Saturday, October 31, 2009

Game 20 - vs Trail Smoke Eaters

Rosters ...

Trail Smoke Eaters

1 Kiefer Smiley (G 5'11" 180 2/23/1990 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
2 Graeme Strukoff (D 5'11" 185 3/30/1991 Chilliwack, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 27 PIMs)
3 Ben Matthews (D 6''03" 197 3/23/1991 Chugiak, AK, USA) (GP 16 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 29 PIMs)
4 Wade Bennett (D 5'08" 170 4/22/1990 Gardena, CA, USA) (GP 17 G 0 A 9 Pts 9 10 PIMs)
5 David Piccard (D 6'00" 200 6/7/1990 Anchorage, AK, USA) (GP 15 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 06 PIMs)
6 Eric Walker (D 6'01" 187 2/23/1993 Castlegar, BC, CAN) (GP 19 G 0 A 3 Pts 3 25 PIMs)
7 Steve Koshey (D 5'08" 175 3/27/1991 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 3 A 10 Pts 13 08 PIMs)
8 Tommy Rizzardo (D 6'00" 205 2/25/1990 Dallas, TX, USA) (GP 8 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 13 PIMs)
9 Travis St. Denis (F 5'07" 155 9/9/1992 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 7 A 8 Pts 15 23 PIMs)
10 Darnell Dyck (F 6'02" 185 4/18/1991 Chilliwack, BC, CAN) (GP 19 G 6 A 3 Pts 9 25 PIMs)
11 Sam Mellor (F 5'10" 175 11/21/1992 Cranbrook, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 10 A 9 Pts 19 06 PIMs)
14 Scott Jacklin (F 5'11" 178 3/9/1990 Kimberley, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 5 A 16 Pts 21 19 PIMs)
16 Matt Wilkins (F 5'11" 175 1/26/1991 Kimberley, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 1 A 10 Pts 11 10 PIMs)
17 Nick Sandor (F 6'00" 187 2/15/1989 Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 8 A 12 Pts 20 02 PIMs)
18 Josh McEwan (F 5'10" 175 4/7/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 41 PIMs)
20 Sean Nugent (F 6'02" 210 11/8/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 2 A 0 Pts 2 39 PIMs)
21 Justin Brown (F 5'11" 180 10/12/1991 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 16 PIMs)
22 Thomas Abenante (F 5'09" 160 3/16/1990 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 1 A 2 Pts 3 00 PIMs)
23 Tye Lewis (F 5'10" 185 6/24/1989 Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 11 A 12 Pts 23 10 PIMs)
24 Marc-Antoine Chaput (D 5'10" 170 12/11/1991 Masouche, PQ, CAN) (GP 13 G 1 A 2 Pts 3 18 PIMs)
25 Paul Mailey (F 5'09" 165 7/28/1990 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 20 G 2 A 6 Pts 8 04 PIMs)
26 Mitch Kaufmann (D 6'00" 192 8/9/1991 Red Deer, AB, CAN) (GP 9 G 1 A 1 Pts 2 11 PIMs)
35 Garrett Beckwith (G 6'00" 180 1/4/1990 Parsipany, NJ, USA) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Steve Papciak (G 5'11" 185 4/26/1990 Des Plaines, IL, USA) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 18 G 5 A 12 Pts 17 31 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 19 G 3 A 7 Pts 10 27 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 5 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 16 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 12 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 22 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 4 A 4 Pts 8 08 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 18 G 3 A 0 Pts 3 10 PIMs)
14 Lyndon Martell (F 6'01" 190 1/13/1993 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 3 Pts 3 62 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 17 G 6 A 4 Pts 10 25 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 19 G 8 A 21 Pts 29 18 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 3 A 7 Pts 10 11 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 1 A 1 Pts 2 51 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 19 G 5 A 6 Pts 11 06 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 17 G 5 A 11 Pts 16 25 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 18 G 6 A 10 Pts 16 45 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 9 A 16 Pts 25 28 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Friday, October 30, 2009

Game 19 - at Quesnel Millionaires

Game Preview ...

With an almost completely healthy roster, the Prince George Spruce Kings hit the road for their shortest road trip in the BCHL to take on the Quesnel Millionaires. These two teams have one of the longest standing rivalries in junior hockey dating back to the early 1970's. As a result there is a lot of familiarity between the two clubs and this year there seems to be a lot simularity as well. Nearly a third of the way into the season and the two teams are separated by a single point in the middle of the Interior Conference.

