The last game of the regular season for the Peewee C Ives Burger Snipers was a hard-fought, back-and-forth battle with the Preferred Custom Woodfinishing Royals. Good pressure by both teams early in the first period did not produce any results and the score at the end of the first remained 0-0.
The beginning of the second period saw shots and saves at both ends of the ice. Savannah Piket finally got the Snipers on the board at 14:05 of the second, scoring on an end-to-end rush with a shot from the top of the left face-off circle. The Snipers tried to build on their lead but shots by Jack Klobchar, Nolan Piket and Kyle Sheehan were all turned away by Royals' goalie Nicholas Mitchell. The Royals answered with a goal by Thomas Virtue at 6:24 which was soon followed by goals by Sniper Michael Wharram and by Royal Harley Zolner. Score at the end of the second: Snipers 2, Royals 2.
An early third period goal by Jordan Hesselink put the Snipers up 3-2 but the lead was short-lived as Kayne Hansen answered for the Royals just two minutes later. The rest of the period saw action at both ends with shots from five different Snipers including two by Camryn Hockley and one by Owen Watt. The Royals missed on a chance to score with less than a minute left and were denied again by Snipers' goalie Evan Barker as the buzzer sounded to end the game. Final score: Snipers 3, Royals 3.
A tie seems a fitting end to what has been a competitive season for the six Peewee house league teams, a spokesperson said. As we look forward to the playoffs, the Ives Burger Snipers would like to thank coaches Kent Hockley, Mark Burger, Carl Sheehan, Ron Hesselink and Andy Moorhead for their time and expertise. Thanks also go to all of the officials and volunteers with the Comox Valley Minor Hockey Association.
– Ives Burger Snipers