Penticton Vees have 'statement' game against the Chiefs

Big statement is an understatement.

The Penticton Vees skated to a 5-2 win Saturday over the top team in the BCHL, the Chilliwack Chiefs, who are also ranked No. 15 in the Canadian Junior Hockey League. And they did it with just 10 forwards and five defensemen dressed for the game.

Related: Vees notch up another win

“We talked about this is our home turf here and we are playing the No. 1 team in the entire league and we wanted to make a statement. I think we did,” said Vees coach Fred Harbinson.

They’ll hope to continue that momentum in a rematch against the West Kelowna Warriors on Saturday, Oct. 27, a team they dropped a 3-2 decision to last Friday. The Vees dominated the shot clock in the loss by a 52-29 margin.

Vees forward Eric Linell had a strong showing the past four games with three goals and three assists, including both goals for the Vees against the Warriors. He had a pair of assists against the Chiefs as well.

“He is hard not to love because he plays so hard with and without the puck and good things happen to him. He creates so much on both sides of it with his speed,” said Harbinson.

First the Vees (8-5-0-1) will face the Coquitlam Express (11-5-1-0) on Wednesday, Oct. 24 at the South Okanagan Events Centre.

What’s in a name?

There is still time to vote to help the Penticton Vees name their new mascot.

The Vees unveiled their mascot at the first home game of the season and turned the job of naming him over to the fans. The names have been narrowed down to Scout, HarVee, Victor or Blue and voting takes place online at surveymonkey.com/r/VeesMascot.

The name will be revealed at the Oct. 27 home game versus the West Kelowna Warriors.

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