The Spruce Kings have fourteen points (6-10-1-1) in eighteen games and the Millionaires have thirteen points (5-9-0-3) with a game in hand on Prince George. This weekend both teams will also play the Trail Smoke Eaters making for an interesting scenario in that fight for fifth spot in the Interior Conference. Also sitting with thirteen points is the Merritt Centennials with almost identical numers as Prince George (6-10-0-1) while the Trail Smoke Eaters sit in eight spot with ten points after nineteen games (4-13-1-1).

This weekend could very well be a make or break weekend for the Spruce Kings with a chance to build a buffer between them and the rest of the teams that have been playing at below .500 since the start of the season. The month of October is the month with the most games for the Spruce Kings who will play a total of thirteen games before the goblins and ghouls head back inside. Although the overall record can be improved to one game below .500 in the month, the home record is the one that has suffered the most while the Spruce Kings are an even 2-2-0-1 on the road.

The Quesnel Millionaires on the other hand have to be considered a tough opponent for the Spruce Kings after they picked up points against teams that Prince George couldn't. The Millionaires picked up two points against the Langley Chiefs and the Powell River Kings and also found a point in an overtime loss to the Vernon Vipers. When the Spruce Kings had their run in with three of the top teams in the league, they were a little beat up and run down from the flu and other aliments. Fortunately all that seems to be behind the team and it has been replaced with a positive can-do attitude.

Game time tonight is 7:30pm from the Quesnel Twin Arenas and the game can be heard on 93.1 CFIS-FM and also online from the Spruce Kings website - just click on the CFIS-FM Listen Live link. Saturday night the Spruce Kings will host the Trail Smoke Eaters in an all hallowed eve's night at 7:00pm.

Rosters ...

Quesnel Millionaires

1 Michael Smith (G 5'09" 170 4/19/1991 Spokane, WA, USA) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Anderson White (D 6'04" 205 8/16/1991 Caledon, ON, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
5 Sam Higgins (D 5'10" 165 3/23/1990 Calgary, AB, CAN) (GP 16 G 0 A 7 Pts 7 16 PIMs)
6 Spencer Graboski (F 6'02" 170 1/6/1993 Quesnel, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 04 PIMs)
7 Matthew Herskovitz (D 6'02" 200 12/3/1989 Montreal, PQ, CAN) (GP 17 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 10 PIMs)
8 Tyson Price (F 5'11" 178 8/18/1991 Slave Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
9 Brett Howe (F 5'11" 185 5/22/1990 Lethbridge, AB, CAN) (GP 16 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 31 PIMs)
10 Lucas Ford (F 5'11" 195 6/18/1991 Strathmore, AB, CAN) (GP 13 G 3 A 0 Pts 3 00 PIMs)
14 Skyler Smutek (D 6'00" 175 5/7/1990 Seattle, WA, USA) (GP 17 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 35 PIMs)
16 Trevor Hertz (F 6'00" 189 10/11/1989 Jaffray, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 11 A 6 Pts 17 02 PIMs)
17 Taylor Holst (F 6'01" 185 4/24/1989 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 8 A 9 Pts 17 23 PIMs)
18 Erik Hansen (F 5'11" 175 10/10/1989 Minnetonka, MN, USA) (GP 17 G 3 A 1 Pts 4 04 PIMs)
19 Breyden DeCock (F 5'09" 176 3/1/1990 Calgary, AB, CAN) (GP 15 G 2 A 2 Pts 4 12 PIMs)
20 Darick Ste-Marie (F 5'11" 195 9/19/1989 St-Bruno, PQ, CAN) (GP 17 G 4 A 9 Pts 13 15 PIMs)
21 Tyler French (F 5'07" 165 9/15/1990 Westside, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 6 A 4 Pts 10 04 PIMs)
22 Mitch Galbraith (F 6'02" 183 4/21/1990 Quesnel, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 14 PIMs)
23 Matt Hutchinson (D 6'01" 195 7/1/1991 North Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
24 Brandon Watson (F 5'11" 173 2/24/1992 Keremeos, BC, CAN) (GP 7 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 20 PIMs)
25 Rylan Stanyer (D 6'02" 210 4/19/1990 Burns Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 14 PIMs)
26 Chris Kerr (F 6'00" 175 10/22/1992 Penticton, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 00 PIMs)
27 Eliot Raibl (D 5'11" 184 3/28/1989 Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 1 A 10 Pts 11 24 PIMs)
28 Tyler Billon (D 6'02" 190 7/18/1992 Chilliwack, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
31 Kirby Halcrow (G 6'02" 218 3/13/1991 Grande Prairie, AB, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 06 PIMs)
31 Taylor Pears (G 5'11" 182 11/11/1991 Cobble Hill, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
35 Luke Siemens (G 5'11" 165 11/6/1992 Delta, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Steve Papciak (G 5'11" 185 4/26/1990 Des Plaines, IL, USA) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 18 G 5 A 12 Pts 17 31 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 18 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 25 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 11 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 12 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 20 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 4 A 4 Pts 8 06 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 17 G 2 A 0 Pts 2 10 PIMs)
14 Lyndon Martell (F 6'01" 190 1/13/1993 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 55 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 16 G 5 A 3 Pts 8 23 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 18 G 6 A 19 Pts 25 18 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 11 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 51 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 18 G 5 A 6 Pts 11 06 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 16 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 25 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 38 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 9 A 16 Pts 25 28 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Game 18 - vs Williams Lake Timberwolves

