By Kamloops This Week
It was a weekend in which the Kamloops Blazers turned from a prince into a frog — defeating the worst team in the Western Hockey League and, 24 hours later, falling to the best team in the league.
The Kamloops Blazers started the weekend in fine form, defeating the visiting Prince Albert Raider 5-2 on Friday before 3,844 fans at Sandman Centre. The next night, the Blazers welcomed the Prince George Cougars, with the division-leading club from the north skating to a 7-0 win before 3,768 fans.
Prince Albert’s loss dropped the club to 5-13-1 on the season and the Raiders share the league basement with the Kootenay Ice, with both teams at 11 points.
Kamloops outshot Prince Albert 36-23, with Connor Ingram getting the win in net. Five different Blazers scored: Deven Sideroff (his 11th of the season), Erik Miller (his first), Garrett Pilon (his third), Shaun Dosanjh (his first) and Rudolfs Balcers (his 11th).
Against Prince George, the Blazers were outscored 43-25, with Ty Edmonds getting the shutout for the Cougars. In the Kamloops net, Connor Ingram played the first two periods, saving 24 of 28 shots faced. Dylan Ferguson played the third period, turning aside 12 of 15 shots faced.
The Blazers are now 11-10-1 on the season for 23 points. They sit third in the five-team B.C. Division. Prince George is first with 32 points, Victoria is second with 24 points, Kelowna is fourth with 22 points and Vancouver is fifth with 18 points.
Kamloops hosts Everett on Wednesday, Nov. 16. The Silvertips sit atop the U.S. Division with a formidable 14-2-3 record for 31 points, second-best in the WHL. Faceoff is 7 p.m. at Sandman Centre. The Blazers will then travel south of the border for games next weekend against the Spokane Chiefs and Tri-City Americans.