The 100 Mile House Wranglers defeated the Kamloops Storm on home ice and on the road over the weekend.
On Friday, March 21 in front of a packed home crowd at the South Cariboo Rec Centre, the Wranglers beat the Storm 2-1 in what proved to be a tight and intense night. Following this victory the Wranglers beat the Storm 3-2 on Saturday, March 22 at the McArthur Island Sports and Events Centre winning the playoff series 4-2. With this victory, the Wranglers will face the Revelstoke Grizzlies in the Okanagan Conference Finals.
"I think the last time we've been in the (conference finals) is when we won in 2015/2016," Levi Stuart, head coach of the Wranglers, said. "We are obviously super happy to be in the top four of the league and in the final four. It's a great accomplishment especially compared to where the team was last year. Obviously, the job is not done and we're looking forward to going to Revelstoke this weekend and having a good chance against them."
On Friday night following the game, Stuart said it was great to win at home, even if it was tighter than he would have liked.
"It was a tight one. You never want to win games 2-1, but that's playoff hockey. Good job from our defence and our goalie shutting things down and locking down the house at the end of the game," Stuart remarked.
The Wranglers kicked off the night with an early goal scored by Ethan Davey, with an assist from Diego Cazac early in the first period. The Storm responded, however, with a goal of their own thanks to Luca D'Amore before the period was concluded as both teams sought to gain the upper hand.
Davey provided that upper hand to the hometown team in the second period when he scored his second goal of the night with the assistance of Ethan Hofstrand and Ty Smoluk. In response, the Storm upped the intensity of the game as they attempted to tie up the night, but to no avail.
"(We had) a couple of nice goals from Davey, our captain putting the team on his back there a bit. It was a really good shot on the second one and his line was flying all night," Stuart remarked. "Some of the other highlights aren't really that flashy, like guys blocking some big shots. Landen Janz had a big block at the end and Nash Hilworth and Luke McFarlane did a great job in the D-zone and the penalty kill."
Throughout the third period the Wranglers worked to hold the Storm to one goal and despite a few close calls and the Storm pulling their goalie, managed to keep the puck out of their net. The Wrangler Nation roared its approval as the final buzzer rang in the Wranglers' win.
On Saturday night, Stuart said he and the team kept up the pressure, noting that it is always harder to win on the road than at home. He added that Wranglers goalie Tyson Endall had another great game.
"We showed a lot of leadership, grit and teamwork at the end. We got an empty net goal at the end there from Diego Cazac to go up 3-1 but then they scored pretty much right away to make it 3-2 with a minute or so left," Stuart explained. "The nerves were high and the boys did a good job staying calm and making sure we stuck to the systems and trusted everything we've worked on throughout the week in practice."
During the first period Saturday, neither team was able to score but in the second period, the Storm gained a one-to-nothing lead before Jayden Ruznack was able to tie the match for the Wranglers. In the third period, Everett Boutcher was able to put the Wranglers in the lead before the final two goals of the night scored by Cazac and the Storm.
Stuart said while he likes to think the Wranglers were the better team throughout the night, he noted it was still a close game to the very end. He complimented the Storm's goalie for shutting down some of the Wranglers' quality goal opportunities and their defence for doing the same.
Davey was a leader on the ice, Stuart noted, blocking shots, getting sticks on pucks and winning battles with Storm players to take control of the puck. He added Davey out-battled some Storm players to pass the puck to Cazac, who ended up scoring the third and final goal of the night.
"Riley Langille continues to lead the charge offensively. Whether he gets the point or not he continues to work really hard, finish checks and is always a presence when he's out there," Stuart remarked.
The Wranglers and Stuart are now preparing to face the Revelstoke Grizzlies starting this Friday, March 28 and Saturday, March 29 in Revelstoke. Following the weekend the first home games for the Wranglers in this series will be on Monday, March 31 and Tuesday, April 1 at the South Cariboo Rec Centre at 7 p.m.
"We know if we do things the right way and play the Wrangler hockey we want to play that helps us win games, we can beat anybody in this league on any given night. (We're going to) focus on continuing to build off everything we've been working on and continue to improve week after week," Stuart said. "We're really looking forward to coming home Monday and Tuesday for games three and four. Hopefully, we continue to get the same support we've had throughout all these playoffs. It makes a big difference to the boys as far as energy and motivation when this arena is packed and loud."