Game Preview ...

The two teams met last night in Williams Lake with the Timberwolves proving that they aren't afraid to fight for the rights in the BCHL. The Timberwolves put on a physical relentless approach and at one point early in the first period led 10-4 on the shot clock. The Timberwolves also established two one goal leads through the game beginning with the game's first goal as a result of a converted 2-on-1 rush. In the third they had a brief 4-3 lead as a result of that relentless pursuit of the puck that resulted in a give-away and the go ahead goal.

As the final score suggests, the Spruce Kings were able to stem the tide and post the 6-4 win with a number of players receiving footnotes beside their names for their contributions. In no particular order, I'll start with the Spruce Kings newest netminder - Steve Papciak (pronounced Pap_see_ak). Acquired from the Okotoks Oilers earlier in the week, Papciak had only two practices before his first start in the BCHL. Papciak was strong in net during the early goings of the game making some key stops and also keeping the play rolling when he felt he had time to move the puck.

The first goal of the game is long known to be a killer goal for the team scored upon, but in this case it was a good goal that the Spruce Kings were able to shrug off and continue on with. The play started in the Williams Lake end with a quick outlet past that found a pair of wingers breaking. Trent Murdock was the reciepient of the pass and carried into the Spruce Kings end of the ice. Just inside the right faceoff circle he let a hard rising shot go that Papciak got a piece of but was unable to contain. The puck slipped under the goaltender's left arm and fell to the blue paint where the other winger, Dane Rupert, was able to get a stick on it and poke it into the back of the net.

The Spruce Kings seemed to rally around their new goaltender after this goal and started picking up their play and forcing the issue inside the Timberwolves zone. On one such play with less than two minutes to go in the opening period, Zac Rasmussen found Sam Muchalla on the right wing. From the top of the faceoff circle, Muchalla let a hard shot go that the Williams Lake Timberwolves goaltender could not control. In a similar fate, Nick DeSousa found the puck just laying in the crease and made no mistake finding the back of the net left vacant by the goaltender that came out to challenge the shooter.

Before the first period was done, Rasmussen was awarded a penalty shot after being hooked down in front of the net while in the motion of shooting the puck on goal. Rasmussen used a sweeping outside roll to the right before cutting back in to the net across the top of the crease. Perhaps looking for the goaltender to over commit, Rasmussen went looking for the five-hole only to find the big blade of the stick. The first came to an end with the teams tied at one goal apeice.

In the second the Spruce Kings turned it on and were rewarded with an early powerplay chance that Jeff Earnest used to collect his fourth of the season and give the Spruce Kings a one goal edge. One shift later Earnest was back at it again and this time blew a hard shot over the glove of Sean Donnelly for his second of the game and fifth of the season. Getting his first point of the season on the goal was the sixteen year old Major Midget magician, Lyndon Martell who setup Earnest with a nice pass just inside the top of the zone. Martell is the other acquisition for the Spruce Kings this week who was leading all others in the BC Major Midget League with 12 goals and 11 assists through 10 games with the Cariboo Cougars.

