Lapointe scores 3OT winner, Vipers win HJHL title

RED DEER – Kale Lapointe will probably not score a bigger goal in his hockey career.

The Rimbey, Alta. product scored the game-winner 3:04 into the third overtime period to propel the Red Deer Vipers to the Heritage Junior Hockey League Championship with a 4-3 victory over the Cochrane Generals.

The Vipers took the best-of-five series 3-1, marking their first HJHL title since 2004 and third all-time. They have also twice brought home the Provincial Championship and won the Keystone Cup in 2006.

Lapointe finished the game with two goals and two assists, factoring in on all four Red Deer goals, while Spencer Yeats and Carter Trenerry each added a single.

Branden Bilodeau was once again stellar in the Red Deer crease, making 51 saves on the night.

Connor Rendell scored twice for Cochrane, while Corey Goeson found the back of the net once. Ty Robinson stopped 47-of-51 shots between the pipes.

The Vipers didn’t take any easy roads to get to the Championship, as they had to knock off the first and second seeds in the North Division before getting past the first seed in the South Division, and first overall in the league, in the finals.

Both the Vipers and Generals will now move on to the 2017 Alberta Junior B Provincials in St. Paul, Alta.

GAME SUMMARY