Home ice hasn't yielded quite the results the Westside Warriors were hoping for so far in the BCHL season.

The lone point the Warriors managed over the weekend at Royal LePage Place came Saturday night in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Salmon Arm SilverBacks.

A night earlier, the Penticton Vees routed hometown Westside 8-3.

On Saturday, the Warriors squandered a two-goal lead to Salmon Arm late in the third period then gave up a power-play goal in overtime before nearly 900 fans.

Trailing 4-2 midway through the third, Morgan Zulinick picked Michael King's pocket and scored a shorthanded goal to cut the deficit to one.

Four minutes later Mak Barden snagged a loose puck which Ben Betker had trouble controlling and beat Connor Wilkinson to even the count at 4-4 and force overtime.

Brock Balson scored his second of the night on a four-on-three power-play 1:27 into the first overtime to settle the issue.

Connor Dempsey had two goals and an assist, Brayden Sherbinin had a goal and two helpers while Max French also scored for the Warriors.

French's marker, a shorthanded effort with 31 seconds left in the second snapped a 2-2 tie. It came just seconds after Wilkinson stopped Silverbacks sniper Bryce Gervais on a penalty shot.

Minutes earlier Wilkinson stopped Gervais on a shorthanded breakaway to keep the game knotted at 2-2. The teams were tied 1-1 after one before Westside grabbed a 3-2 lead after 40 minutes.

Dempsey's second of the night stretched the lead to 4-2 before the Silverbacks mounted their comeback.

Wilkinson, a regular with the Junior B Kelowna Chiefs, looked cool and calm in making his first start in the BCHL in an emergency role replacing starter Steven Racine who suffered a concussion in practice  earlier in the week.

Racine is expected to be ready to go next Friday when the Warriors host Coquitlam in game five of their six-game home stand.

The Warriors (5-4-0-1) are now winless in three and have just one win in their last five after starting the season 3-0.

They'll host Coquitlam and Prince George next Friday and Saturday before a brief two game trip to Powell River and Cowichan.

 

 

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