Former Viper Cey Named Hockey East Player Of The Week:

Former Vernon Vipers forward, Patrick Cey has been named Hockey East's Athletic Republic Player of the Week on Monday, January 24th 2011, following his three point (2g, 1a) weekend against Merrimack and Boston College. Cey played two season’s in Vernon from 2005-07.

This was posted on the River Hawks website:

Patrick Cey Named Hockey East Player of the Week

Senior Patrick Cey tallied three points, including a game-winning goal

Senior Patrick Cey has five points (2g, 3a) in the last five games.

Jan. 24, 2011

UMass Lowell hockey senior Patrick Cey (Saskatoon, Sask.) was crowned Hockey East's Athletic Republic Player of the Week on Monday afternoon, following his three point (2g, 1a) weekend against Merrimack and Boston College.

Cey scored the goal that snapped UMass Lowell's program record 13-game losing streak on Friday, as the River Hawks toppled #13/14 Merrimack 6-4 in the Lawler Arena. Cey then assisted on the empty net goal by David Vallorani (Hamilton, Ont.) that put the game out of the Warriors' reach.

The veteran forward followed with another score against the third-ranked Eagles on Saturday. Cey's tally late in the third cut the Boston College lead to 4-3 with over three minutes remaining, but the River Hawks would get no closer.

Hampered by an injury earlier in the season, Cey has scored five points (2g, 3a) in the last five games. For the year he has totaled seven points on three scores and four helpers.

Monday's announcement marks the second time this season UMass Lowell has been honored by the conference office. Freshman Chad Ruhwedel (San Diego, Calif.) was named the Rookie of the Week on Oct. 25, 2010.

Cey and the River Hawks have two games on the docket this week, hosting Bentley on Tuesday and Boston College on Saturday. Both contests are scheduled for 7 p.m.

Patrick Cey's Player Profile:

http://www.goriverhawks.com/sports/m-hockey/mtt/cey_patrick00.html

Former Vernon Esso Williams Turns Down Herbert Hawks:

Former NHLer & Vernon Esso's forward, Dave "Tiger" Williams has decided not to join the Herbert Hawks for the remainder of the Notekeu Hockey League season. Williams played one season in Vernon with the Esso's (1970-71)

This was posted on Gregg Drinnan's Blog:

Tiger Williams turns down Herbert Hawks

SW Sk Content - Sports

Thursday, 27 January 2011

By Chris Jaster

Dave "Tiger" Williams has decided not to join the Herbert Hawks for the remainder of the Notekeu Hockey League season.

Williams, who played with the Swift Current Broncos for three seasons, decided not to join Herbert's senior hockey club as he could not fit enough games into his personal schedule which would allow him to compete with the Hawks in the playoffs.

Players must have participated in a minimum of 25 per cent of a team's games in order to participate in the playoffs. Williams, who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League, would have had to play in six of the team's final seven league games to be eligible.

"He told me that he doesn't do things half-assed, so he's not going to suit up," said Cory Penner, the Hawks' manager.

Williams considered joining the Hawks after practising with the squad earlier this week.

Although the 56-year-old won't be joining Herbert's squad this season, Williams will occasionally drop by to practice with the team.

"He asked if it would be all right if he came to practice once in a while and we said 'Yeah, sure.' We'll treat him like anybody else," said Penner.

"He's good to have at practice. The guy played how many years in the NHL. Wouldn't you want him?"

Penner doesn't believe Williams' decision will hurt the Hawks' chance at winning a league title. The team is currently in third place in the Notekeu Hockey League with a 12-3-2-0 record.

He is, however, slightly disappointed the crowds likely won't be as big as they would have been had he joined the team.

"We definitely would have gotten some big crowds for sure. It's just a little disappointing from that aspect of things, but it's not the end of the world," said Penner, whose team hosts Mossbank on Friday at 8:30 p.m. "Tiger's a real classy, stand-up kind of guy."

Former Viper Defenceman Noonan Scores First Career Collegiate Goal:

Former Vernon Vipers defenceman, Garrett Noonan scored his first career collegiate goal Friday, January 21st 2011 in a 3-2 loss to Boston College. Noonan played one season in Vernon (2009-10) and is in his first season with the Terriers.

This was posted on the Terriers website:

No. 15 Terriers Fall Short vs. No. 3 Boston College, 3-2

Noonan records first collegiate goal

Jan. 21, 2011

BOSTON - For the second time in as many games, the No. 15 Boston University men's ice hockey team came up just short in an attempt to rally from a 3-0 deficit, as the Terriers dropped a 3-2 decision to No. 3 Boston College on Friday evening at Agganis Arena.

BU falls to 10-7-6 on the year and 7-5-4 in Hockey East play.

The Eagles scored on their first two power-play chances and took a 3-0 lead into the first intermission, but the Terriers responded with second-period goals from freshman Garrett Noonan and junior David Warsofsky.

Noonan's goal was the first of his collegiate career. Junior Chris Connolly assisted on both BU markers.

The Terriers could not complete the comeback, however, as the Eagles hung on to improve to 16-6-0 with a 12-5-0 conference mark.

BU held a 32-27 shot advantage, as senior John Muse recorded 30 saves to earn the win in goal for the Eagles. Junior Kieran Millan turned aside 24 BC shots for the Terriers.

BC got on the board just 4:38 into the game when Steven Whitney scored off assists from Paul Carey and Bill Arnold.

The visitors doubled their lead less than five minutes later off a turnover at center ice, as Brian Gibbons finished off an odd-man power-play rush at 9:10.

Brian Dumoulin capped the Eagles' three-goal first when he converted from the top of the left circle with 3:35 left in the opening stanza.

The Terriers made it a game in the second, beginning with Noonan's tally from the slot following a pass from behind the net by sophomore Alex Chiasson.

BU took advantage of its fourth power-play chance of the evening to make it one-goal affair. David Warsofsky blasted home a shot from the right point with assists awarded to Connolly and freshman Charlie Coyle.

Garrett Noonan's Player Profile:

http://www.goterriers.com/sports/m-hockey/mtt/noonan_garrett00.html

Vipers Stay Put At 13th In National Rankings:

Kings rise, Vees slip and Vipers hold steady in weekly rankings

Monday, January 31, 2011 - Submitted by CJHL Network

The Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) announced today its Weekly Top 20 rankings in conjunction with NHL Central Scouting. Last week’s rankings and the leagues in which the teams belong to are in parenthesis.

The CJHL Weekly Top 20 as of Monday, January 31, 2011

1. (1) Spruce Grove Saints (AJHL)
2. (3) Newmarket Hurricanes (OJHL)
3. (5) Powell River Kings (BCHL)
4. (6) Okotoks Oilers (AJHL)
5. (2) Cornwall Colts (CCHL)
6. (4) Fort McMurray Oil Barons (AJHL)
7. (7) Pembroke Lumber Kings (CCHL)
8. (9) Wellington Dukes (OJHL)
9. (10) La Ronge Ice Wolves (SJHL)
10. (8) Burlington Cougars (OJHL)
11. (11) Portage Terriers (MJHL)
12. (12) Woodstock Slammers (MHL)
13. (13) Vernon Vipers (BCHL)
14. (17) Soo Thunderbirds (NOJHL)
15. (18) Oakville Blades (OJHL)
16. (14) Bonnyville Pontiacs (AJHL)
17. (15) Peterborough Stars (OJHL)
18. (19) Wisconsin Wilderness (SIJHL)
19. (16) Penticton Vees (BCHL)
20. (20) Les Cougars du College Champlain - Sherbrooke (LHJAAAQ)

Honorable mention goes to the Brooks Bandits (AJHL), Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL), Melfort Mustangs (SJHL), OCN Blizzard (MJHL), and the Stouffville Spirit (OJHL).

The rankings are based upon a variety of factors which includes the league in which the teams belong to, their winning percentage, their win-loss record, total points accumulated, their goals-for versus goals-against ratio, amongst other factors.

The CJHL is an amalgamation of the ten Junior A hockey leagues from across Canada. More information on the CJHL can be found by clicking on the league website. www.cjhlhockey.com

“Captain Clutch” Delivers For Vipers:

This is posted on the Vipers website:

“Captain clutch” delivers for Vipers

by Don Klepp | Added 2011-01-30

For the fourth time this year, David Robinson has scored an overtime winner for the Vernon Vipers. On Saturday in Trail his rising snap shot gave the Vipers a 2-1 decision over the Smoke Eaters.

“I gave him [goalie Kiefer Smiley] a head fake and he went for it, so I put it upstairs and it hit the back bar inside the net,” said a smiling Robinson after the game.

The goal came at 3:36 of the second overtime period, following frantic end to end action. Malcolm Lyles started the play in the Viper zone after breaking up a Smoke Eater foray. His long pass sprung Dylan Walchuk and Robinson with one Smoke Eater defending.

Walchuk drew the defender to him and slipped the disk to Robinson, who scored on the Vipers’ 39th shot.

Robinson went from goat to hero, because 33 seconds earlier he had been called for tripping Kyle St. Denis, which resulted in a penalty shot. Kirby Halcrow rescued his captain by sticking with St. Denis and stuffing the Trail sniper’s short side move.

Prior to overtime, the two teams had not scored since the first period. Defenceman Eric Walker opened the scoring at 2:33 when his hopeful attempt from the left boards hit the side of the net, bounced high and in behind Halcrow, who had no idea where the puck had gone.

At the midway point of the period, the Smoke Eaters were leading in shots, 7-1, but then the Vipers shook off their bus legs and won the rest of the period, outshooting their hosts 9-0 in the process.

