A loss on the road last Friday gave way to a win at home the following night as the Kerry Park Islanders continued to hold the .500 mark over the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League season.
The weekend began with a 3-1 loss to the Peninsula Panthers, the third time this year that the Isles have been defeated at the Panorama Recreation Centre.
“We didn’t play very well at all,” Islanders owner Mark Osmond said. “They’re a team we should beat, but we’ve been down there three times, and we’ve been beaten three times. It’s been a lacklustre performance every time we’ve been down there.”
Osmond’s team was outshot 40 to 27, with goalie Ty Rennie standing on his head to keep the Isles in the game.
“We made three mistakes and they scored three goals,” Osmond said. “We scored one goal when we should have had a hatful.”
Kerry Park rookie forward Caleb Franklin opened the scoring with his second goal of the season at the 17:20 mark of the first period, but the Panthers responded just 40 seconds later. Peninsula added one in the second and another in the third.
“To us, that’s points lost,” said Osmond.
The Isles came back with a much better outing at home on Saturday, beating the Saanich Braves 4-2.
After going down 2-0 in the first period, the Isles came back in the second with a shorthanded goal by Franklin and a powerplay marker from Zack Smith. Dawson Haines added another shorty in the third, and Corey Peterson rounded out the scoring.
Chase Anderson started the game in net and made 33 saves for the win.
“They were a couple of soft goals, I thought [in the first],” Osmond said. “But the boys responded with an outstanding second and third.”
The victory came in the absence of both Eddy brothers — Keenan remains in junior A with the Cowichan Valley Capitals, while Lynden was out with the flu.
Making his debut in the Islanders’ lineup last weekend was newly signed forward Tait Aptakin. A product of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Aptakin had been playing in Michigan and New York before making the move to Kerry Park.
“He seems like he’s going to be a good player,” Osmond said. “He’s very fast. He’s just got to learn our systems.”
A 1996-born player, Aptakin isn’t the first Florida-born Islander. Goalie Ben Kantor, who last played for the team in 2011, also hailed from the Sunshine State. There could be more in the future.
“We have to start looking other places to find players,” Osmond noted. “There aren’t a lot coming up through minor hockey now. Everyone’s going to academies.”
The Isles will be on the road for both their games this week, visiting the Nanaimo Buccaneers on Thursday and the Comox Valley Glacier Kings on Saturday.
