BLAZERS WIN 4-1 OVER ROCKETS
By Colton Davies – Follow Colton on X
The Kamloops Blazers welcomed the Kelowna Rockets Saturday night for the second game of a back-to-back, following Friday’s 3-2 shootout victory.
Logan Edmonstone got the start between the pipes for the Blazers, while the Rockets had Harrison Boettinger in goal.
The game opened with pace as both teams traded chances early on. Edmonstone was sharp out of the gate, turning aside an opportunity from Carson Wetsch to keep the game scoreless in the opening minutes.
Kamloops opened the scoring midway through the period as Nathan Behm found Tommy Lafreniere l in the bumper slot for a quick strike to make it 1-0. The goal was Lafreniere’s 25th of the season, tying J.P. Hurlbert for the team lead. Kelowna would tie the game up on their own powerplay shortly after, as Hiroki Gojsic picked up a rebound and beat Edmonstone to make it 1-1.
Kamloops opened the second period with energy, pushing for the go-ahead goal and generating high-danger chances from Cooper Moore and Josh Evaschesen, but Boettinger stood tall in the Kelowna crease.
Edmonstone answered with a key pad save on Rockets forward Shane Smith, keeping the game deadlocked. On the other, Edmonstone would end up getting a key pad save on Rockets forward Shane Smith keeping the game deadlocked. Edmonstone was then tested again, with a flurry of shots by the Rockets, but weathered the storm.
The third opened with Hurlbert and Behm connecting on connecting on a crisp passing sequence, setting up Behm for a one-timer that beat Boettinger to give Kamloops a 2-1 lead. The Blazers added to their lead shortly after, as Ty Bonkowski ripped a shot past Boettinger to make it 3-1, picking up his 7th goal of the season.
The Rockets kept pushing, generating chances but the Blazers’ defence held firm, shutting down lanes and clearing rebounds. Kamloops was rewarded for the defensive effort late as Evaschesen fired it past Boettinger to make it 4-1, with just under five minutes remaining.
The Blazers completed the weekend sweep with the victory, improving to 18-13-3-4 on the season. Kamloops be in action next weekend against Penticton Vees in a set of back-to-back games.