They tied the score with a power play marker with just three seconds left in the period. After Travis St. Denis had taken an elbowing penalty, the Vipers generated three scoring chances and Darren Nowick buried a rebound after Dane Muench and Dylan Walchuk had created havoc in front of Kiefer Smiley.

The Vipers scored in the second when Dylan Walchuk pounced on a strange bounce that came off the boards to Smiley’s left. However, the goal was disallowed because Walchuk was judged offside on the play.

Each team narrowly missed converting chances in the second and third periods, but Smiley and Halcrow continued their solid play.

Early in the third, the Vipers nearly made the Smokies pay for a second St. Denis infraction when Malcolm Lyles’s point shot was deflected onto Smiley’s right post by David Robinson.

For the most part, referee Kris Hartley was reluctant to send players to the penalty box, which was especially apparent in overtime. At times, the Trail fans were livid when Hartley declined to make calls, but he was consistent in his decisions. The Robinson tripping minor had to be called because the infraction was about to result in a Viper scoring chance.

The Vipers have a record of 5 wins, 4 ties, and 8 losses in 18 overtime games this season. The Smoke Eaters are now 3-0-1-3 in overtime action.

Snakes Survive Spruce King Scare:

This is in todays Morning Star Newspaper:

Snakes survive Spruce King scare

By Graeme Corbett - Vernon Morning Star

Published: January 29, 2011

The Vernon Vipers would love a first-round bye in the B.C. Hockey League playoffs. The Prince George Spruce Kings just want to still be playing when the postseason begins.

Both teams got a little closer to their respective goals Friday night at Wesbild Centre as the Vipers shaded the Spruce Kings 5-4 in overtime before 1,734 fans.

John Knisley led Vernon with his eighth and ninth goals of the season, including the winner 1:45 into overtime, keeping the Vipers atop the Interior Conference at 29-10-4-8.

The top seven clubs from each conference make the playoffs. The top seed on each side will get a bye and then have home-ice advantage against the lowest-seeded team to emerge from the first round.

Knisley, a Pittsford, N.Y. native, hadn’t scored in 11 games (he recorded five assists), so Friday’s offensive outburst came as a bit of a relief for the talented play maker. He ended the game in OT with a gorgeous snapshot over netminder Kirk Thompson’s shoulder as he cut in from the wing on the rush.

“The last week in practice I’ve just been working on throwing pucks on net,” said Knisley, who set up Vernon’s first goal by picking up a loose puck off the side wall and firing a low shot on net. Thompson made a nice pad save, but Pat McGillis (11th goal) made no mistake with the rebound.

Less than a minute later, a slick give-and-go between Vernon’s Bryce Kakoske and Kyle Murphy in the corner set up David Robinson for his 26th goal. The Viper captain had a couple whacks at a loose puck before he buried it.

The Viper pressured continued as defenceman Malcolm Lyles wristed a bouncing point shot on Thompson (34 saves), and Knisley converted the rebound at 8:08.

The Spruce Kings managed just two shots on Vernon netminder Blake Voth (16 saves) in the first period, one of them was a long shoot-in. And just when it looked like the rout was on, the Vipers eased up in the second period and allowed Prince George back in the game.

In a flurry of activity in Vernon’s zone, call-up Alex Milhouse tested Voth with a quick shot from the faceoff dot and Trent Murdoch rang the rebound off the crossbar. The puck went right out to big Ben Woodley (6-foot-6, 230 pounds), who fired the first of his two goals into the open net 5:35 into the second frame.

Just over a minute later, Jujhar Khaira fed a nice centering feed to Dustin Beairsto (first goal) for a quick one-timer on Voth’s doorstep to pull the Spruce Kings within a goal.

Said Vipers’ assistant coach Jason Williamson: “Good start to the game. We thought it was going to be easy in the second period. We kind of took over again in the third, but then we let things get away from us.

“We came out with a heck of a game against Powell River (last weekend) and then have three sleepers here. It’s the wrong time of year to be doing that. We’re one point ahead of first place and we want to keep that.”

Both Beairsto and Woodley (second star), a London, Ont. product, came to the Spruce Kings from the AJHL Grande Prairie Storm in a deal at the Jan. 10 trade deadline.

Former Viper Todd Skirving, also a deadline acquisition, earned an assist on the second goal. The Thunder Bay native, has been getting all the minutes he can handle on a skeleton Spruce King roster that is often augmented with call-ups (Vernon’s Tye Sanford suited up for them Friday).

“I’m getting the opportunity to play on the first line, I’m getting PK time and PP time so it’s nice. I’m just looking at it as an opportunity to make the playoffs,” said the amiable Skirving.

“We’re kind of rebuilding here, but that doesn’t give us an excuse to give up.”

Skirving, 18, knows offence won’t come easy for Prince George, who traded away their top three scorers (RJay Berra, Justin Fillion and Nic DeSousa) at the deadline. Faiz Khan is the team’s top scorer with just 11 goals.

“We’re not a fancy hockey team. We’ve got to work hard for our goals and we’ve got to plug away at it,” he said.

The Sprucies, last in the Interior at 11-35-0-4, trail the Quesnel Millionaires (11-31-3-5) by four points for the final playoff spot. Head coach Dave Dupas, who had a stint behind the bench of the KIJHL North Okanagan Knights, believes a playoff berth is attainable.

“We want to string some wins together, put some points up and force those guys (Quesnel) to win some games,” he said. “We don’t quit and we’re getting some points for it.”

Later in the second period, Woodley checked Marcus Basara into the boards after a whistle. Despite a size mismatch, Viper rookie Colton Sparrow stepped in to take on the much larger Woodley. Not much happened as both players got caught up in a scrum.

Vernon emerged with a 5-on-3, but did nothing with it as they couldn’t get pucks on Thompson.

In the third period, Stevie Weinstein (fifth goal) rifled a top-corner point shot on a powerplay to restore Vernon’s two-goal lead at 6:51. Prince George rallied once again as Woodley, with his third goal in five games with the Sprucies, beat Voth blocker side from the slot.

16-year-old Stephen Ryan, with his first BCHL goal in 46 games, forced OT as he deflected Chase Golightly’s point shot with one minute remaining in the third period.

Trevor Fitzgerald and Golightly dropped the mitts in front of the penalty box earlier the period. Golightly earned a slight edge, but didn’t land much.

The Vipers ended their January schedule with a visit to Trail to play the Smoke Eaters at Cominco Arena Saturday night. They host Bill Bestwick’s Nanaimo Clippers Wednesday at Wesbild.

SNAKE BITES: Viper defenceman Adam Thompson and forward Mike Zalewski missed Friday’s game with concussions. Zalewski has missed the last five games.

Vernon 2 Trail 1 (Double Overtime)

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

Trail Smoke Eaters at 2:33 - Eric Walker from Dylan Tappe
Vernon Vipers at 19:57 (PP) - Darren Nowick from Dane Muench and Dylan Walchuk

PERIOD 2

No Scoring

PERIOD 3

No Scoring

OVERTIME PERIOD 2

Vernon Vipers at 3:36 - David Robinson from Dylan Walchuk and Malcolm Lyles

Vernon outshot Trail 39-29. Kirby Halcrow made 27 saves in the win, while Kiefer Smiley made 37 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840268&link=bchl

(Game Preview) Vernon @ Trail:

Vernon (29-10-4-8) @ Trail (30-19-2-1)

Tonight is the fifth meeting of the regular season between the defending back to back Royal Bank Cup Champion Vernon Vipers & the Trail Smoke Eaters. The Vipers are coming off a 5-4 overtime victory over the Prince George Spruce Kings and hit the road for the first time in five games. The Smoke Eaters come into tonight’s contest riding a four game winning streak after defeating Quesnel 4-3 last night. You can listen to tonight’s game live with Todd Miller and Don Klepp starting with the pre game show at 7:15pm on 107.5 Kiss FM

Last Game Played:

Friday, January 28th Vernon defeated Prince George 5-4 in overtime
Friday, January 28th Trail defeated Quesnel 4-3

Next Game:

Wednesday, February 2nd Nanaimo @ Vernon
Tuesday, February 1st Westside @ Trail

Let's take a look at the Vernon Vipers:

Games Played: 51
Wins: 29
Losses: 10
Ties: 4
Overtime Losses: 8
Home Record: 13-5-2-4
Road Record: 16-5-2-4
Streak: One game winning streak
Last Ten Games: 7-2-0-1
Goals For: 168
Goals Against:124
Standings: 1st Place

Since the 2002-03 season Vernon is 40-12-1-0 vs. Trail

Since the 2002-03 season Vernon has outscored Trail 215-124

Since the 2003-04 regular season Vernon is 19-4-0-0 at home vs. Trail

Since the 2003-04 regular season Vernon is 14-6-1-1 in Trail

Vernon’s last loss in Trail was a 3-2 double overtime loss back on Friday, October 1st 2010

The Vipers are 8-2-0-0 in their last ten games at home vs. the Smoke Eaters

The Vipers are 7-2-0-1 in their last ten games on the road vs. the Smoke Eaters

The Vipers are 8-1-0-1 in their last ten games vs. Trail

The Vernon Lakers changed their name to the Vernon Vipers to start the 1995-96 season. Here’s a look at the Vipers all-time regular season record

Games Played: 951
Wins: 612
Losses: 244
Ties: 15
Overtime Losses: 83

For more stats & former Vernon Junior Hockey Team rosters & lineups please visit Paul’s Vernon Junior Hockey History website,

http://members.shaw.ca/vernonfranchise/index.html

Returning Players:

