The Kootenay Midget Ice notched its first two wins of the BC Major Midget League season over the weekend in a pair of thrillers against the Thompson Blazers at the Cominco Arena on the weekend.
The Ice eked out 3-2 and 6-5 wins over the Kamloops-based Blazers to pick up all four points on the weekend.
They jumped out to a 3-0 lead early Saturday morning on goals by Kyle Hope, Brandon Sookro and Justin Post.
The Blazers fought back in the third period with two goals, but Nelson’s Adam Maida stood tall between the pipes to preserve the team’s first win of the season.
On Sunday morning, the Blazers came back from a 4-1 deficit to tie the game late, but Post scored in the final minute of the match to propel the Ice to the 6-5 victory.
Kootenay jumped out to a quick lead when Sookro scored 30 seconds into the game.
Austin Tambellini, Nolan Percival and Brendan Smith helped build the lead to 4-1 after the first 20 minutes.
Percival scored his third goal of the season in the second period, but the Blazers cut the lead to 5-3 going into the break.
In the third period, the last place Blazers were not going down without a fight and with three minutes left tied the score at 5-5. But Post would Ice it with his second goal of the season with exactly one minute remaining in regulation.
Sookro had a goal and four assists in the Sunday game and leads the team in scoring so far this season with three goals and four assists.
The Ice currently sit ninth in the 12-team league with a 2-8-0 record.
The midgets return to the Cominco Arena this coming weekend for a two-game set against the South Island Royals. The Ice will play at the Nelson and District Community Complex on December 1 and 2 against the Valley West Hawks from the Lower Mainland.
The Ice have four Greater Trail prospects in Kyle Hope and Jeremy Lucchini from Trail, and, forward Ryan Neil and goalie Harrison Whitlock from Fruitvale.
