BY MICHAEL DAVID

The Sun Valley Suns host the Black Diamond Hockey League (BDHL) Playoffs next weekend, and they seem to be peaking at just the right time.

The Suns kept their high-powered offense in gear and ramped up their defensive effort in a decisive victory over the Vail Yetis Saturday night in Hailey at the Campion Ice House.  A packed house was treated to hard hitting and plenty of scoring by the home team, with the Suns prevailing 9-3.

Forward Marty Flichel got the Suns on the scoreboard early with a goal 3:34 into the first period.  Less than a minute later, Trevor Pollock dropped the puck off to a trailing Matt Puntureri, who scored to make the score 2-0.  Skating short-handed following a Suns tripping penalty, George Ordway went behind the net,  curled in front of the goal and put the puck past the Yeti goaltender to give the Suns a seemingly commanding 3-0 lead.

Just as with Friday’s game in Sun Valley, the Suns let the Yetis back into the game by surrendering three straight goals to the Vail club. The Yetis’ third goal came with 3.8 seconds remaining in the period, sending the teams into the first intermission tied 3-3.

Coach John “Cub” Burke must have pushed the right buttons during the break, as the Sun’s defense stiffened and held the Yetis scoreless for the remainder of the game. Their offense would stay hot, as they skated away from Vail with three goals in both the second and third periods.

Tyson Cox scored midway through the second period to put the Suns ahead 4-3.  Following a Yeti penalty, Derek Fry redirected a Jon Duval slap shot through the pipes to give the Suns a two-goal lead at 5-3.  And with 6:29 left in the period, Mike Peters would pick up a rare goalkeeper assist on a goal by Mike Curry, making the score 6-3 in favor of the hometown Suns.

Ordway and Cox would both pick up their second goals of the evening in the third period, and Bradislov Kloss would get into the action with a goal of his own, providing the Suns with a 9-3 victory over their rivals from Vail.

For the second night in a row, a portion of the ticket sales benefitted Higher Ground, a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing quality of life through therapeutic recreation.

The Suns will be in action in Sun Valley next Friday in the semi-finals of the BDHL Playoffs.  The No. 2 seed will play the No. 3 seed at 4:00 p.m., and the No. 1 seeded Suns will take on the No. 4 seed at 7 p.m.  The winners of Friday’s games will lock up for the championship on Saturday night at The Campion Ice House.