Bryce Kakoske (90)
David Robinson (90)
Blake Voth (91)
Steve Weinstein (90)
Adam Thompson (90)
Dylan Walchuk (92)
Patrick McGillis (91)

Departing & traded players from last years team:

Connor Jones (90)
Mike Collins (90)
Braden Pimm (89)
Cory Kane (90)
Jonathan Milhouse (89)
Kellen Jones (90)
Rob Short (89)
Cole Ikkala (90)
Dan Nycholat (89)
Kevin Kraus (89)
Curtis Gedig (91)
Garrett Noonan (91)
Sahir Gill (92)
Darrin Robak (91)
Graeme Gordon (89)

Vernon’s Powerplay vs. Trail this season:

3-15

Vernon’s home record vs. Trail this season:

2-0-0-0

Vernon’s road record vs. Trail this season:

0-1-0-1

Vernon’s scoring leaders vs. Trail this season:

David Robinson (4-0-4)
Kyle Murphy (1-2-3)
Bryce Kakoske (0-3-3)
John Knisley (1-1-2)
Michael Zalewski (0-2-2)
Malcolm Lyles (1-1-2)
Aaron Hadley (0-2-2)
Trevor Fitzgerald (1-1-2)
Adam Thompson (0-2-2)
Marcus Basara (0-2-2)
Dylan Walchuk (1-0-1)
Darren Nowick (0-1-1)
Patrick McGillis (1-0-1)
Max Mowat (1-0-1)
Brett Corkey (0-1-1)

Blake Voth (2-2 Record)

Key’s and Notes to tonight’s game:

-Adam Thompson has (1-6-7) in sixteen career games vs. Trail

-The Vipers have just one loss in their last seven games

-The Vipers have the league's 6th best penalty kill

-Vernon is going to have to not take a shift off, as Trail has a very balanced scoring team

-Blake Voth is 4-2 in his career vs. Trail

-The Vipers have the league’s second best goal’s against, giving up just 124 goals this season

-Vernon is 18-3-3-7 when scoring the games first goal

-The Vipers are 11-7-1-1 when giving up the first goal of the game

-The Vipers have just three games away from home, left on the schedule

-The Vipers are ranked 13th in the CJHL National Rankings

-Blake Voth (22-10-3 Record, 4 shutouts) is second in the league's top ten goaltenders with a 2.16 GAA

-Dylan Walchuk has 1-6-7) in nine career games vs. Trail

-Vernon's powerplay is 14th in the BCHL

-The Vipers have just one loss in the last eleven road games

-Kirby Halcrow is 1-2 in his career vs. Trail

-Vernon is just a single point up on 2nd place Penticton, the Vees play tonight in Victoria

-After tonight the Vipers are home for their next three games

-Bryce Kakoske has (3-9-12) in sixteen career games vs. the Smokies

-The Vipers need to come up with a full 60 minutes

-Since knocking off the Smokies 4-1 back on November, 26th Vernon is 14-2-3-2

-Steve Weinstein has 1-3-4) in thirteen career games vs. the Smoke Eaters

Let's take a look at the Trail Smoke Eaters:

Games Played: 49
Wins: 11
Losses: 35
Ties: 0
Overtime Losses: 3
Home Record: 9-15-0-2
Road Record: 2-20-0-1
Streak: One game winning streak
Last Ten Games: 4-5-0-1
Goals For: 128
Goals Against: 228
Standings: 8th Place

For more coverage and info on the Trail Smoke Eaters, please visit Jon Zack’s Trail Smoke Eaters blog, http://smokeeatersblog.com/

Returning Players:

Scott Jacklin (90)
Sam Mellor (92)
Travis St. Denis (92)
Paul Mailey (90)
Curtis Tonello (90)
Ben Matthews (91)
Kiefer Smiley (90)

Departing & traded players from last years team:

Nick Sandor (89)
Michael Betz (92)
Darnell Dyck (91)
Matt Wilkins (91)
Wade Bennett (90)
Mitch Kaufmann (91)
Sean Nugent (89)
Tommy Rizzardo (90)
Justin Brown (91)
Eric Walker (93)
Thomas Abenante (90)
Taylor Swaffield (89)
Garrett Beckwith (90)
Graeme Strukoff (91)
Steve Oursov (91)
Steve Koshey (91)

Trail’s Powerplay vs. Vernon this season:

3-17

Trail’s home record vs. Vernon:

2-0-0-0

Trail’s road record vs. Vernon:

0-2-0-0

Trail’s scoring leaders vs. Vernon this season:

Sam Mellor (2-2-4)
Travis St. Denis (1-2-3)
Scott Jacklin (1-1-2)
Rajan Sidhu (0-2-2)
Dylan Tappe (1-0-1)
Paul Mailey (0-1-1)
Jake Baker (0-2-2)
Beau Blanaru (1-0-1)
Ben Matthews (0-1-1)
Matthew Laboucane (0-1-1)
Sam Mellor (0-1-1)
Clayton McEwan (1-0-1)

Kiefer Smiley (2-1 Record)
Matt Larose (0-1 Record)

Key’s and Notes to tonight’s game:

-Tonight is the Smokies second game of a three game home stand

-Kiefer Smiley has stopped 122 out of Vernons 130 shots so far in both games vs. the Vipers this season

-Trail is riding a four game winning streak

-Travis St. Denis has (7-3-10) in eighteen career games vs. the Vipers

-The Smokies are ranked 4th in the BCHL on the penalty kill

-The Smoke Eaters have won seven of their last eight games

-Kiefer Smiley is 2-3 in his career vs. Vernon

-Trail has struggled at home lately, winning just five of their last ten home games

- Scott Jacklin (20-44-64), Sam Mellor (31-30-61) & Cullen Bradshaw (28-30-58) are in the league’s top twenty in scoring

-Matt Larose (8-4 Record, 2 Shutouts, 2.56 GAA) is the league’s fifth best goaltender

-Sam Mellor has (3-6-9) in ten career games vs. the Vipers

-Trail has the league’s 6th best powerplay

-Kiefer Smiley (22-16-2 Record, 1 Shutout, 2.80 GAA) is ranked 8th out of the BCHL’s top ten goaltenders

-Defenceman, Nic DeSousa has points in seven straight games

-Since losing 4-1 to Vernon back on November, 26th the Smoke Eaters have gone 11-9-2-0

-Goaltending will be key

-Paul Mailey has (2-8-10) in seventeen career games vs. Vernon

-Specialty teams will be key

Here’s a look at the season series between these two teams:

Friday, October 1st @ Trail: Trail wins 3-2 double overtime

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

No Scoring

PERIOD 2

Vernon Vipers at 9:46 (SH) - Dylan Walchuk from Trevor Fitzgerald
Trail Smoke Eaters at 13:58 (PP) - Graeme Strukoff from Travis St. Denis and Sam Mellor
Trail Smoke Eaters at 15:22 - Dylan Tappe from Steve Oursov

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 8:44 - John Knisley from Michael Zalewski and Aaron Hadley

OVERTIME PERIOD 2

Trail Smoke Eaters at 4:39 - Sam Mellor from Graeme Strukoff

Vernon outshot Trail 48-37. Kiefer Smiley made 46 saves for the win, while Blake Voth made 35 saves taking the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840266&link=bchl

Friday, October 15th @ Trail: Trail wins 3-2

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

Vernon Vipers at 6:37 (PP) - Patrick McGillis from Malcolm Lyles and Darren Nowick
Trail Smoke Eaters at 10:59 - Beau Blanaru from Matthew Laboucane and Rajan Sidhu
Trail Smoke Eaters at 13:40 (PP) - Sam Mellor from Travis St. Denis and Scott Jacklin
Trail Smoke Eaters at 16:26 - Scott Jacklin from Ben Matthews and Jake Baker

PERIOD 2

No Scoring

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 9:44 - Dylan Walchuk from Bryce Kakoske and Kyle Murphy

Vernon outshot Trail 46-21. Kiefer Smiley makes 44 saves for the win, while Blake Voth makes 18 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840267&link=bchl

Saturday, October 16th @ Vernon: Vernon wins 3-1

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

Trail Smoke Eaters at 0:31 (PP) - Travis St. Denis from Sam Mellor and Jake Baker
Vernon Vipers at 8:20 - David Robinson from Bryce Kakoske and Kyle Murphy
Vernon Vipers at 10:40 (PP) - Max Mowat from Michael Zalewski and Brett Corkey

PERIOD 2

No Scoring

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 12:16 - Malcolm Lyles from John Knisley

Trail outshot Vernon 19-18. Blake Voth made 18 saves for the win, while Matt Larose made 15 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840236&link=bchl

Friday, November 26th @ Vernon: Vernon wins 4-1

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

Vernon Vipers at 3:15 - David Robinson from Bryce Kakoske and Marcus Basara
Trail Smoke Eaters at 4:17 - Clayton McEwan from Sam Mellor
Vernon Vipers at 8:03 - Kyle Murphy from Elliot Richardson and Adam Thompson

PERIOD 2

Vernon Vipers at 13:25 (PP) - David Robinson from Marcus Basara and Bryce Kakoske

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 8:03 - Trevor Fitzgerald from Aaron Hadley
Vernon outshot Trail 36-16. Blake Voth made 15 saves for the win, while Kiefer Smiley made 32 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840237&link=bchl

Here's a look at both teams rosters:

Vernon:

