Shamrocks Edge Timbermen 9 - 8 in Third Period Thriller

It took a goal with 3:21 left on the clock to settle it, but the Victoria Shamrocks survived a nine-lead-change classic on Wednesday night, holding off the Nanaimo Timbermen 9-8 in front of 2,164 fans at The Q Centre. Neither team led by more than two goals all night, and the finish delivered exactly the kind of chaos that's made this rivalry appointment viewing.

Nanaimo came out flying, scoring three times in the game's first 102 seconds. Gord Phillips opened the scoring just 28 seconds in, Andrew Bowman made it 2-0 less than half a minute later, and Ryan Sheridan — who would finish the night with five points — added a third before the clock hit two minutes. It was as fast a start as The Q Centre has seen all season, and it forced Victoria to play from behind for the better part of two periods. The Shamrocks clawed back with goals from Chris Wardle, Elijah Gash and Eli McLaughlin to trail just 4-3 after twenty minutes, a response that set the tone for everything that followed.

Victoria seized control in the second, reeling off three unanswered goals. Brodie Wade tied it early in the frame, Wardle struck again — his second of the night, set up by Denton Macdonald and goaltender Chris Origlieri — to put the Shamrocks in front, and Kyle Pepper capped the run to make it 6-4 heading into the third.

What followed was as wild a final period as the Shamrocks have played this season. Nanaimo clawed back within one, then tied it, then Nick Preston restored Victoria's lead — only for the game to swing three more times in a stretch of 27 seconds, with Sheridan completing his hat trick to tie it, Zach Manns answering twenty seconds later, and Phillips tying it again just seven ticks after that. The physicality boiled over midway through the second period when Logan Schmidt and Grayson Peskett dropped the gloves, with both players ejected on fighting majors and game misconducts — a jolt that set the tone for a night that never let up. With the game deadlocked at 8-8 and the building rocking, Wade beat the Timbermen for a second time, burying the eventual winner with 3:21 remaining to complete his two-goal night and send Victoria home with the extra point.

None of it happens without Chris Origlieri between the pipes. The Shamrocks netminder turned aside 36 shots on a night when Nanaimo peppered the Victoria net all evening, standing tall in the moments the Shamrocks needed him most and giving his teammates the chance to answer every time Nanaimo pushed back.

THREE STARS

1st Star — Chris Origlieri (Shamrocks): 36 saves in a back-and-forth battle, keeping Victoria within striking distance all night.

2nd Star — Ryan Sheridan (Timbermen): A three-goal, two-assist night that kept Nanaimo in it until the final horn.

3rd Star — Denton Macdonald (Shamrocks): Set up the go-ahead goal in the second period and helped steady Victoria's attack through the third-period swings.

The Shamrocks close out their 2026 home schedule this Sunday, July 26, when they host the Burnaby Lakers at 5:00 PM at The Q Centre. It's Victoria's last chance to play in front of the home crowd this season — come out and send them off right.