Chiefs chase Vipers from playoffs
Published: March 09, 2012
It took a long time for the Vernon Vipers to clear out of Prospera Centre and board the bus home from Chilliwack Tuesday night.
Part of it was shear exhaustion from doing as head coach Jason Williamson requested, which was to play like their season depended on it. The other part was the numbing combination of disbelief and dismay at having officially missed the B.C. Hockey League playoffs after falling 4-2 to the host Chiefs, despite being the better team on the night.
“It was one of those ones where, after the game, I didn’t know what to say to them,” said Williamson. “I don’t think you can outplay a team like that and still not win.”
It is the first time since the 2000-01 season that Vernon will not be in the postseason. In a bitter twist of fate, Williamson was team captain that year, and it still stings.
“It was tough. It was a transition year that year too, but we definitely rebounded going to a league final next year,” said Williamson, who urged his players to learn from the disappointment. “The guys that are moving on have to take that and learn from it. The guys that are coming back have to let it sting all summer long and come back prepared to change that.”
All Chilliwack (31-22-1-3) needed Tuesday night was a single point to clinch the fourth and final Interior Conference berth ahead of Vernon (28-27-1-2), and netminder Mitch Gillam made sure they got it, recording 47 saves to earn first star before 1,700 fans.
After Chilliwack was outshot 12-6 in the opening period, Alexandre Perron put the Chiefs on the board 3:51 into the second frame with a powerplay goal. The Quebec native snuck in from the point and punched a loose puck past netminder Kirby Halcrow.
Trevor Hills made it 2-0 just over a minute later when Kit Sitterley threw a sharp-angle shot on net that redirected in off Hill’s skate.
Vernon capitalized on a string of Chilliwack penalties later in the second. With Shay Laurent serving a boarding call, Viper rookie Adam Tambellini popped a rebound past Gillam for his 24th goal.
The Snakes tied the game just as a charging penalty to Michael Spring had expired. Michael Zalewski set Darren Nowick up with a drop pass, and Nowick went top shelf over Gillam’s glove for his team-leading 27th goal.
David Thompson, one-timing a point shot through traffic, recorded the winner early in the third period. Josh Hansen added an empty-netter with 18 seconds to play.
There were a number of factors that contributed to Vernon’s demise, some controllable, others not. Every team felt the effect of having two fewer playoff berths and reduced roster sizes. The latter was particularly felt by the Vipers, who lost close to 200 man-games to injury, and called up 56 affiliate players.
“Not one single game did I have to healthy scratch someone this year,” said Williamson. (Defenceman) Luke Juha played 10 games. (Captain) Pat McGillis missed half a season.”
Nowick, John Knisley, Ben Gamache, Max Mowat and Colton Sparrow also missed significant time to injury.
Another glaring statistic is the Vipers home and away records. They have the third most home wins (21) of any team, but they also hold the third-worst road record (7-21-0-1).
“That’s the difference right there,” said Williamson. “I don’t even know how to explain it. You look at last night’s game where we were the better team but we still didn’t win the game on the road.”
Vernon ends the regular season with a home-and-home series against the Salmon Arm SilverBacks (16-34-0-8), starting Friday night at Wesbild Centre.
The playoffs are no longer a reality, but Williamson expects his team to play for pride.
“It comes down to 20-year-olds going out on a high,” he said. “It’s your last home game here in front of your fans, so go play for each other,” he said. “For the guys coming back, the year didn’t go like they wanted it to, so they have something to prove.”
The Vipers will lose McGillis, Nowick, Knisley, Zalewski, Colton Cyr, Gamache, Sean Robertson and Halcrow to either NCAA scholarships or graduation.
SNAKE BITES: Chilliwack bench boss Harvey Smyl has never missed the playoffs in 16 years as a head coach in the BCHL... The Penticton Vees established another BCHL record with their 53rd win after they hammered the Trail Smoke Eaters 10-0 Tuesday night. They broke the record held by the 1989-90 New Westminster Royals and by the 1998-99 Vipers. The win was also their 41st consecutive victory, breaking a mark set by the 1989-90 Sudbury Wolves and now-defunct Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats in 1999-00.
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