Dylan Walchuk (20-27-47)
David Robinson (26-16-42)
Bryce Kakoske (14-27-41)
Kyle Murphy (13-20-33)
John Knisley (9-24-33)
Michael Zalewski (12-17-29)
Adam Thompson (6-18-24)
Marcus Basara (11-12-23)
Aaron Hadley (9-14-23)
Malcolm Lyles (6-16-22)
Steven Weinstein (5-17-22)
Darren Nowick (6-15-21)
Patrick McGillis (11-10-21)
Brett Corkey (1-19-20)
Trevor Fitzgerald (7-11-18)
Ryan Renz (4-10-14)
Max Mowat (1-11-12)
Colton Sparrow (1-5-6)
Zach McPhee (3-1-4)
Dane Muench (1-1-2)
Philip Patenaude (0-1-1)

Kirby Halcrow With Quesnel (5-18-1 Record, 3.56 GAA)
With Vernon (6-3-1 Record, 2.33 GAA)
Blake Voth (22-10-3 Record, 4 Shutouts, 2.16 GAA)

Trail:

Scott Jacklin (20-44-64)
Sam Mellor (31-30-61)
Cullen Bradshaw (28-30-58)
Nic DeSousa (17-36-53)
Travis St. Denis (21-26-47)
Paul Mailey (11-21-32)
Erik Cooper (13-18-31)
Jake Baker (4-17-21)
Rajan Sidhu (1-20-21)
Ryan Luiten (8-7-15)
Dylan Tappe (5-10-15)
Ben Matthews (4-11-15)
Adam Boytinck (3-9-12)
Joey Baker (4-7-11)
Curtis Tonello (1-9-10)
Logan Proulx (2-7-9)
Beau Blanaru (3-4-7)
Eric Walker (2-5-7)
Clayton McEwan (1-6-7)
Jordan Bauer (1-0-1)
Ryan Dixon (0-0-0)

Matt Larose (8-4 Record, 2 Shutouts, 2.56 GAA)
Kiefer Smiley (22-16-2 Record, 1 Shutout, 2.80 GAA)

Knisley Beats Spruce Kings In Overtime:

This is posted on the Vipers website:

Knisley beats Spruce Kings in overtime

by viper staff | Added 2011-01-29

John Knisley’s overtime goal gave the Vernon Vipers a 5-4 win over a plucky band of Prince George Spruce Kings in Vernon on Friday.

Knisley, who had registered a goal and an assist in the first period, took a pass from Brett Corkey and sped down the right wing.

Says Knisley, “I thought I saw an opening at the top of the net, so I shot high.” At 1:45 of the first overtime period, the puck went over Kirk Thompson’s right shoulder, igniting relief among the Vipers, who had blown leads of 3-0 and 4-2.

Thompson was beaten three times in the game’s first eight minutes as the Vipers totally dominated in the early going. The shots were 17-2 in the first period.

Pat McGillis, playing with Knisley and Aaron Hadley because of Mike Zalewski’s injury, opened the scoring at 5:17. Aaron Hadley’s stiff check helped John Knisley get a good shot that Thompson stopped but could not control. McGillis pounced on the rebound for his 11th goal of the season.

Fifty-four seconds later, David Robinson and Kyle Murphy would not be denied as they both drove to the goal mouth from behind the net. Robinson finished the play.

At 8:08, John Knisley completed the flurry of goals as he finished off a determined effort by linemates Hadley and McGillis. At that point, PG Coach Dave Dupas called a timeout to settle his
shell-shocked young team

The Vipers seemed satisfied to control play without driving to the net for the remainder of the period, so the Spruce Kings escaped further damage. They then turned the tables in the second period.

Sensing that the Vipers had become complacent, the Spruce Kings mounted a comeback early in the second, working hard on the fore check. That hard work paid off with two goals.

Their pressure caused the Vipers to lose focus in their end, and big Ben Woodley raced in from the point to drive a loose puck past Blake Voth at 5:35. Then, at 6:45, Dustin Bearisto got the final touch in a mad scramble in front of Voth.

It was now Mark Ferner’s turn to call a timeout. Once again, it had the desired effect, as the Vipers had the better of the play in the second half of the period.

They had a glorious chance to increase their lead during a 5-on-3 power play for the full two minutes, but were unable to beat Thompson. Also, Bennett Hambrook and Trevor Esau fearlessly blocked several shots.

Vernon did get a power play goal to make the score 4-2, courtesy of a Steve Weinstein slap shot at 6:51 of the third period. However, the Spruce Kings would not go away, and they tied the game late in the period.

Ben Woodley powered his second of the game at 14:56 after Jujhar Khaira had bulled his way into the Viper zone. Woodley jumped off the blue line and buried a one-timer from 25 feet.

With the goalie on the bench, Prince George tied the game at 19:06. Woodley contributed to this goal as well, as he passed to Chase Golightly at the right point. Golightly’s innocent-looking shot deflected off Connor Tiechko, who had gone to the net after freeing the puck along the left boards.

Stephen Ryan got credit for the goal, though he was not on the ice at the time.

So, in their 17th overtime game of the season, the Vipers got their 5th OT win, to stay a point ahead of Penticton, who squeezed out a 2-1 win in Nanaimo.

Vipers Chapel Program Video:

Kiss FM's Rob Abramenko has once again made one of his great Vernon Vipers video's, Abro just finished going off ice to talk to the team's Chaplain Dave Hockley about his program Check it out,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQ05fjRvce4

Vernon 5 Prince George 4 (Overtime)

I was at tonight's BCHL game as Vernon defeated Prince George 5-4 in overtime in front of 1,734 fans at the Wesbild Centre.

Starting Goaltenders:

Vernon: Blake Voth
Prince George: Kirk Thompson

1st Period: Vernon would get off to a good start and outplay PG for most of the opening period. Just twenty seconds into the game, Viper captain David Robinson and Bryce Kakoske on a parcial two on one, as Robinson fed Kakoske who got off a weak shot as Kirk Thompson made the save. Off the draw on the next shift the Vipers would setup Darren Nowick in the slot who was stopped by Thompson. Prince George would get the games first powerplay but have troubles setting up as the Spruce Kings didnt record a shot on goal as Vernon killed off the minor. A few shifts later Dylan Walchuk come back with a good shot from the slot but was stopped by Kirk Thompson. The Vipers with good jump and playing with alot of energy were really moving the puck well, getting some good chances early. The Spruce Kings were having all kinds of trouble with the Vipers speed and skill as Vernon was basically skating circles around Prince George. Vernon would then open the scoring, Aaron Hadley was stopped in close after Thompson made a nice pad save, but couldnt hold onto the rebound, kicking it out front to Patrick McGillis who's wearing Jeff Cheeseman's jersey #19, put the rebound past Thompson at 5:17. Hadley and John Knisley collected the assists. Just under a minute later David Robinson beat Kirk Thompson at 6:11 giving the Vipers a 2-0 lead, Kyle Murphy and Bryce Kakoske with the helpers. The Spruce Kings would take six minutes before recording their first shot on net. Vernon didnt quit coming in waves, just under two minutes later John Knisley at 8:08 put Vernon up 3-0 and in full control, Patrick McGillis and Aaron Hadley with the assists. Dave Dupas was quick to call a timeout and settle his troops down as Vernon was basically outworking and outskating PG. Thompson was getting no help from his defenceman, as the Vipers were able to walk right in and pick up the rebounds without being checked. The thirty second timeout seemed to settle down the Spruce Kings, as PG started to lay the body and get fairly physical against Vernon down 3-0. Former Viper Todd Skirving had his biggest check of the night, sending Malcolm Lyles to the ice, and Ben Woodley leveled Aaron Hadley in mid ice, sending the Viper rookie to the ice. As the period went on, Vernon slowly started to hit back as both teams were now playing physical. Prince George wasnt even in this game as it was all Vernon, the Vipers were outshooting the Spruce Kings 12-2 at the midway mark of the opening period. PG seemed to tighten up defensively in the second half of the 1st limiting Vernon's scoring chances. Marcus Basara with a real quality scoring chance in the second half was stopped by Kirk Thompson after a quick drive towards the net by Basara. PG with only two shots in the first half of the period made life easy for Blake Voth who wasnt tested at all. Vernon would get a late powerplay and get two good chances. Aaron Hadley and Dylan Walchuk were both stopped in front as the Vipers couldnt capitalise in their first man advantage of the night. The Vipers outplayed the Spruce Kings and were up 3-0 after 20 minutes of play. Vernon outshot Prince George 17-2.

2nd Period: The Vipers who usally are a good 1st period team, have sure had their troubles in the second period this season and it happened again this evening. After a pretty dominating 1st Vernon got off to a slow start in the 2nd and allowed PG slowly back into the hockey game. The Spruce Kings would get the play in deep early and get a little pressure on the Vipers. Vernon who looked a little flat to start the period didnt seem to have the same jump and energy they played with in the opening period. Prince George would get two early flurries in front of Blake Voth but couldnt get any real good quality chances. Voth had to come up with his first big save of the night, robbing Brandon Watson in front, but the puck would come back to the point, Ben Woodley ripped a quick shot beating Blake Voth at 5:35 who couldnt get back up in time after stopping Watson on the first shot. Watson and Trent Murdoch would pick up the helpers. This goal resulted after Dane Muench didnt cover his man, allowing the Spruce Kings to keep the puck in the zone and get the first chance and score on the rebound. PG didnt quit and just under a minute later former Viper Todd Skirving setup Dustin Beairsto who beat Voth at 6:45 getting the Spruce Kings with in a goal. Skirving and Jujhar Khaira collected the assists. Mark Ferner decided to call his thirty second timeout to try and settle his hockey club down after giving up back to back quick goals. Just two minutes after the timeout, John Knisley would cut hard towards the goal and come in all alone but couldnt beat Thompson who stopped the Viper rookie in close keeping this a 3-2 game. Both teams then tightened up defensively as neither team could really get much going in a very tight checking game. After firing everything on goal in the 1st Vernon had just two shots in the first ten minutes of the 2nd period as PG really tightened up defensively, keeping the Vipers to the outside. Ben Woodley then dished out a pretty big hit on Trevor Fitzgerald after the whistle, wich Colton Sparrow didnt seem to like, as the Vernon product went after Woodley. Both players would drop their gloves but didnt get any real punches in as both players were given five minutes for fighting, in the end Vernon would come out of the melay with a two man advantage. The Vipers who are ranked 14th in the league with the powerplay struggled getting very little shots or chances as PG killed off the two man advantage. Give the Spruce Kings credit, after giving the Vipers way too much room to use their speed and skill in the opening period, PG shutdown the Vipers speed and skill in the second, limiting Vernon's chances. In the dying seconds Kirk Thompson made a nice glove save, after stopping Vipers assistant captain, Steve Weinstein from the point. Vernon was up 3-2 after 40 minutes of play. The Spruce Kings outshot the Vipers 11-9.

