Trevor Crawley

Krebs lifts Ice 4-3 over Hitmen

Good things come in threes.

The Kootenay Ice picked up their third straight win against the Calgary Hitmen in as many games, starting off the second half of the season by going the distance for a 4-3 OT finish on Wednesday night in Cranbrook.

Rookie Peyton Krebs tallied the game-winner in the extra frame on a power play, while Colton Veloso had a two-goal night. Cameron Hausinger also lit the goal lamp while Brett Davis had a big night helping out with three assists.

Krebs took advantage of a rebound off a shot from Jonathan Smart, stuffing in a loose puck to cap off the night.

“It was a great play by Smarty to get it to the net and I just tapped it in,” said Krebs.

Calgary’s offence was provided by Jakob Stukel, Jesse Kryski and Orca Wiesblatt.

Duncan McGovern got the call between the pipes, making 20 saves for the win while Nick Schneider stopped 24 shots in defeat for the Hitmen.

McGovern was backed up by Gage Alexander, a 15-year-old prospect who was recalled by the Ice on an emergency basis because Bailey Brkin was battling the flu.

Ice head coach James Patrick said his team’s effort was good, but there were issues with getting pucks into the offensive zone and behind the Hitmen defence, especially in the first period.

“All we talked about at last night’s practice and this morning’s meetings was we’ve been off the ice for eight days, we’re going to keep things simple, get pucks behind their D,” said Patrick. “Just chip in pucks, but we refused to do it.

“So you refuse to do that, then you play one-on-one, turn over pucks and they play in your zone.”

Stukel’s goal opened the scoring for the night as he gained the offensive zone, held up and beat McGovern with a shot at the top of the faceoff circle. A few minutes later, Veloso replied for the Ice on the powerplay, potting a goal from the slot while Schneider was out of position.

Veloso tallied the go-ahead goal in the second period on a shorthanded effort.

“Everyone from our first to our fourth line and all our D pairings were playing strong,” said Veloso. “I think Brett Davis had a really great game and was finding guys just for tap-ins.

“I think our whole group, as a team, played great. We wanted to come out strong and get the win here after the break.”

After busting out of the penalty box, Kryski found the puck, cut into the middle and beat McGovern on the backhand just after the halfway mark of the game.

However, Hausinger put the Ice back in the lead a few minutes later, finishing an absolutely ridiculous backdoor pass from Davis at the side of the net.

Riding a one-goal lead in the final frame, Patrick said his team was a little hesitant playing out the final 20 minutes.

“We had a little fear in our game,” Patrick said. “We were collapsing and trying to protect that one-goal lead, so I thought they were the better team in the third period. Definitely disappointing to give up a tying goal, but we got a break with the call in the overtime and we redeemed ourselves.”

That game-tying goal came from Wiesblatt, who banged in a loose puck just outside the crease with two minutes remaining in the game.

With 24 seconds to go in the affair, the Hitmen took a high sticking penalty, putting them down a man going into overtime. With an extra skater, the Ice were able to generate some offensive pressure, and were rewarded with Krebs’ game-winner.

The Ice finihsed the first half of the season with a double-header against the Hitmen, sweeping both games. Now, they are opening the second half of the year with another doubleheader against their biggest rival, and will be heading to enemy territory for a rematch on Thursday night.

NOTES: It was a busy day for the Kootenay Ice front office, who traded Jeff de Wit to the Victoria Royals for a sixth-round draft pick. De Wit had been acquired by the Ice earlier this year in a deal that sent Tanner Sidaway to the Queen City. The Ice also announced the acquisition of Portland forward Brad Ginnell, sending a second-round (2018) and a third-round (2019) pick to the Winterhawks. Ginnell, a 17-year-old forward, has 11 points in 25 games for the ‘Hawks this year.