The Timberwolves would answer both of those goals back and tie the game at three before the midway mark of the second period. The two goals were the result of hard work from the captain of the newest team in the BCHL, Justin Bardason. The rookie captain first worked another perfect 2-on-1 situation with Justin Hogan the receipient of the pass. A few moments later Bardason went hard after the puck behind the Spruce Kings net and came up with the turnover that he dished out front to a waiting Danny Merth. The two traded shots to end the second period tied at three goals each.

In the third period, the Timberwolves looked to have salted away the Spruce Kings with another pressure play in the visitor's end. Again it was Bardason that went hard on the defence and stole the puck away getting it to Ryan Stanimir who made no mistake with a shot labelled for the top corner on Papciak. Again the Spruce Kings calmly went to work and showed that a focused practice plan during the week can and does pay off in a game situation.

In the past few games the Spruce Kings have been guilty of not getting pucks through to the net from the point. Josh Pineiro was the first to demonstrate the practice pay off with a right point shot that got all the way through to RJay Berra who tipped the puck into the back of the net to tie the game. Moments later it was Tyler Miller back in his first game after missing the past six that fired a hard shot through from the right point that rebounded off the goaltender right to a waiting Kyle Manlow.

The rookie from Murietta California collected his second of the season and the game winner finding the back of the net behind Donnelly. In the dieing minutes of the third period, Team Canada West member, Wes McLeod was assessed an interference call giving the Timberwolves a chance to tie the game with the extra attacker. The first part of the powerplay didn't go according to plan for Williams Lake, so they pulled their goaltender making for a 6-on-4 man advantage. Some hard work along the left hand wall by Rasmussen and Pineiro got the puck out of the zone and onto the stick of Brooks Robinson who out-waited a sprawling defenceman firing the puck up and over and into the empty net with 11 seconds remaining in regulation time.

The win gives the Spruce Kings a 4-3-0-1 road record and improves the team to fifth place in the Interior Division with an overall record of 6-10-0-1 through the first seventeen games of the season. The win was Steve Papciak's first in the BCHL and helped to put the brakes on a four game losing streak that the Spruce Kings were in while players were fighting off injuries and the flu bug. The two teams are going to go with essentially the same lineups tonight when the puck drops at 7:00pm from the Prince George Coliseum.

Rosters ...

Williams Lake Timberwolves

1 Sean Donnelly (G 5'11" 170 4/21/1990 White Rock, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Casey Fratkin (F 5'10" 165 6/5/1989 Burnaby, BC, CAN) (GP 7 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 19 PIMs)
4 Darren Tarasoff (D 6'01" 195 3/10/1990 Castlegar, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 12 PIMs)
5 Colin Wandfluh (D 5'11" 180 8/8/1990 Abbotsford, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 06 PIMs)
6 Riley Sweeney (D 5'11" 185 8/31/1992 Delta, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 1 A 4 Pts 5 08 PIMs)
7 Calvin Johnson (F 5'10" 165 5/28/1992 Smithers, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 32 PIMs)
8 Dane Rupert (F 5'08" 170 4/16/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 5 A 3 Pts 8 08 PIMs)
11 Ryan Stanimir (F 6'00" 175 3/4/1990 West Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 7 A 7 Pts 14 19 PIMs)
13 Laine Keyes (F 5'09" 170 4/13/1990 Chase, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 3 A 5 Pts 8 28 PIMs)
14 Kyle Leung (F 5'07" 165 3/5/1990 Port Coquitlam, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 08 PIMs)
16 Anthony DeLong (F 6'00" 165 2/8/1991 Castlegar, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 20 PIMs)
18 Justin Hogan (F 5'11" 185 8/28/1990 Val Therese, PQ, CAN) (GP 13 G 0 A 11 Pts 11 18 PIMs)
19 Cameron Hoffman (F 6'01" 185 7/1/1991 Lake Stevens, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 16 PIMs)
20 Danny Merth (F 6'00" 190 4/19/1991 Anmore, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 05 PIMs)
21 Keenan Bailey (F 6'00" 175 2/10/1991 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 3 Pts 3 11 PIMs)
22 Justin Bardarson (F 5'10" 190 6/6/1990 Burns Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 5 A 4 Pts 9 37 PIMs)
23 Trent Murdoch (F 5'11" 155 7/31/1991 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 6 A 7 Pts 13 02 PIMs)
24 Jake Harcoff (D 5'10" 185 10/17/1990 Surrey, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 17 PIMs)
27 Jason Diehl (F 6'02" 195 7/24/1989 San Diego, CA, USA) (GP 9 G 3 A 3 Pts 6 04 PIMs)
28 Kyle Beaulieu (D 6'03" 195 1/16/1991 Surrey, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 1 A 4 Pts 5 18 PIMs)
55 Evan Dauenhauer (G 5'11" 175 12/19/1989 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Steve Papciak (G 5'11" 185 4/26/1990 Des Plaines, IL, USA) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 5 A 11 Pts 16 27 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 25 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 11 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 10 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 20 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 3 A 4 Pts 7 04 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 16 G 2 A 0 Pts 2 08 PIMs)
14 Lyndon Martell (F 6'01" 190 1/13/1993 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 55 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 15 G 5 A 3 Pts 8 23 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 6 A 17 Pts 23 14 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 2 A 6 Pts 8 11 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 51 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 17 G 5 A 6 Pts 11 06 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 15 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 25 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 4 A 9 Pts 13 36 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 9 A 14 Pts 23 28 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Friday, October 23, 2009