3rd Period: Vernon come out with lots of jump and energy to start the 3rd. Just four minutes into the final period Malcolm Lyles with a nice move inside the PG blueline, setup Steve Weinstein who fed Kyle Murphy in the slot, Murphy was able to skate right in untouched but couldnt beat Thompson who stayed with Murphy the entire way stopping the Viper twenty year old. The Vipers had total control of the period early, carrying the better of the play deep in the Spruce Kings zone. Marcus Basara and former Viper Todd Skirving exchanged words, as Skirving gave Basara a shot to the head before Dustin Beairsto got involved in some pushing and shoving. Vernon would get an early powerplay out of the scrum and capitalised. Steve Weinstein's point shot beat Kirk Thompson at 6:51 giving the Vipers a 4-2 lead. Darren Nowick with the lone assist on the goal. Just under two minutes later Trevor Fitzgerald and Chase Golightly dropped the mits. Prince George who wasnt in this 3rd period would take eight minutes before recording their first shot of the period after getting a long dump in shot on Blake Voth. Prince George would then get a powerplay but unable to get a single shot as the Vipers killed off the minor. Just a few minutes later the Spruce Kings would get their first chance of the 3rd but Blake Voth had to make his biggest save of the night after making a first save from the slot, Voth coudlnt handle the rebound but robbed Trent Murdoch with the pad on the rebound. PG didnt seem to like Marcus Basara as Basara was taking a few shots after the whistle and on his way to the bench. Dane Muench with a chance in front after a Viper point shot, but Muench couldnt beat Thompson who made the save. The Spruce Kings would come back the other way, Jujhar Khaira setup Ben Woodley in the slot who beat Voth low along the ice shortside at 14:56 cutting the lead to one. Khaira with the only helper. The Spruce Kings who were outplayed in the 3rd only managed two chances but would score on one, making this a one goal game. Prince George would get Kirk Thompson to the bench with 1:24 remaining, as the Spruce Kings would get the play in deep, finding Todd Skirving alone at the side of the net, but the former Viper couldnt get a handle on the puck coming very close to tying the game. On the same play Darren Nowick couldnt reach the loose puck along the boards and then lost an edge, Chase Golightly kept the play alive, setting up Ben Woodley who fed Stephen Ryan in front who beat Voth at 19:16 tying the game 4-4. Golightly & Woodley with the assists. In the dying seconds Bryce Kakoske's shot from the corner just whistled wide of the far corner on a close call. Vernon who outplayed Prince George was heading to overtime. The Vipers outshot the Spruce Kings 12-5.

Overtime: Both teams looked a little tenative early, as neither team wanted to make the first mistake. The Spruce Kings with a long shot from just outside the Viper blueline was stopped fairly easily bu Blake Voth. No real chances by either team before Brett Corkey fed John Knisley who waited for Kirk Thompson to go down and then roofed his shot high and roof at 1:45 giving the Vipers the 5-4 ot victory. Corkey with the lone helper on the game winner. Prince George outshot Vernon 2-1.

Top Players: (Vernon)

Malcolm Lyles returned to the Vipers lineup after serving a two game suspension. Lyles didnt really stand out early but seemed to get better as the game went on. The first year Viper looked very good in the 3rd playing his best hockey of the night. Lyles played physical, jumped up into the play and made a few heads up plays.

Max Mowat I thought was another d-man that played very well on the Vernon backend. Mowat was very steady defensively all night.

John Knisley (2 goals & 1 assist) I thought was Vernon's best player tonight. Knisley really used his speed, wich made it very hard for the Spruce Kings to slow him down. Knisley who is one of the Vipers hardest workers, played very well at both ends of the rink.

Colton Sparrow competed and battled hard all evening, dropped the mits with Ben Woodley after sticking up for teammate Trevor Fitzgerald.

Steve Weinstein (1 goal) Was another Viper d-man who played very well. Weinstein played very well defensively and looked good on the powerplay, moving the puck well. Was steady all night.

Top Players: (Prince George)

Ben Woodley (2 goals & 1 assist) Woodley come into tonight's game with just a single goal and assist before picking up two goals and an assist tonight. The 6'6 d-man was very solid on the Spruce Kings backend. Played physical but also jumped up into the play. Was by far PG's best defenceman.

Dustin Beairsto (1 goal) Was Prince George's most physical player, was in the face of several Viper players, trying to knock them off their game. Beairsto was involved in a few plays after the whistle.

Kirk Thompson (34 saves) Thompson didnt have to stand on his head but after giving up three early first period goals, got a little help from his team after going down 3-0 and played well. Thompson gave his team a chance to win, making some key saves at key times through out the contest.

Game Thoughts: (Vernon)

Tonight's game should have never gone to overtime. Vernon was by far the better of the two teams for two of the three periods. The Vipers jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead and outplayed PG outshooting them 17-2 after just 20 minutes. Im not sure what happens between the first and second period but the Vipers have had troubles in the 2nd period most of the season, for some reason the Vipers just dont seem to do well or for that matter play very well in the middle frame. The Vipers allowed Prince George to climb back into the game giving up two quick back to back goals. I thought Vernon looked very good in the 3rd carrying the better of the play, getting some good chances but only managed one goal. PG who only got three maybe four good chances scores twice and were going to overtime. The Vipers who have had troubles with the Spruce Kings this season, managed to pull out the win in the extra period and stay one point up on the Penticton Vees who knocked off the Nanaimo Clippers tonight.

Game Thoughts: (Prince George)

PG who come into tonight's game off a huge 5-4 overtime win over the Westside Warriors Tuesday night, have now gone to overtime in five of their last seven games. With the single point the Spruce Kings are just four points back of the final playoff spot. PG had no business taking this game to overtime, The Spruce Kings were outplayed for two of the three periods getting very little scoring chances but scored on their chances. Other then the 2nd period PG was outplayed most of the night. Prince George with just one twenty year old, had troubles mustering any kind of offence all night. PG had troubles containing the Vipers speed and skill in the 1st and 3rd periods, allowing Vernon to control most of the play. The Spruce Kings did play fairly physical and were the more physical team.

Scratches:

Vernon:

Zach McPhee
Mike Zalewski (Injured)
Adam Thompson (Injured)

Prince George:

Faiz Khan

3 Stars:

1st Star: John Knisley (2 goals & 1 assist)
2nd Star: Ben Woodley (2 goals & 1 assist)
3rd Star: Malcolm Lyles

(Game Preview) Prince George @ Vernon:

Prince George (11-35-0-3) @ Vernon (28-10-4-8)

Tonight is the sixth and final meeting of the regular season between the defending back to back Royal Bank Cup Champion Vernon Vipers & the Prince George Spruce Kings. The Vipers are coming off a 3-0 shutout to the Salmon Arm Silverbacks, snapping Vernon’s six game winning streak. The Spruce Kings make their final visit of the season to the Wesbild Centre coming off a 5-4 overtime victory over the Westside Warriors, snapping the team’s three game losing streak.

Last Game Played:

Tuesday, January 25th Salmon Arm defeated Vernon 3-0
Tuesday, January 25th Prince George defeated Westside 5-4 in overtime

Next Game:

Saturday, January 29th Vernon @ Trail
Saturday, January 29th Prince George @ Salmon Arm

Let's take a look at the Vernon Vipers:

Games Played: 50
Wins: 28
Losses: 10
Ties: 4
Overtime Losses: 8
Home Record: 12-5-2-4
Road Record: 16-5-2-4
Streak: One game losing streak
Last Ten Games: 7-2-0-1
Goals For: 163
Goals Against:120
Standings: 1st Place

Since the 2002-03 season Vernon is 31-14-1-4 vs. Prince George

Since the 2002-03 season Vernon has outscored Prince George 203-126

Since the 2003-04 season Vernon is 10-3-1-4 at home vs. Prince George

Since the 2003-04 season Vernon is 13-8-0-1 in Prince George

The Vipers are 7-1-0-2 in their last ten games at home vs. the Spruce Kings

The Vipers are 7-3-0-0 in their last ten games on the road vs. the Spruce Kings

The Vipers are 8-1-0-1 in their last ten games vs. Prince George

Vernon’s last loss at home to Prince George was a 3-2 overtime loss back on Sunday, October 24th 2010

The Vernon Lakers changed their name to the Vernon Vipers to start the 1995-96 season. Here’s a look at the Vipers all-time regular season record

