Vernon Vipers edge Prince George in shootout

The Vernon Vipers extended their winning streak to five games with a shootout victory over the Prince George Spruce Kings Friday, Jan. 28.

The Snakes trailed 1-0 after the first period, with Spruce Kings forward Kolton Cousins scoring his 13th goal of the year midway through the frame. The Vipers managed to kill off two penalties to keep the deficit to one goal after one.

The Vipers came out buzzing in the second period. Luke Pakulak scored his sixth of the season eight and a half minutes into the period. The Vipers took another penalty a few seconds after the game-tying goal but were again able to kill it off. That set up a go-ahead goal by Matthew Culling, assisted by Seiya Tanaka-Campbell and Ayden Third, just past the 11 minute mark of the second.

The teams buckled down defensively in the third period, with only 12 combined shots in the frame. The only player to find twine was Rowan Miller, who gave the Spruce Kings the equalizer with seven minutes to go in regulation.

For the fourth straight game, the Vipers needed extra time to get the win.

5 STRAIGHT GAMES! Vernon Vipers down PG in the shoot-out. Zack Tonelli, Cam MacDonald and Roan Clarke get it done in extra time! WATCH the shoot-out here! pic.twitter.com/Psg1U1aHAa

— VernonVipers (@VernonVipers) January 29, 2022

After overtime solved nothing, the teams headed to a shootout, where John Herrington’s opening shot for Prince George was denied by the right toe of goaltender Roan Clarke. Zack Tonelli and Cameron MacDonald scored back-to-back for the Vipers, which was enough to secure the team’s fifth straight W.

The Vipers will look to extend their winning streak further as they again face the Spruce Kings Saturday at 7 p.m.