Game 17 - at Williams Lake Timberwolves

Game Preview ...

This will be the fourth meeting of the season between the Spruce Kings and the Timberwolves and the second in Williams Lake. The two meet a total of ten times throughout the year and a few of them are true home-and-home series as this one is starting tonight in Williams Lake. The season series so far sits at 2-1 for the Spruce Kings with 6-3 and 6-0 victories, their one loss did come in the Cariboo Community Complex with the Timberwolves built up a 3-0 lead and held on for a 4-2 decision.

Tonight's game will be highlighted by the debuts of two new players on the Spruce Kings roster. Acquired earlier this week following the departure of Alex Wright is Steve Papciac. The nineteen year old goaltender was playing with the Okotoks Oilers and posting some good numbers in limited starts. He is excited to be in Prince George and looking to make an immediate impact with his new team. In a pregame interview, Papciak expressed his excitement to get into the British Columbia Hockey League and will be looking to make this move a "crowning moment" in his junior hockey career.

Up front Lyndon Martell will make his Junior 'A' debut with the Spruce Kings after leading the BC Major Midget League while playing for the Prince George based Cariboo Cougars. In ten games he scored twelve goals and added eleven assists to average 2.3 points a game. In his pregame interview, Martell gives all the credit to his linemates and says he sees the same puck moving abilities with his new team mates. Martell is expected to start the game on a line centred by Kyle Manlow with another former Cariboo Cougar on the right wing - RJay Berra.

Speaking of Berra, here is a forward who has been putting up the points quietly and getting to a lot of the dirty spots in time to make a big play or force a bigger stop from the opposition. Against the Vernon Vipers on Sunday, Berra had no less than three chances in close on the Vipers goaltender. In the previous game against the Powell River Kings, Berra was named the game's third star. Look for the nineteen year old returning vet to continue on his upward path as he has reached the ten point plateau with four goals and six helpers.

A lot of the talk heading out of last weekend and into this weekend is a combination of the Spruce Kings road record versus their home record and also their record against teams above them in the standings compared to those below them. Talk aside, the Spruce Kings need those trends to continue starting tonight to help bump a four game slide that has seen the royal ones battling through player sickness and injuries. A win tonight will put the Spruce Kings one game above .500 on the road and a second win on Saturday night in the Coliseum will help to improve the Spruce Kings home ice woes.

Game time tonight is 7:30pm from the Cariboo Community Complex in Williams Lake with the game broadcast on 93.1 CFIS-FM and online from the Spruce Kings website by clicking on the CFIS-FM Listen Live link. Saturday's game is a 7:00pm start in the Prince George Coliseum. As a bit of an extra for fans, there will be a free skate with the Spruce Kings beginning at noon on Sunday in the Coliseum. It is the annual Skate for Literacy in partnership with the Prince George Public Library. Following the skate, at least one member of the Spruce Kings will be heading up to Canadian Tire for an autograph signing session. Wes McLeod will be on hand beginning at 3:00pm at the Domano Boulevard store to meet and greet those fans wishing to pass along well wishes before Wes leaves for Summerside, PEI to play for Team Canada West at the World Junior 'A' Challenge.