Games Played: 950
Wins: 611
Losses: 244
Ties: 15
Overtime Losses: 83

For more stats & former Vernon Junior Hockey Team rosters & lineups please visit Paul’s Vernon Junior Hockey History website,

http://members.shaw.ca/vernonfranchise/index.html

Returning Players:

Bryce Kakoske (90)
David Robinson (90)
Blake Voth (91)
Steve Weinstein (90)
Adam Thompson (90)
Dylan Walchuk (92)
Patrick McGillis (91)

Departing & traded players from last years team:

Connor Jones (90)
Mike Collins (90)
Braden Pimm (89)
Cory Kane (90)
Jonathan Milhouse (89)
Kellen Jones (90)
Rob Short (89)
Cole Ikkala (90)
Dan Nycholat (89)
Kevin Kraus (89)
Curtis Gedig (91)
Garrett Noonan (91)
Sahir Gill (92)
Darrin Robak (91)
Graeme Gordon (89)

Vernon’s Powerplay vs. Prince George this season:

2-21

Vernon’s Home record vs. Prince George this season:

1-0-0-1

Vernon’s Road record vs. Prince George this season:

2-1

Vernon’s scoring leaders vs. Prince George this season:

Marcus Basara (2-4-6)
John Knisley (0-4-4)
David Robinson (2-1-3)
Bryce Kakoske (0-3-3)
Malcolm Lyles (1-2-3)
Trevor Fitzgerald (2-1-3)
Dylan Walchuk (2-0-2)
Michael Zalewski (0-2-2)
Aaron Hadley (1-1-2)
Darren Nowick (0-2-2)
Kyle Murphy (1-1-2)
Steven Weinstein (0-2-2)
Adam Thompson (0-2-2)
Colton Sparrow (0-1-1)
Brett Corkey (0-1-1)
Patrick McGillis (1-0-1)

Blake Voth (1-1 Record)
Kirby Halcrow (1-0 Record)

Key’s and Notes to tonight’s game:

-The Vipers have just one loss in their last six games

-The Vipers have the league's 7th best penalty kill

-Blake Voth is 2-1 in his career vs. Prince George

-Defenceman, Malcolm Lyles should be back in the lineup tonight, after serving a two game suspension

-The Vipers have the league’s second best goal’s against, giving up just 120 goals this season

Adam Thompson has (0-5-5) in fourteen career games vs. the Spruce Kings
-Vernon is 17-3-3-7 when scoring the games first goal

-The Vipers are 11-7-1-1 when giving up the first goal of the game

-Tonight is Vernon’s fifth and final game of a current five game home stand

-Bryce Kakoske has (1-6-7) in eleven career games vs. PG

-The Vipers have just three games away from home, left on the schedule

-The Vipers are ranked 13th in the CJHL National Rankings

-Blake Voth (21-10-3 Record, 4 shutouts) is second in the league's top ten goaltenders with a 2.11 GAA

-Vernon's powerplay is 14th in the BCHL

-Kirby Halcrow is 4-3 in his career vs. Prince George

-The Vipers are going to have to jump on a very young Spruce Kings hockey club, and use their speed and skill to their advantage

-Vernon is just a single point up on 2nd place Penticton, the Vees play tonight in Nanaimo

-Dylan Walchuk has (6-1-7) in eight career games vs. Prince George

-Steve Weinstein has (0-6-6) in twelve career games vs. the Spruce Kings

-Vernon needs to come out with a better effort tonight after a dismal 3-0 loss to the Silverbacks Tuesday night

Let's take a look at the Prince George Spruce Kings:

Games Played: 49
Wins: 11
Losses: 35
Ties: 0
Overtime Losses: 3
Home Record: 9-15-0-2
Road Record: 2-20-0-1
Streak: One game winning streak
Last Ten Games: 4-5-0-1
Goals For: 128
Goals Against: 228
Standings: 8th Place

For more coverage and info on the Prince George Spruce Kings, please visit the Spruce Kings Crusader blog, http://sprucekingscrusader.blogspot.com/

Returning Players:

Kyle Manlow (91)
Jeff Earnest (91)
Jeff Datoff (92)
Luke Hannas (91)
Jeremy Wiebe (91)

Departing & traded players from last years team:

Nic DeSousa (90)
Justin Fillion (90)
RJay Berra (90)
Sam Muchalla (90)
Zac Rasmussen (89)
Joe Morgan (89)
Brad Bourke (89)
Jonathan Gibson (90)
Jesse Scrimbit (0)
Stewart Lambert (90)
Reid Blinkhorn (91)
Kyle Nielsen (90)
Andrew Walsh (90)

Prince Georges Powerplay vs. Vernon this season:

5-19

Prince Georges Home record vs. Vernon this season:

1-2-0-0

Prince Georges Road record vs. Vernon this season:

1-1-0-0

Prince Georges scoring leaders vs. Vernon this season:

Chris Bodo (2-0-2)
Jujhar Khaira (0-2-2)
Trent Murdoch (0-1-1)
Kyle Manlow (0-1-1)
Chase Golightly (0-1-1)
Connor Tiechko (1-0-1)
Jeff Earnest (0-1-1)

Kirk Thompson (1-1 Record)
Cameron Large (0-1 Record)

Key’s and Notes to tonight’s game:

-The Spruce Kings are coming off a six game home stand, starting a three game road trip tonight in Vernon

-Prince George’s last win away from home was a 4-1 victory over Salmon Arm back on November,5th 2010

-Tonight is the second meeting between these two teams, within the last two weeks. Vernon defeated Prince George back on January,15th at the PG Coliseum.

-The Spruce Kings powerplay is ranked 12th in the BCHL
-Prince George’s penalty kill is ranked 16th in the league

-Former Vipers, Bennett Hambrook and Todd Skirving will face off against their former team

-PG has confidence against Vernon picking up two wins against the Vipers this season

-The Spruce Kings with just one 20 year old on their roster, are going to have to play a full 60 minutes if they want to knock off the defending National Champs

-Goaltending will be key for both teams

-Prince George has lost 12 straight road games

-The Spruce Kings have gone to overtime in four out of their last six games

Here’s a look at the season series between these two teams:

Friday, September 24th @ Prince George: Prince George wins 3-1

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

Prince George Spruce Kings at 10:13 (PP) - Chris Bodo from Jujhar Khaira
Prince George Spruce Kings at 17:08 (PP) - Chris Bodo from Jujhar Khaira and RJay
Berra

PERIOD 2

No Scoring

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 12:52 - Elliot Richardson from Marcus Basara and Bryce Kakoske
Prince George Spruce Kings at 14:58 - Justin Fillion from Kyle Manlow

Vernon outshot Prince George 45-15. Ryan Bentiez made 44 saves for the win, while Blake Voth made 10 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840255&link=bchl

Sunday, September 26th @ Prince George: Vernon wins 6-0

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

Vernon Vipers at 0:31 - Malcolm Lyles from Aaron Hadley and John Knisley

PERIOD 2

Vernon Vipers at 6:38 - Trevor Fitzgerald (unassisted)
Vernon Vipers at 15:24 - Todd Skirving (unassisted)
Vernon Vipers at 17:48 - Dylan Walchuk from Darren Nowick and Bryce Kakoske

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 13:07 (SH) - Trevor Fitzgerald (unassisted)
Vernon Vipers at 16:54 - Kyle Murphy from Marcus Basara

Vernon outshot Prince George 40-16. Blake Voth made 16 saves for his first shutout of the season, while Kirk Thompson made 34 saves taking the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840256&link=bchl

Sunday, October 24th Prince George @ Vernon: Prince George wins 3-2 in overtime

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

No Scoring

PERIOD 2

Vernon Vipers at 10:16 - Aaron Hadley from John Knisley and Michael Zalewski
Vernon Vipers at 12:39 - Dylan Walchuk from Marcus Basara and Malcolm Lyles
Prince George Spruce Kings at 15:22 - RJay Berra from Zac Ashdown and Justin Fillion
Prince George Spruce Kings at 18:59 (PP) - Justin Fillion from Trent Murdoch and Zac Ashdown

PERIOD 3

No Scoring

OVERTIME PERIOD 1

Prince George Spruce Kings at 1:25 (PP) - Zac Ashdown from RJay Berra and Chris Bodo

Vernon outshot Prince George 41-32. Kirk Thompson made 39 saves picking up the win, while Bryton Udy made 29 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840116&link=bchl

Saturday, November 6th Prince George @ Vernon: Vernon wins 3-1

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

No Scoring

PERIOD 2

Prince George Spruce Kings at 6:28 - RJay Berra from Nic DeSousa and Zac Ashdown
Vernon Vipers at 12:28 (PP) - Aaron Hadley from John Knisley

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 1:13 - Aaron Hadley from John Knisley and Brett Corkey
Vernon Vipers at 6:00 - Marcus Basara from Michael Zalewski

Vernon outshot Prince George 34-16. Bryton Udy made 15 saves for his first career BCHL win. Alex Wright made 31 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840117&link=bchl

Saturday, January 15th @ Prince George: Vernon wins 4-1

SCORING SUMMARY

PERIOD 1

Vernon Vipers at 3:51 - Marcus Basara from Kyle Murphy and Adam Thompson
Prince George Spruce Kings at 11:43 (PP) - Connor Tiechko from Jeff Earnest and Chase Golightly
Vernon Vipers at 13:30 (PP) - David Robinson from Marcus Basara and Steven Weinstein

PERIOD 2

Vernon Vipers at 3:23 - Patrick McGillis from Steven Weinstein and Trevor Fitzgerald

