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The West Kelowna Warriors and Salmon Arm Silverbacks combined for 94 penalty minutes in a B.C. Hockey League playoff preview at Royal LePage Place on Friday.
Destined to meet in the first round of the BCHL post-season, the second-place Warriors (79 points) downed the third-place (67 points ) Silverbacks 6-1 in a feisty affair in front of 1,400 fans.
Liam Blackburn scored his 26th and 27th goals of the season in the third period and added an assist to lead Warriors in their final regular-season game.
Kylar Hope and Scott Allan staked the Warriors to a 2-0 lead in the first period, while Quin Foreman and Brett Mennear added West Kelowna goals in the third. Chase Zieky was the only Silverback to beat winning goaltender, Matthew Greenfield, who stopped 38 of 39 shots.
Following the game, the Warriors handed out their end-of-season team awards, with Hope being named the most valuable player during the on-ice ceremony.
Blackburn as selected as the best all-around player, while defenceman Jake Harrison garnered the rookie-of-the-year award. The top defenceman honours were shared by Nick Rutigliano and Rylan Yaremko, who earlier in the week announced he’s committed to playing at Northern Michigan University beginning in the 2017-18 season.
Kyle Marino was given the chaplaincy, fan favourite and heart and soul awards, while Tyler Anderson was named the most improved player and picked up the community-minded award.
The first two games of the Interior Division’s best-of-seven semifinal series are set for March 4 and 5 at Royal LePage Place.
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