Rosters ...

Williams Lake Timberwolves

1 Sean Donnelly (G 5'11" 170 4/21/1990 19 White Rock, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Casey Fratkin (F 5'10" 165 6/5/1989 20 Burnaby, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 19 PIMs)
4 Darren Tarasoff (D 6'01" 195 3/10/1990 19 Castlegar, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 10 PIMs)
5 Colin Wandfluh (D 5'11" 180 8/8/1990 19 Abbotsford, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 06 PIMs)
6 Riley Sweeney (D 5'11" 185 8/31/1992 17 Delta, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 08 PIMs)
7 Calvin Johnson (F 5'10" 165 5/28/1992 17 Smithers, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 32 PIMs)
8 Dane Rupert (F 5'08" 170 4/16/1991 18 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 4 A 3 Pts 7 08 PIMs)
11 Ryan Stanimir (F 6'00" 175 3/4/1990 19 West Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 6 A 7 Pts 13 19 PIMs)
13 Laine Keyes (F 5'09" 170 4/13/1990 19 Chase, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 3 A 5 Pts 8 28 PIMs)
14 Kyle Leung (F 5'07" 165 3/5/1990 19 Port Coquitlam, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 2 A 2 Pts 4 06 PIMs)
16 Anthony DeLong (F 6'00" 165 2/8/1991 18 Castlegar, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 2 A 2 Pts 4 20 PIMs)
18 Justin Hogan (F 5'11" 185 8/28/1990 19 Val Therese, PQ, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 9 Pts 9 18 PIMs)
19 Cameron Hoffman (F 6'01" 185 7/1/1991 18 Lake Stevens, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 16 PIMs)
20 Danny Merth (F 6'00" 190 4/19/1991 18 Anmore, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 05 PIMs)
21 Keenan Bailey (F 6'00" 175 2/10/1991 18 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 3 Pts 3 11 PIMs)
22 Justin Bardarson (F 5'10" 190 6/6/1990 19 Burns Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 4 A 3 Pts 7 32 PIMs)
23 Trent Murdoch (F 5'11" 155 7/31/1991 18 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 6 A 6 Pts 12 02 PIMs)
24 Jake Harcoff (D 5'10" 185 10/17/1990 19 Surrey, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 15 PIMs)
27 Jason Diehl (F 6'02" 195 7/24/1989 20 San Diego, CA, USA) (GP 8 G 3 A 2 Pts 5 02 PIMs)
28 Kyle Beaulieu (D 6'03" 195 1/16/1991 18 Surrey, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 1 A 4 Pts 5 18 PIMs)
55 Evan Dauenhauer (G 5'11" 175 12/19/1989 20 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Steve Papciak (G 5'11" 185 4/26/1990 19 Des Plaines, IL, USA) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 19 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 5 A 11 Pts 16 25 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 18 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 19 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 23 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 18 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 04 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 19 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 10 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 19 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 20 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 19 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 2 A 4 Pts 6 04 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 20 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 18 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 15 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 08 PIMs)
14 Lyndon Martell (F 6'01" 190 1/13/1993 16 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 18 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 55 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 18 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 14 G 3 A 3 Pts 6 23 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 20 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 5 A 17 Pts 22 14 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 20 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 7 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 20 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 11 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 17 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6' 00" 175 4/5/90 19 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 18 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 51 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 19 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 16 G 4 A 6 Pts 10 06 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 20 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 14 G 5 A 7 Pts 12 25 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 20 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 4 A 7 Pts 11 36 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 19 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 9 A 11 Pts 20 28 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 19 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Skate for Literacy

The annual skate with the Spruce Kings is coming up this Sunday afternoon from noon until 2pm at the Prince George Coliseum. Hosted by the Prince George Public Library and attended by the entire Spruce Kings roster, this is a fun event intended for the entire family. A free skate where everybody is welcome is a chance to meet the players, get some autographs and win some prizes.

Changes Between the Pipes

The Prince George Spruce Kings Junior 'A' Hockey Club of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) would like to announce that goaltender Alex Wright has joined the Prince George Cougars of the Western Hockey League (WHL). Wright played in thirteen games with the Spruce Kings this season with a record of 5 wins and 7 losses, a 3.16 goals against average and a 89.30 save percentage.

