Vipers Start Regular Season Friday:

This is in todays Vernon Morning Star Newspaper:

Vipers start regular season Friday

Roger Knox

Morning Star Staff

Friday, September 6 2019

Vernon Vipers head coach and general manager Jason McKee tinkered with the lineup one last time at the end of training camp, getting set for his club's B.C. Hockey League regular-season opener Friday in West Kelowna against the Warriors.

McKee, in his first season at the helm of the defending Interior Conference playoff champs, whittled the lineup down to 24 after Sunday's 3-2 overtime exhibition win against the defending national Junior A champion Brooks Bandits at Kal Tire Place North.

On Monday, McKee shored up the blue-line, acquiring veteran defenceman Doug Scott from the Grande Prairie Storm in exchange for D-man Ryan MacLean.

Scott is a veteran of 111 BCHL games with the Coquitlam Express and most recently Cowichan Capitals. The 19-year old North Vancouver product had four goals and eight assists last season.

"Doug is a steady defender who competes extremely hard every shift." said McKee. "He's a veteran entering his third season and we believe there's an offensive upside to his game."

With 10 returnees from the club that finished fourth in the Interior Division last season, then rode incredible goaltending and timely scoring all the way to the Fred Page Cup Finals (where the team lost to Prince George Spruce Kings in four games), McKee expects a well-energized and fast team to start the 2019-20 season.

"We want to be structurally sound in all three zones, have a plan of what we're trying to do and go out there and execute it as a group," said McKee.

"We don't want to be reckless, but we want to be aggressive as we can be in all three zones and try to make the other team make as many mistakes as possible. In order to do that, you're going to need to have a roster that can move around out there and you've got to be a really competitive group.

"Your decision making needs to be really crisp all the time. Those are the type of players we've targeted this year and will continue to look at moving forward."

Connor Marritt has been named captain, part of a leadership group that also includes veterans Landon Fuller, Trey Taylor and Ben Sanderson.

Among the newcomers expected to excite Vipers fans are forward Jojo Tanaka-Campbell from Mill Bay, BC on Vancouver Island, who has committed to the Ivy League's Yale Bulldogs for 2020-21.

"He's really creative centre. He's a pass-first guy, but also has the ability to shoot and score." said McKee. "He's definitely a guy who will make his team-mates better around him. We lost a lot of scoring from last year and we expect Jojo to come in and help us in that area."

The Vipers picked up the third-leading scorer in the Central Canada Hockey League last season, Connor Sleeth, from Kanata (Ontario) Lasers. Sleeth had the most goals in the league with 33, and finished with 72 points in 62 games.

"He's proven he's able to put up good numbers at the Junior A level. He's looking for a fresh start in the BCHL," said McKee. "We're expecting him to come in and contribute in all areas, but definitely offensively. We felt like we needed to add a centre and he's definitely a guy that has experience."

Goalie Max Palaga, a Kamloops native, returns to the Vipers, the team he started the 2018-19 with, but left to play for the Western Hockey League's Everett Silvertips.

Palaga had a .943 save percentage and a 1.65 goals against average in five games with the Vipers. With the Silvertips, he had a .942 save percentage and 1.65 GAA.

"He's a veteran goalie who's looking for an opportunity to be the number-one guy," said McKee. "We expect Max to be a huge part of our team. We think he's got a lot of upside and just needs that opportunity to play on a consistent basis and we're extremely excited to have him."

Joining McKee behind the bench are assistant coaches Larry Draper and Eric Morrissette. Draper spent five years as an assistant with the Alberta Junior Hockey League's Bonnyville Pontiacs. Morrissette has been training and developing hockey players from novice to NHL for more than 20 years.

The Vipers will play their home opener Friday, Sept. 20, against the Victoria Grizzlies.