PERIOD 3

Vernon Vipers at 19:23 (EN) - David Robinson from Darren Nowick

Vernon outshot Prince George 28-26. Kirby Halcrow made 25 saves in the victory, while Cameron Large made 24 saves in the loss.

http://www.bchl.ca/leagues/hockey_boxscores.cfm?clientID=1413&leagueID=2393&gameID=840257

Here's a look at both teams rosters:

Vernon:

Dylan Walchuk (20-27-47)
David Robinson (25-16-41)
Bryce Kakoske (14-26-40)
Kyle Murphy (13-19-32)
John Knisley (7-23-30)
Michael Zalewski (12-17-29)
Adam Thompson (6-18-24)
Marcus Basara (11-12-23)
Malcolm Lyles (6-16-22)
Aaron Hadley (9-12-21)
Steven Weinstein (4-17-21)
Darren Nowick (6-14-20)
Patrick McGillis (10-9-19)
Brett Corkey (1-18-19)
Trevor Fitzgerald (7-11-18)
Ryan Renz (4-10-14)
Max Mowat (1-11-12)
Colton Sparrow (1-5-6)
Zach McPhee (3-1-4)
Dane Muench (1-1-2)
Philip Patenaude (0-1-1)

Kirby Halcrow With Quesnel (5-18-1 Record, 3.56 GAA)
With Vernon (6-3-1 Record, 2.33 GAA)
Blake Voth (21-10-3 Record, 4 Shutouts, 2.11 GAA)

Prince George:

Jujhar Khaira (9-26-35)
Faiz Khan (11-13-24)
Jeff Earnest (5-14-19)
Connor Tiechko (10-9-19)
Trent Murdoch (3-12-15)
Kyle Manlow (5-7-12)
Todd Skirving (6-6-12)
Stephen Ryan (0-6-6)
Chase Golightly (0-6-6)
Trevor Esau (0-4-4)
Brandon Watson (1-1-2)
Ben Woodley (1-1-2)
Bennett Hambrook (1-0-1)
Isaac Davies (0-1-1)
Sam Waterfield (0-1-1)
Dustin Beairsto (0-0-0)

Kirk Thompson (5-19 Record, 4.16 GAA)
Cameron Large (2-3 Record, 4.21 GAA)

Max Mowat Post Game Interview:

Vernon Vipers colour commentator, Don Klepp interview's Vipers defenceman, Max Mowat after Tuesday night's 3-0 loss to the Salmon Arm Silverbacks.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQpMa7whpwc

Moore Blanks Vipers:

This is in todays Morning Star Newspaper:

Moore blanks Vipers

By Graeme Corbett - Vernon Morning Star

Published: January 25, 2011

It seems all the top teams in the B.C. Hockey League’s Interior Conference have an Achilles heel.

The Westside Warriors can’t seem to beat the Merritt Centennials (Cents lead season series 5-0); neither the Salmon Arm SilverBacks nor the Trail Smoke Eaters have had much success against the Warriors (Westside leads those series 4-1 and 4-0 respectively) and the Penticton Vees can’t catch a break against the Vernon Vipers (Snakes have 4-0-1 edge)

And following Tuesday night’s 3-0 home shutout loss to the SilverBacks, Vernon have to be wondering what it will take to get two points off the Gorillas.

The Snakes fired 45 shots at first star netminder Kris Moore, who backstopped Salmon Arm to a 6-1 season series advantage and the club’s first shutout before 1,600 fans at Wesbild Centre. It is also the first time Vernon has been shut out this season.

Moore, a Calgary native, has stopped 164 of the 173 shots in five appearances against the Vipers this season, good enough for a shining .948 save percentage (his season average is .912).

“Teams have their number for other teams. Ours happens to be Vernon,” smiled Moore, standing outside a jubilant Salmon Arm dressing room.

“It’s nice to get those (shutouts) against a top team like Vernon. I just tried to track (shots) on the way in. I had some help from the d-men on the ones that were tougher.”

After surviving three consecutive penalties, including a two-minute 5-on-3 disadvantage midway through the first period, the SilverBacks’ Brett Knowles opened the scoring at 11:51. He notched his 23rd goal, a shot from the high slot that appeared to deflect off a Viper defenceman, fooling Viper netminder Kirby Halcrow (27 saves) low stick side.

Salmon Arm head coach Tim Kehler, who earned the bench minor that led to the 5-on-3, said surviving those early penalties provided a huge momentum swing.

“Not that I want to take credit for putting our team down two men, but it was really that (penalty kill) that got us engaged in the game,” he said.

“It was all Vernon until that point. We weren’t engaged in the defensive zone, we were turning off of pucks, we just didn’t look into it.

“To have a full two minutes (of 5-on-3) and kill it off, it got our goaltender in the game and really buoyed the spirits of our group.”

It was the second straight game in which Moore anchored his team against a first-period barrage by the Vipers. Vernon outshot the visitors 19-7 heading into the first intermission Tuesday.

“He has typically out-dueled whoever he’s faced in this rink and it has allowed our group to find our legs and really establish our team game,” said Kehler

The Vipers did get possession in the offensive zone, but the majority of their shots came from the perimeter as SilverBack blueliners Jayson Reardon, Josh Manson, Charlie Vasaturo and third star Clinton Atkinson hustled to contain Vernon’s forwards.

Pat McGillis, the Vipers’ main scoring threat on the night, had two prime opportunities in the first period and another great chance on a one-timer in the third, but was denied by Moore.

Despite the high shot count, Vipers’ head coach Mark Ferner was less than thrilled with his team’s effort, from the net outwards.

“We weren’t fully invested in the game. We had some guys who were looking for an easy way to play,” said Ferner. “I can accept losses, but that’s not the point. The process was disappointing.

“A goalie comes into our building and gets first star. We need that from our goaltending too.”

Defenceman Stevie Weinstein, a three-year veteran with the Snakes, said it was just a matter of bearing down.

“We had a lot of powerplays right off the bat and we were getting chances, we just didn’t bury them,” said the Los Angeles product.

“Our first period was good, but we needed to feed off that and keep our energy, and we just didn’t. The effort wasn’t good enough.”

The SilverBacks’ David Killip (19th) made it 2-0 at 7:18 of the second period after he fought off a check behind the net and beat Halcrow with a backhand wraparound.

Jarryd Ten Vaanholt (17th) pounced on a turnover in the slot, ripping a slap shot past the Vernon netminder at 11:14 to complete the scoring.

The Vipers, who lead the Interior at 28-10-4-8, entertain the last-place Prince George Spruce Kings (11-35-0-3) Friday night at Wesbild. They visit the Trail Smoke Eaters (28-19-2-1) Saturday at Cominco Arena.

The SilverBacks, third in the Interior Conference at 29-17-2-0, host Vernon in their final regular-season meeting Feb. 9 at the Sunwave Centre.

SNAKE BITES: Former Viper Todd Skirving collected the winner 15 seconds into double overtime as the Spruce Kings trimmed the Westside Warriors 5-4 Tuesday night at Royal LePage Place. Skirving, who netted 2+1 to earn first star, returns to Wesbild tonight for the first time since being dealt to the Sprucies at the BCHL trade deadline...In other Tuesday action, the host Powell River Kings used a goal and assist each from Matt Garbowsky and Chad Niddery to brush back the Penticton Vees 4-1 at Hap Parker Arena. The Kings lead the BCHL at 36-8-3-2, while the Vees (31-14-2-1) trail Vernon by three points in the Interior but have two games in hand.

Former Viper Goaltender Sibbald Named Player Of The Week:

Former Vernon Vipers goaltender, Mark Sibbald has been named the SBK player of the week. Sibbald who signed with the SPHL Huntsville Havoc back in late October is in his second go around with the Havoc. Sibbald is 9-4 this season with a 2.22 GAA. Sibbald played two seasons in Vernon (2003-05) before playing four years at Brown University. Sibbald signed with the Wichita Thunder back on September, 27th 2010 but was released just before the start of the regular season on October, 14th 2010 before signing with Huntsville.

Mark Sibbald’s Player Profile:

http://sphlhavoc.stats.pointstreak.com/playerpage.html?playerid=4386108&seasonid=5879

This is posted on the SPJHL website:

Date: Jan 24, 2011

CHARLOTTE, NC – The Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) today announced Mark Sibbald of the Huntsville Havoc is the SBK Player of the Week for January 17-23.

Sibbald went 2-0 on the road with a 0.50 goals against average and a save percentage of .983 as Huntsville moved to within two points of second place in the standings.

On Friday, the Ridgeway, Ontario native recorded his first shutout of the season, turning away all 34 Pensacola shots as Huntsville edged the Ice Flyers 1-0. Sibbald turned in another strong performance on Saturday, stopping 24 of 25 shots as the Havoc defeated Knoxville 3-1.

Sibbald went 15-4-3 with Huntsville last year, posting a 2.82 goals against average, a .910 save percentage and winning 11 of his first 12 games. He also spent time with the Mississippi RiverKings and Laredo Bucks of the Central Hockey League, going 5-4-1 with Mississippi in 11 games with a 3.18 goals against average and an .882 save percentage.