With the vacancy in goal, the Spruce Kings would also like to announce that they have acquired 19 year old goaltender Steve Papciak (Pap_see_ak) from the Okotoks Oilers in exchange for future considerations. From Des Plaines, Illinois, Papciak played in 35 games for the Oilers in the 2008-09 season with a record of 16 wins, 10 losses and 2 ties, a 3.17 goals against average and a 88.53 save percentage. To start this season, Papciak played 186 minutes in three games registering 2 wins with a 2.90 GAA and 90.43 SV%.

"We are very happy for Alex," said Spruce Kings assistant general manager and director of player personnel, Mike Hawes. "We are very proud as an organization to have been able to provide Alex Wright an environment that has been beneficial to his hockey development. We wish Alex all the best with the Prince George Cougars and his future hockey career."

"It's always difficult to replace a quality starting goaltender," added Hawes. "We are happy that we were able to secure another quality goaltender like Steve Papciak to our organization."

Papciak is expected to join the Spruce Kings in time for their home-and-home series against the Timberwolves beginning in Williams Lake on Friday night and Prince George on Saturday. Fans will have a chance to skate with Papciak and the rest of the Spruce Kings during the annual Skate for Literacy on Sunday from noon til 2pm at the Prince George Coliseum.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Game 16 - vs Vernon Vipers

Rosters ...

Vernon Vipers

3 Garrett Noonan (D 6' 01" 205 1/28/1991 Norfork, NC, USA) (GP 14 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 23 PIMs)
4 Nils-Erik Soderlund (D 6' 05" 210 9/27/1990 Carlsbad, NS, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 08 PIMs)
5 Mike Collins (F 6' 00" 180 5/25/1990 Boston, MA, USA) (GP 14 G 10 A 14 Pts 24 10 PIMs)
6 Darrin Robak (D 6' 02" 180 11/5/1991 Red Deer, AB, CAN) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 09 PIMs)
7 Dan Nycholat (D 6' 02" 190 2/4/1992 Calgary, AB, CAN) (GP 13 G 1 A 8 Pts 9 17 PIMs)
9 Dylan Walchuk (F 5' 09" 170 2/4/1992 McBride, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 5 A 13 Pts 18 02 PIMs)
10 Connor Jones (F 5' 09" 165 8/16/1990 Montrose, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 8 A 10 Pts 18 18 PIMs)
11 Cory Kane (F 6' 03" 190 9/15/1990 Irvine, CA, USA) (GP 14 G 7 A 6 Pts 13 06 PIMs)
12 Cole Ikkala (F 6' 01" 195 7/27/1990 Philadelphia, PA, USA) (GP 12 G 4 A 6 Pts 10 04 PIMs)
14 Braden Pimm (F 6' 00" 175 12/28/1989 Fort St. John, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 6 A 14 Pts 20 12 PIMs)
15 Kellen Jones (F 5' 09" 165 8/16/1990 Montrose, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 3 A 13 Pts 16 06 PIMs)
16 Drew George (F 6' 00" 165 4/3/1991 Regina, SK, CAN) (GP 11 G 4 A 2 Pts 6 14 PIMs)
17 Brendan Persley (F 6' 01" 205 6/3/1993 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 13 PIMs)
19 Jonathan Milhouse (F 5' 10" 170 1/30/1989 Yorba Linda, CA, USA) (GP 14 G 6 A 12 Pts 18 06 PIMs)
20 Rob Short (F 6' 00" 200 6/5/1989 Coldstream, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 4 A 6 Pts 10 04 PIMs)
21 Kevin Kraus (D 6' 02" 205 9/5/1989 Garden Grove, CA, USA) (GP 14 G 2 A 6 Pts 8 14 PIMs)
22 Sawyer Mick (F 6' 01" 180 9/22/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 4 A 4 Pts 8 14 PIMs)
24 Steve Weinstein (D 5' 09" 165 8/13/1990 Los Angeles, CA, USA) (GP 14 G 2 A 1 Pts 3 00 PIMs)
25 Nick Amies (D 6' 01" 180 7/25/1992 Enderby, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 1 A 2 Pts 3 04 PIMs)
27 Bryce Kakoske (F 6' 01" 200 4/27/1990 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 1 A 6 Pts 7 06 PIMs)
28 Adam Thompson (D 6' 01" 190 6/27/1990 Calgary, AB, CAN) (GP 11 G 1 A 5 Pts 6 02 PIMs)
29 Patrick McGillis (F 5' 10" 185 3/14/1991 Calgary, AB, CAN) (GP 7 G 2 A 2 Pts 4 04 PIMs)
30 Brad Voth (G 5' 10" 170 12/27/1991 Herbert, SK, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
35 Graeme Gordon (G 6' 02" 183 4/15/1989 North Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6' 01" 185 4/20/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6' 02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 23 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6' 00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5' 11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 23 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6' 03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 04 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6' 01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 10 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6' 01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 18 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6' 00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 04 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6' 01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5' 10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 14 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 08 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6' 02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 55 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5' 10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 13 G 3 A 3 Pts 6 23 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5' 11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 5 A 17 Pts 22 14 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6' 00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5' 08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 11 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5' 10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6' 00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6' 00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 51 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6' 00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 15 G 4 A 6 Pts 10 06 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5' 10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 13 G 5 A 7 Pts 12 25 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5' 09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 14 G 4 A 7 Pts 11 30 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5' 08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 8 A 11 Pts 19 28 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5' 10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 3 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Friday, October 16, 2009

