship. The other two teams remaining are the Creston Valley Thundercats against the Kimberley Dynamiters for the Kootenay Championship. Both series are a short and quick, best-of-five series. The winners of each meet for the league championship.
For the first pair of games the Heat travelled to the Desert City to face off against the perennially talented Coyotes. Very little if anything appeared different, as both squads are skilled, quick and lethal. The 70-plus ‘Heaters’ in attendance were loud, proud and boisterous throughout both contests, drumming up the adrenalin in our local lads.
The difference after the set of road games is the fact Osoyoos had home-ice advantage. Game 1, Saturday night at 8:05 on March 18 at the Sun Bowl, and Colton Rhodes gives the Yotes a 1-0 lead after 20. The Heat spent the 20 with a bad case of the jitters. In the second, Ryan Roseboom adds to the lead, 2-0 after 40. In the third, Cory Loring with a beauty from Travis Beaubien gets Chase on the board. But Austin Cleaver answers for the Desert Dudes, before Josh Bourne from Pat Brady and Mason Palaga concludes the scoring. End result is a 3-2 regulation-time loss for the Heat.
Game 2 happened Sunday the 19th at 7:35 and this one is a long and winding road to the end. The Heat own most of the first period, scoring twice. It is Josh Bourne from Cody Hodges and Michael Fidanza. The second goal is a beauty from Hodges with assists from Palaga and Ryan Okino. However, Roseboom for the Coyotes pops in a power-play tally. After 20, it’s 2-1 for Chase.
In the second period, a 10-minute lapse allows the Yotes to tally three times: Bryson Cecconi, Sam Reinbolt and Tyler Holz on the power play. It’s a commanding and sudden 4-2 lead, but Kaden Black, off a three-way passing play from Spencer Farstad and Zachary Fournier, show they don’t know how to quit. Fournier, the thundering power forward, then pots one from Palaga. After 40, it’s 4-4.
The third sees the Coyotes get the lead from Judd Repole. On the power play, Grady Musgrave pulls the teams even from Fidanza and Bourne. It’s off to sudden death overtime and in the first OT, there are lots of chances at both ends resulting in 429 fans having serious nerve problems. The excellent entertainment has to end at some point and at 10:04 of the second OT, Ryan Roseboom does the deed for the Osoyoos squad. A 6-5 score for the other guys, and the Heat leave the desert knowing they will have a great chance at redemption back home in the friendly, fan-crazy confines of the Art Holding Memorial Arena.
Tuesday night the 21st saw the craziest hockey game ever played on the shores of the Little Shuswap. Game 3, with the Heat facing elimination and the Coyotes with an opportunity to move on. This one was a thriller and gave a new meaning to the word bizarre.
In the first period, no scoring, and in the second the Yotes dominate, scoring twice from Bryson Cecconi and Jackson Glimpel. The Heat appear wounded or discombobulated. Halfway through the third, Josh Bourne scores assisted by Grady Musgrave and Mason Palaga to shorten the gap. But Ryan Roseboom on the power play reinstates the two-goal lead by the visitors. With a little over five minutes, left Chase gets back to within 1 with Kaden Black from Zachary Fournier and Spencer Farstad. The clock ticks down towards zero, Nic Bruyere leaves the net for an extra attacker, it’s chaos all over the ice, and then the Heat quickly congregate around the opposition net. With 2.7 seconds left, Kolten Moore scores the equalizer from Cody Hodges and Michael Fidanza. Fans are shocked and emotions are exploding.
The game goes immediately to the first overtime period. The fans of both teams have unbuckled themselves and are perched on the edges of their seats. Nerves are racked, tension is high. Back and forth the foes go, attempting to end this matter early. Then a whole lot of things happen, the rink shifts, the fans go silent and local shinny star Cody Hodges packs the mail down the ice through enemy lines, dodging opponents before making enough dipsy doodles to fire the winning goal into the Osoyoos net at 6:14. Chase lives to fight another day, and the best of five goes to Game 4. It’s hard to believe it could get any better.
Game 4 was set for Wednesday the 22nd in Chase after deadline, while Game 5 was set for Osoyoos on Friday the 24th.