Also Nominated: Aaron McGill, Augusta (1 gp, 2g, 1 gwg), Mitch Wall, Columbus (2 gp, 2g, 2a, +2 rating), Eric Slais, Knoxville (3 gp, 3g) and Chris Wilson, Pensacola (3 gp, 4g, 1 ppg, 1 shg, 1 gwg)

Former Viper Goaltender Olthuis Sign's With Dayton:

Former Vernon Vipers goaltender, Jon Olthuis signed with the CHL's Dayton Gems back on January, 13th 2011. Olthuis had previously signed with Dayton this past summer but was released on October, 12th 2010 prior to the regular season. Olthuis then signed with the SPHL's Augusta RiverHawks & was currently playing in Augusta before signing with Dayton. In 20 games with the RiverHawks, Olthuis was 11-8 with a 2.83 GAA. Olthuis had just recorded his first career CHL shutout back on January, 6th 2011 with a 5-0 victory over the Louisiana Ice Gators. Olthuis played two seasons in Vernon (2004-06) before playing four years at University of Alaska-Anchorage.

This was in last week's Anchorage Daily News:

Catching Up With Johnny Olthuis

Posted: January 20, 2011

Former UAA goaltender Jon Olthuis, who eventually landed in the Southern Professional Hockey League to begin his pro career and -- according to the numbers -- played well there, has moved up a notch to the Central Hockey League.

The Dayton Gems last week signed Olthuis -- he's yet to play in a game for them.

Still, good to see him move up. For the Augusta RiverHawks, he went 11-8-1 with a 2.83 goals-against average, .911 save percentage and one shutout.

Jon Olthuis's Player Profile:

http://daytongems.net/?page_id=2825

Knoxville Places Former Viper Costanzo On Season Ending IR:

Former Vernon Vipers forward, Dallas Costanzo has been placed on season ending injured reserve. Costanzo was placed on the 30 day IR list back on December, 18th. Costanzo who played two seasons in Vernon (2003-05) is in his first season with the SPHL Knoxville Ice Bears.

Dallas Costanzo's Player Profile:

http://knoxvilleicebears.com/team/players/dallas_costanzo

Vipers-Silverbacks Highlights:

Here are some highlights from Tuesday night's game as the Salmon Arm Silverbacks snapped the Vernon Vipers six game winning streak with a 3-0 victory at the Wesbild Centre.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yev9N6F5ph4

Moore Frustrates Vipers:

This is posted on the Vipers website:

Moore frustrates Vipers

by Don Klepp | Added 2011-01-26

In a sterling performance at Vernon’s Wesbild centre on Tuesday, Salmon Arm’s Kris Moore stopped all 45 Viper shots as his Silverbacks won, 3-0.

Moore was especially sharp in the first period, making several very difficult saves among the 19 shots he faced. Some of his best saves came during a two-minute Viper five-on-three power play that turned out to be pivotal in the contest.

Buoyed by their successful penalty kill, the Silverbacks worked their way back into the game. Roughly a minute after the penalties ended, Brett Knowles put the visitors on the board.

Knowles’s shot from the high slot came off his stick much slower than goalie Kirby Halcrow expected. Halcrow kicked out his right pad before the soft shot arrived and the puck slipped between his pads.

Still, the Vipers kept attacking and Moore continued to frustrate their efforts, cutting down shooting angles and anticipating deflections. He had some luck, too, as several Viper shots bounced just wide.

Moore allowed few rebounds and invariably those loose pucks were cleared by the physical Salmon Arm defencemen.

At one point, Patrick McGillis’s shot looked like it was going to score with Moore down and out, but defenceman Clinton Atkinson stepped in front of the net to stop the puck with his stomach.

In the first period, the Vipers were unsuccessful on four power plays, even though they generated four gilt-edged scoring chances with the man advantage.

The successful penalty killing continued in the second period, as each team had two power plays, but came up empty. In this period, Salmon Arm had 8 scoring chances while the Vipers had 6.

The Silverbacks cashed in two of their chances, starting with David Killip’s determined effort at 7:18.

After Brett Knowles’s slap pass had ended up behind the Viper net, Killip beat his man to the puck and bulled his way out front. Halcrow stopped Killip’s first shot but the Viper defence didn’t tie up his stick, so he was able to whack the rebound past Halcrow.

At 11:14, Jarryd Ten Vaanholt found a loose puck in the high slot and ripped a low wrist shot past a screened Kirby Halcrow on the stick side.

And that was that. For Viper fans, the home team came agonizingly close three times on a late second period power play, but each time the puck trickled past the post.

The Silverbacks closed the door in the third period, as each team managed 10 shots and just three scoring chances.

The goalies shone in the third. Halcrow gloved Paul Jersey’s backhand from five feet and made two fine saves with his right pad, while Moore absolutely robbed Patrick McGillis after a turnover in the Silverback end.

Late in the game, David Robinson almost ruined the shutout bid with a high flip-in that bounced strangely in front of Moore. The goalie fell awkwardly trying to handle the bounce and somehow the puck lodged under his left skate.

The Silverbacks have now taken six of the seven games the two teams have played this year, even though the Vipers have outshot and out chanced the ‘Backs in six of those games.

Kris Moore posted his first BCHL shutout. It was the first time the Vipers have been blanked in their last 102 regular season games, dating back to October 3, 2009.

Patrick McGillis Post Game Interview:

Vernon Vipers colour commentator, Don Klepp interview's Vipers forward, Patrick McGillis after the Vipers 6-4 victory over the visiting Coquitlam Express Saturday night. McGillis collected two goals and one assist exstending the Vipers winning streak to six games. McGillis was named the game's first star.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMGucfuWess

McGillis Pumps Up Vipers:

This is in todays Morning Star Newspaper:

McGillis pumps up Vipers

By Kevin Mitchell - Vernon Morning Star

Published: January 24, 2011

Patrick McGillis is one of those intangibles that all championship teams possess. He brings it every shift and can pretty much do it all. Check, shoot, score, hit, kill penalties.

You may not notice him some nights as the Dylan Walchuks and David Robinsons strutt their stuff with the Vernon Vipers, but McGillis is a solid and dependable teammate.

The 19-year-old Calgary product got plenty of notice Saturday night, scoring twice and missing at least three other chances, drawing one assist and taking first star honours as the Snakes held off the dogmatic Coquitlam Express 6-4.

McGillis, who compiled seven goals and 21 points while seeing limited duty in 39 games last season, reached the 10-goal plateau with a pair of unassisted tallies in the second period before 1,700 B.C. Hockey League fans at Wesbild Centre.

“The pucks were just going in,” smiled McGillis. “I had about 20 shots the last three games and tonight’s the first time they went in so it’s nice.”

Playing on Vernon’s second line with John Knisley and Aaron Hadley, McGillis did a splendid job penalty killing as the high-scoring Express went 1-for-5 with the man advantage.

“It’s nice to play special teams and penalty killing,” said McGillis. “It’s a huge part of the game and obviously, it’s that a momentum changer if you can kill off a penalty and it’s nice to get the boys going.”

McGillis beat Coquitlam rookie goalie Khaleed Devji with a low shot to make it 3-1 Vernon and then five minutes later, zig-zagged from his own zone and wired a wrister over Devji’s shoulder.

McGillis and Ryan Renz drew assists on Darren Nowick’s powerplay goal to start the second-period offence after the teams traded first-period goals.

Michael Krgovich, who has 96 WHL games on his resume, scored for the Express after he picked off an errant Viper clearing attempt. Rookie Colton Sparrow went hard to the Express net for his first BCHL snipe for the Vipers five minutes later. Trevor Fitzgerald and Brett Corkey earned the assists.

The Vipers, who challenged the monster Powell River Kings in perhaps the best game played at Wesbild in years Friday night, were somewhat off against the Express, who give up an average of almost four goals a game.

“Last night’s game was a playoff-mode game, but tonight was a bit of a struggle for us,” said McGillis. “We just weren’t moving the same as last night but it was nice to get the win but the process wasn’t there.”

The Express, who stunned the Vees Friday night in Penticton and then bowed 5-0 to the Trail Smoke Eaters on their way home Sunday, stuck around long enough to get two late goals from sniper Massimo Lamacchia (25th, 26th).

Both Lamacchia and former Portland Winterhawk Jason Grecica used trick billiards-like shots for goals that fooled Viper goalie Blake Voth.

Robinson scored the winner on a late second-period powerplay, from Kyle Murphy and Corkey, added an empty-netter for his career-high 25th of the year with 36 seconds to play.

The 17-21-1-9 Express, who outshot the Vipers 33-27, sorely missed their captain Garrick Perry, who went down early in the game with an apparent shoulder or arm injury.

Krgovich, who netted his 17th of the season, was impressed with the Interior Conference’s heavy hitters in Vernon and Penticton.

“To be honest with you, they’re good skilled teams, good skating, and they play their systems very soundly and they make very little mistakes and they’re good teams.

“We got a skeleton roster tonight and I think the guys were a bit tired, but no excuses, a couple of mental breakdowns cost us the game.”

Krgovich, a Coquitlam native who turns 21 this Saturday, exchanged hellos with Robinson, a former teammate with the WHL Chilliwack Bruins.

“Robbie’s a great player and he’s a good guy too so it’s good to see him out here.”

And while the 28-9-4-8 Vipers make a push to claim another Interior banner, Krgovich said the Express are focussed on making the playoffs out of the Coastal Conference.

“We’re right in the mix. We didn’t make a lot of moves at the deadline. We didn’t sell the farm. We’re making a push for it and it’s gonna be interesting.”

SNAKE BITES: The Vipers entertained the Salmon Arm Silverbacks Tuesday night. Vernon has 10 games left, including a Friday night tilt against the Prince George Spruce Kings...D-man Malcolm Lyles sat out game two of his two-game suspension Tuesday night, for a blow to the head penalty against the Kings...Vernon’s Tyler Steel made 24 saves and Evan Stack scored at 1.29 of overtime as the Merritt Centennials clipped Prince George 1-0 Saturday night.