The Vernon Vipers set out to defend their Fred Page Cup championship and are now one win away from taking out the Powell River Kings for the second straight April with a 3-2 series advantage heading back to the Sunshine Coast.
The reigning champions took the momentum they gained from Game 4 of the series and were dominated for an identical 4-2 victory at the Wesbild Centre, where they outshot the Kings 41-22 on Thursday evening.
The visitors were able to shut down the Vipers' dynamic trio of Connor and Kellen Jones and Sahir Gill, who only recorded a point each. But secondary players stepped up and contributed to the offense in Game 5. David Robinson opened the scoring two minutes into the game on a pass from Cory Kane and Rob Short, the first and second stars, respectively.
Kings' captain Mat Bodie tied it up exactly nine minutes into the second period with an unassisted marker. Kellen Jones then finished off a pass from his twin brother Connor and Gill to put Vernon ahead by a 2-1 score after 40 minutes.
In the third, the Short-Kane-Robinson line added to the lead 5:58 into the final frame, as Short beat Josh Watson for the eventual game-winning game. The game's third star, Chad Niddery, close the gap to 3-2 with 58 seconds left, but Jonathan Milhouse iced the game with a late goal to ensure a Vipers victory in front of 2,128 fans.
As the teams travel back to Hap Parker Arena for Game 6 on Saturday night, Vernon will undoubtedly have the Fred Page Cup trophy on their minds with the chance to hoist it for a second consecutive year.
