The Smoke Eaters get goals from Johnson, Ozar, Colella and Erickson as they work their way past the Vipers for a 5-2 on home ice on Friday night.
It took Owen Ozar just 16 seconds to light the lamp behind Rielly Herbst as he picked the short side, top corner, to make it 1-0. The Vipers would bounce back from the early set back and ultimately take a 2-1 lead as Trey Taylor would score on the power play for the Vipers as a shot from the point snuck through the crowd and beat Matteo Paler-Chow. The Vipers scored again just a few minutes later after a turn over in the Smoke Eaters zone, Cameron MacDonald would take a cross crease pass to beat Paler-Chow on the blocker side. The Vipers lead was short lived as Colella, Clifton and Johnson would combine just 25 seconds later, tying the game at two courtesy of Johnson’s league leading 18th goal.
In the second a consistent run to the penalty box slowed the moment of the game but that didn’t stop Kent Johnson from grabbing his second. Johnson scored from the goal-line as he beat Herbst cheating to make it 3-2, a goal that would stand as the eventual game winner.
In the third Walker Erickson would get the insurance marker by never giving up on the puck and out working the opposition, as he was rewarded with his third of the year to all but wrap the game up.
Mike Colella would kill any chance of a late comeback with a strong effort of his own. He blocked the shot attempt by the Vipers defenceman, took the puck and raced the other way with two Vernon players on his tail, and out the puck into the empty net making it 5-2.
The Smoke Eaters will look to take all four points Saturday night as the Vipers return to Cominco for a 7pm puck drop.
