Broadcasters Gregory And Turnbull Weigh In On Finals:

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Broadcasters Gregory and Turnbull weigh in on Finals

Friday, April 11, 2014 - Submitted by BCHL Media

It’s the first-ever meeting of the Coquitlam Express and Vernon Vipers in the BCHL Fred Page Cup Finals and with Game One facing off Friday night, the league caught up with play-by-play men Eddie Gregory and Graham Turnbull to get the lowdown.

Gregory has been with the Express franchise in some capacity since its inception in 2001 and has been calling games for the last 10 seasons. Turnbull is in his first season with the Vipers after calling Merritt Centennials games last season.

Each team being a No. 3 seed from their respective divisions, the Express-Vipers Finals is a surprise to some but not the broadcasters.

“I don’t think they’re (the Vipers) surprised where they are; I think their better suited to playoff hockey,” said Turnbull. “It’s a big, strong group and they were banking on the fact that come playoffs, the way Jason (Williamson, head coach and general manager) has constructed this team, it would pay off.”

Gregory sees two teams that almost cancel each other out in many ways which could indicate a long series.

“I look at the top two lines for each team and don’t see a lot of separation,” said Gregory. “On the back end, both teams have guys that can provide offensive punch with (Zach) Hodder and (Marc) Biega for Coquitlam and (Josh) Bryan and (Ryan) Renz for Vernon.

“The goalies are similar too. I’ve been watching Gordie Defiel on a regular basis and you can see a difference in the playoffs from the regular season. Gordie has experience too, having guided a team to the RBC Cup semifinals last year with the Minnesota Wilderness.”

Vipers goalie Austin Smith is a seasoned veteran too and is getting to showcase his skills in his first playoff taste with the Vipers. The former Swift Current Broncos netminder is also in his final season of Junior hockey and seized the No. 1 job once and for all when backup Danny Todosychuk was sidelined earlier in the season.

“I thought he’s had a very good season; he’s had blips as most goaltenders have, but knowing he’s going to be the guy… he’s come in
and played very solid,” said Turnbull.

Both teams benefit from superb leadership groups with Ryan Rosenthal willing the Express to victory multiple times already this postseason and brothers Canon and Bo Pieper each having spent two seasons in the United States Hockey League.

The Vipers have two holdovers, captain Ryan Renz and forward Colton Sparrow, from their 2011 Fred Page Cup-winning team. Add in former Surrey Eagles captain Brett Mulcahy, who led his team to an RBC Cup berth last year, and it makes for a large contingent of players who won’t panic when things get tight.

Coquitlam has nine scholarship players and Vernon has 12. The respective rosters look to have equal parts opposite each other so it will be things like special teams that make a difference. Coquitlam’s power play has been ineffective with a 5-for-54 showing so far but their penalty kill continues to be a threat with four shorthanded goals. They tied a team mark with 19 shorties in the regular season.

“It’s a little puzzling; there’s lots of talent they can throw out there on the power play but for whatever reason, it hasn’t clicked,” said Gregory. “This team has made it this far without much success on the power play but it would be a benefit if they could find a way to ramp it up.”

Vernon has a 21 per cent success rate on the man advantage but hasn’t been great on the kill at just 77 per cent. Both teams have surrendered 62 power-play chances against.

Behind the bench, Coquitlam’s Barry Wolff is in his first year with the club. Vernon’s Jason Williamson is a third-year head man but was an assistant on the team’s three-straight trips to the RBC Cup from 2009 to 2011.

That leaves the fans. The Vipers have been building momentum on this run and as hosts of the RBC Cup, fans are starting to return to the rink in droves. As the higher seed, they get Friday/Saturday home games to start off too. The Express have never been to a league final with the team in Coquitlam so they’ll be counting their fans to do their best for Games 3 and 4 Monday/Tuesday at Poirier Sports Centre.