Morning Star Staff
And on their 56th shot, the North Okanagan Knights had a Sunday afternoon win.
Jack Berger’s sixth goal of the year 4:17 into overtime – on the team’s 56th shot of the game – gave the Knights a 3-2 Kootenay International Junior Hockey League win over the Princeton Posse at the Nor-Val Sports Centre.
The win ended a five-game home stand for North Okanagan, which saw the team go 2-3.
Brady Marzocco, who has five goals on the year – three in the last three games – forced overtime with a powerplay goal with 20 seconds left in the second period.
He tied the game 2-2 with a goal two minutes earlier. Marzocco, a recent signing from the Vernon Home Hardware Tier 2 Midget Vipers, was named the Knights’ player of the game.
Chandler Billinghurst made 53 saves to earn Posse player of the game honours.
Tristan Quiring made 18 saves for North Okanagan, who fell 3-0 Saturday at home to the Summerland Steam.
Matthew Huber made 28 saves for the Steam. Daniel Paul stopped 27 shots for the Knights, who played the weekend homestand without leading scorer Graham Watkins, suspended for a checking to the head penalty received Friday in a loss to the Chase Heat.
The Knights (14-27-3-5) will close out the regular season with three games in three nights, starting Friday in Kelowna against the Chiefs.
North Okanagan’s final regular season home game is Saturday at 7:30 p.m. against the Steam, the front end of a home-and-home series.
The league’s first-round best-of-seven playoff series will start on eight fronts Feb. 23. The Knights will visit the Osoyoos Coyotes.
Rainer Glimpel supplied 2+2 and Reid Wilson also scored twice as the Coyotes crushed the host Grand Fork Border Bruins 10-1 Sunday.
The Coyotes lead the Okanagan Division at 38-9-1-1.