The Peninsula Panthers last week dropped back-to-back games in Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League action as they are dealing with a double dose of injuries and illness.
Their losses included a 5-3 home loss against the Comox Valley Glacier Kings and a 3-2 overtime loss against the Nanaimo Buccaneers Thursday.
Owner and general manager Pete Zubersky said every team gets hit by the injury bug and every team gets hit by the flu bug each season. “We are getting hit by both at exactly the same time and our lineup has been decimated over the past number of weeks,” he said. “We were still winning hockey games but it was just a matter of time before the party came to an end and this past weekend was that time.”
Thursday’s loss against Nanaimo saw the Panthers blow a two-goal lead heading into the third period as the Buccaneers outshot the Panthers 38 to 34. Mason Kelly took the loss in goal.
Friday night, the Panthers trailed early but battled back to tie the game at two goals each early in the third period. But the visitors struck twice in just over three minutes to put the Panthers back into a hole.
Bradley Bates pulled the Panthers within one goal, but it was not enough.
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Zubersky is trying to see the positives from last week without trying to sugar-coat the outcomes.
“We still got a point out of the game on Thursday and I thought we showed a lot of character on Friday from a group that was banged up and sick,” he said. “But we are making no excuses.”
Other teams also face injuries and illnesses, he said. “(And) we will have to take advantage of them whenever that happens. The season is long and grinding at times and we are going through a bit of a grind right now.
But we have no time to lick our wounds as we play a big game on Wednesday in Saanich against the Predators (on the road) and then back home against those pesky Bucs on Friday. Our guys got a wake-up call and now have to answer the bell this coming weekend.”
Standing-wise, the Panthers have vacated the league’s penthouse, now occupied by the Oceanside Generals with 31 points.
But the Panthers, four points behind the Generals, have played three fewer games than each of the three teams ahead of them and they remain the team with the fewest regulation losses (two).
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