SURREY, B.C. OCTOBER 1ST, 2017
The Vipers rolled into their 3rd game in 3 days in Surrey looking to cap off a perfect weekend. It wasn’t pretty, but it was gutsy and showed a ton of character as the Vipers scored two, third period goals to outlast the Surrey Eagles 5-4 from the South Surrey Arena.
It was a pretty slow start to the game as both teams played extremely reserved in an attempt not to make the first mistake. A couple of shots were taken, but it wasn’t until a point shot by Ty Westgard, that was initially stopped by Taylor, skipped to Johnny Wesley and he potted home his 6th of the season to give Surrey a 1-0 lead. The Vipers had a couple of glorious chances to equalize, but Lansdell failed to convert on a mad scramble, Jimmy Lambert was robbed by the glove of Alex Horawski and Lambert again foiled, but this time by the cross bar while on the powerplay.
The Vipers took over the second period, and their hard work paid off as Jagger Williamson was able to steer home a Michael Young pass to equalize the game at 1. The Eagles were limited to a few chances, but the few they received, they converted on, as Johnny Wesley capitalized on a shorthanded breakaway to give Surrey the lead. Wesley wasn’t done as he’d cap off the hat trick four minutes later on a rebound in the slot to make it 3-1. As it was a night earlier, the Viper powerplay proved clutch as Jesse Lansdell deposited a rebound home to make it 3-2. Another Viper powerplay and another goal as Brett Stapley tied the game up late in the frame with his 6th of the season. The frame was fairly lopsided in terms of shots as the Vipers outshot the Eagles 19-5, but were happy with a tie game.
The Eagles looked to take advantage of what should’ve been a tired Vipers squad, but a few big saves from Ty Taylor set up the Vipers for a frenetic finish. Keyvan Mokhtari snapped home his 2nd of the season for the Snakes first lead of the night. Jimmy Lambert tacked one on as insurance to make it 5-3 just 44 seconds later. The Eagles got a late powerplay goal to make it 5-4 from Johnny Wesley, but the final horn sounded to make it a 5-4 final.
The Vipers will look to rest and regroup as they prepare for a huge weekend, a home and home with Penticton.
