“Richie” Likes It Here:

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“Richie” Likes It Here

A three-year veteran of Ontario Jr. “A” hockey, Elliott Richardson was brought in to bring experience to the Viper defence corps.

Coming from smaller centres in Ontario, he’s very comfortable living and playing in Vernon.

He’s known to his teammates as “Richie,” but “Rocky” might be a better term for the hard hitting native of Hanmer, Ontario. He played his minor hockey in Hanmer and in nearby Sudbury. He also played AAA midget for the East Valley team, just “10 minutes from my house.”

At 16, he made the Lindsay Muskies, a Jr. “A” team about an hour north of Toronto. He had 7 goals and 24 assists as a 17-year-old and the future looked bright. But then he suffered a knee injury playing soccer in the summer of 2009.

He tried playing hockey with a knee brace last fall as the Muskies used him on the power play. However, he soon realized that the knee injury was more serious than originally thought, so he had an operation to repair the ACL on his right knee on December 22. In essence, then, he missed an entire year of hockey.

In the early part of this season, he has twisted his left knee, so as he says he feels “Like an old man with two sore knees. But I’ve been icing them and they’re good enough to play on.”

He admits that he was “a little out of shape when the season started because I wasn’t cleared to skate until the early summer, but I’m getting my legs back under me, and regaining my confidence.”

His first goal in the BCHL was a wrist shot from the point in Prince George on September 24. He describes the goal this way: “I kinda just closed my eyes and shot…it found its way through to the top corner… I’d have to call it a mediocre shot, but a great screen in front.”

The next night in Quesnel, he came to his goalie’s defence as Devin Balness ran Blake Voth late in the game. Elliott challenged Balness and then had to fend off Sterling Bear who jumped Elliott from behind.

Elliott was suspended a game for his actions but he says it was worth it. “You can’t let that kind of thing go unchallenged,” he says.

“I don’t go looking for a fight or anything, but I’m not going to back down either. Some guys, some teams, will try to intimidate you, but you can’t let them do that.”