The Victoria Grizzlies and West Kelowna Warriors played the anything you can do, I can do better game on Friday night.
Eventually, the visiting Grizzlies scraped out a frenetic 8-5 win at Royal LePage Place.
The Grizzlies scored early goals in all three periods in their come-from-behind win with the help of a pair of goals 24 seconds apart by Jesse Schwartz just 1:23 into the start of the third period.
Kevin Massy added a short-handed goal just over three minutes later and it held up as the game-winner as the teams took turns replying quickly throughout the night.
Grizzlies’ sniper Myles Fitzgerald scored power-play goals early in the first and second frames, only to watch the Warriors come roaring back in a matchup of teams with identical records to this point in the season.
With the win the Grizzlies improve to 32-13-3-3 for 70 points as they began a three-game road trip.
The Warriors slip to 31-14-3-4 for 69 points in the B.C. Hockey League.
David Pope, with a pair, Jason Cotton, Victoria native Braden Pears and Seb Lloyd scored for the Warriors, who led 2-1 and 4-3 by periods, but failed to hang on.
Pope’s second — which made it 4-2 just 3:51 into the second — chased goaltender Alec Dillon out of the Victoria net as he was replaced by Nic Renyard.
Brandon Egli cut it to 4-3 at 18:54 of the middle frame and set up the third-period comeback, which included Gerry Fitzgerald and Jay Mackie’s empty-net goals.
The Grizzlies continue the road trip tonight in Penticton at 6 p.m. and go again on Sunday at 4 p.m. in Surrey.
mannicchiarico@timescolonist.com
Twitter/tc_vicsports
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