KIJHL Power Rankings (Week 5)
The Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) is pleased to announce its Power Rankings for Week 5.
The Kelowna Chiefs keep their top spot after splitting their games on the weekend. It began with a 4-3 loss to the Quesnel River Rush on Oct.17. Michael Makowsky made 40 saves and Owen Miller scored twice. They rebounded for an 8-3 road win in Sicamous against the Eagles. Owen Downey netted the winner early into the second period and Andrik Lygas won his debut with a 19-save effort. Phinneas Birmel scored his first two KIJHL goals. The Chiefs are now 7-1-1 on the season.
The Kamloops Storm have stormed their way into the top-five. They won both their weekend games, beginning with a 4-2 victory over the visiting Kimberley Dynamiters. Luca D’Amore scored the winner with 49 seconds left in the first period. D’Amore had three points and Brenner Fyfe made 21 saves. The Storm then proved too much for the Quesnel River Rush in a 5-1 win on Oct.19. Teghan Mullin scored his seventh and eighth goals, including the winner 25 seconds into the second period. Fyfe stopped 23 of 24 shots. The Storm are now 7-2-1.
The Princeton Posse take the third spot after winning both their weekend road games. The Posse defeated the Columbia Valley Rockies 7-4 on Oct. 17. Justice Loewen had a big performance with four goals and Carson Hebert netted the winner with 48 seconds remaining in the second period. Gibson Horne made 29 saves for the win. The Posse then shutout the Golden Rockets 3-0 on Oct. 18. Bryton Morrow scored the winner and Sam Koester earned his first KIJHL shutout with a 26-save effort. The Posse are 7-2-0-1 and tied with the Chiefs for the Bill Ohlhausen division lead.
The Creston Valley Thunder Cats have jumped one spot to No. 4 after winning their lone game of the weekend, 7-4 over the Golden Rockets on Oct. 17. The Thunder Cats scored four third-period goals to erase a 4-3 Rockets lead with Keethan Isbister scoring the winner.
The Kimberley Dynamiters drop two spots to No. 5. The Dynamiters won two of their three weekend road trip games. The Dynamiters began with a 3-2 shootout win over the 100 Mile House Wranglers on Oct. 17. Christian Revel scored the shootout winner. Adam Kisilevich made 32 saves and added another three in the shootout. On Oct. 18, the Dynamiters lost 4-2 to the Storm. Adam Kisilevich stopped 35 shots for the Dynamiters and Nate Murdoch had two assists. They wrapped up their trip with an 8-2 win over the Chase Heat on Oct.19. Nolan Kelly’s goal to give the Dynamiters a 3-1 lead with 25 seconds remaining in the opening period proved to be the winner. The Dynamiters had four players with three points performances – Kelly, Luke Davies, Nate Murdoch and Brayden Schwartz. Jalen Pehowich won his debut with a 29-save effort.