Blazers come back, defeat Vees 4-3 in shootout to open pre-season

Sep 3, 2026 | 6:00 AM

KAMLOOPS — The Kamloops Blazers tuned up their special teams to come back and win their first game of the 2026 Western Hockey League (WHL) pre-season schedule.

The Blazers scored three power play goals en route to a 4-3 shootout win over the Penticton Vees at Sandman Centre Wednesday (Sept. 2).

Forward Brady Ondrus, a second round pick of the Blazers in the 2025 WHL Prospects Draft, jumped on a loose puck to give Kamloops a 1-0 lead halfway through the first period. However, the Vees would score three unanswered to take a 3-1 leading heading into the final frame.

Returning 17-year-old forward Asher Gingras capitalized on his opportunity to score early in the third to cut the deficit to 3-2. Junior A hockey veteran and 20-year-old WHL rookie Gavin Nemis scored on a snap shot from between the hashmarks to tie the game 3-3.

A five-minute period of three-on-three overtime wouldn’t solve the game. River Arnason, the 18-year-old forward fresh from a season with the Prince George Spruce Kings in the British Columbia Hockey League, scored the shootout winner with a move to his forehand to secure the Blazers’ 4-3 win.