Prince George product Devin Sutton supplied a goal and four helpers as the Kelowna Chiefs upended the North Okanagan Knights 8-3 in Kootenay International Junior Hockey League play Saturday night at Nor-Val Sports Centre in Armstrong.
Zach Erhardt (game star) supplied 1+3 for the Chiefs, who improved to 6-0 atop the Okanagan/Shuswap Conference Okanagan Division. The Knights dipped to 1-3-0-1 with one default loss due to use of an ineligible player.
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Former Vernon Viper Brody Dale took over the league points derby with 1+1 for the Chiefs, giving him nine goals and 18 points.
Kelowna also got snipes from Isaac Dutka, Myles Mattilia, Ryan Stack, Juanre Naude and Ryan Kanten. Shane Zilka recorded 21 stops.
Game star Vineet Kaila, with a deuce, and Ty Toppe responded for the Knights, who got 37 saves from Austin Madge. Kelowna held period leads of 2-1 and 3-2 while going 4-for-9 on the power play. The Knights scored twice on five man-advantage chances.
The Knights host the Kimberley Dynamiters (5-1) Friday night (7:30).
Meanwhile, former Knight Zack Andrusiak, an Armstrong product, and Dillon Hamaliuk each had a goal and two assists Saturday night to lead the Seattle Thunderbirds to a 5-3 WHL season-opening victory over the visiting Portland Winterhawks at Accesso ShoWare Center.
Seattle took a 1-0 lead at 11:11 of the first period on a power-play goal from Nolan Volcan. Simon Kubicek passed the puck to Andrusiak on the right wing in the neutral zone. Andrusiak moved the puck to Volcan as he entered the offensive zone. Volcan took a shot from the right circle that rebounded off Portland goalie Shane Farkas right back to the team captain. Volcan put the rebound under Farkas for the team’s first goal of the season. The Winterhawks tied the game 1-1 with a five-on-three power-play goal by Joachim Blichfeld at 14:54 of the first. Reece Newkirk and Jared Freadrich had the assists. Portland outshot Seattle 12-11 in the first period.
The T-Birds struck for three goals in 5:13, two coming 48 seconds apart, early in the second period to take a 4-1 lead. Dillon Hamaliuk set up the T-Birds go-ahead goal 50 seconds into the period. Hamaliuk got a loose puck in the high slot and stickhandled around two Portland defensemen forcing Farkas down. Hamaliuk then backhanded the puck to a wide open Andrusiak as the right post. Andrusiak slammed the puck into the open net for his first goal of the season.
Owen Williams and Matthew Wedman combined for the two goals in 48 seconds. One a three-on-one rush Andrusiak carried the puck into the offensive zone on the right wing. Andrusiak dropped the puck for Williams who wired it over Farkas’ glove at 5:15.
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