Vipers Netminder Smith Sees Team Rounding Into Form Just In Time:

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Vipers netminder Smith sees team rounding into form just in time

Friday, March 28, 2014 - Submitted by BCHL Media

Over the last two seasons, the Vernon Vipers have ridden a rollercoaster in terms of their results on the ice. The franchise that went to three-straight RBC Cup Finals from 2009 to 2011, winning the first two of those, couldn’t seem to rekindle the magic in 2012 and 2013.

This year’s club made the playoffs as the No. 3 team in the Interior and now they’re into the BCHL round-robin semifinals. Suddenly it’s apparent what was missing all along: the grind of playoff hockey.

Netminder Austin Smith has had a unique perspective from his crease and he sees a club succeeding because it’s built with a sturdy back end and forwards that possess skill as well as grit. It’s a club that was made for the long journey towards a championship.

“For sure, the team’s been designed, put together for playoff hockey,” says Smith, 20. “Renzy (captain Ryan Renz) is good for it, his D partner (Dylan) Chanter as well. Some more skilled guys up front, like (Dexter) Dancs… they can play that physical style too. Everyone’s kind of got that gritty side of it.”

The teams the Vipers dispatched in the first two rounds, the higher-seeded West Kelowna Warriors and Penticton Vees, would likely agree. Smith, who has posted eight wins and a .914 save percentage and one shutout in the payoffs, thinks the compact schedule of the playoffs plays to the Vipers’ strengths. The consistency they lacked the last couple of years has come at last.

“We definitely struggled last year but we won (four) in a row at the end of last season,” notes the Calgary native. “There’s been glimpses of it. We’re a big, strong, physical team and it’s no secret.”

Low points of recent memory only serve to make the group stronger now.

“There’s been instances where we’ve faltered, taking some penalties,” says Smith. “But we’ve come together as a group. The experiences we’ve gone through, the injuries, we’ve had games we should have won that we lost. That helps us now.”

Feeling good about your own team is one thing. In the round robin though, the teams are not overly familiar with each other having played just twice in the regular season. (Vernon won 4-3 in OT on Nov. 3 in Victoria, the Grizzlies returned the favour in OT by the same score in Vernon Dec. 6. Coquitlam downed visiting Vernon 4-2 Dec. 8 and Vernon defeated Coquitlam at home 3-1 Jan. 11)

Smith knows just enough to be aware when certain opponents come over the boards.

“I’d say definitely the Fitzgeralds for Victoria – the times we’ve played them, they’ve had a part in every goal it seems,” says Smith. “We need to make sure we’re prepared.

“With Coquitlam, playing in their smaller rink is an advantage for them. But we don’t play them too much; (Adam) Rockwood is one of their top guys, their top-two lines we’re going to have to key on. We need to make them play defence.”

Smith and his teammates have used the days off since their Game 7 overtime win in Penticton to rest up and soak up the vibe around Vernon.

“The last home game, Game 6 (versus Penticton) was the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen here. After Game 7, there were fans around the bus and at the rink. The more support we can get, it helps out everyone.

“We had 13 games in 18 days; having five days off for physio, massage and ice baths but still working on our game on the ice is key.”

The work is worth it. The collective drive among the players in the dressing room feeds into a positive cycle on the ice.

“Guys are definitely playing their roles a lot better; they understand what they have to do and they’re going out and doing it. The guys in front of me help me be more confident and that helps them be more aggressive on offence.”