Game 15 - vs Powell River Kings

Game Preview ...
As much as this can be billed a Battle of the Kings or a Battle Royale or the cliche of your choice, there is no doubt that the pressure is squarely on the shoulders of the Spruce Kings as they play host to the Coastal Conference leaders, the Powell River Kings. Over the years of these two teams engaging in their battle of royal supremacy, it has been the home team that has come out victorious more times than not.

Last year without the full interlock schedule, the Spruce Kings never had to make the long travel through the Sunshine Coast to Powell River and so the teams only met once here in Prince George. In that game, it was the Spruce Kings that came out with the win defeating Powell River 6-3. The Kings then went on to establish dominance in the Coastal Conference and were front runners all the way to the end before finally losing to the Vernon Vipers in the BCHL Championship.

This year the Powell River Kings have started where they left off and have a lock on top spot in the Coastal Conference and third overall in the league with 21 points in 14 games. Their strength comes from a team contribution offensively and a pair of goaltenders that rank in the top three in the league. Goal scoring is spread predominately among four players with a pair of nineteen year olds both having 16 points, Andrew Petite and Jordan Grant have identical records of 9 goals and 7 assists heading into tonight's contest.

The Powell River Kings also have a couple of players with Prince George connections in defencman Darcy Huisman and goaltender Michael Gartieg. Huisman was a part of the 2006-07 Spruce Kings roster that won silver at the 2007 RBC Royal Bank Cup and is the last active member in the BCHL from that team. Gartieg is a Prince George minor hockey product who played last year with the Quesnel Millionaires before hooking up with the Coastal Kings for this season.

The Prince George Spruce Kings were involved in a rough one last night when they tangled with the Langley Chiefs. The game was a "chippy" one with lots of stick work and uncalled infractions. The scene blew up in the second period after Sam Muchalla was cut down in front of the net and Brooks Robinson checked into the boards. The ensuing melee resulted in a pair of fights including Sam Muchalla man-handling Tim Daly and winning that tilt decisively. The other fight saw Joe Morgan take off after Dennis Robertson and get assessed a one-game suspension for being the second fight.

After the fight and a few more stiff penalties to keep things in check, the Spruce Kings were able to contain the Langley Chiefs and keep them off the score sheet but the damage had already been done. The Chiefs took away two points with the 4-2 victory leaving the Spruce Kings to sort out their powerplay that hasn't been able to produce anything in four complete games going 0-25 in that time. On the plus side, the penalty kill has been looking pretty strong and although there were two against last night, the Spruce Kings have only allowed a total of four goals in their last 35 short handed situations.

Rosters ...

Powell River Kings

1 Michael Garteig (G 6'01" 185 11/5/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
2 Reid Campbell (D 5'10" 185 2/4/1989 Haines Junction, YK, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
3 Braden Pears (D 5'11" 160 5/22/1993 Victoria, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
6 Klay Kachur (D 6'02" 195 9/26/1991 Lanigan, ON, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
7 Brenden Forbes (D 5'10" 165 12/15/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
8 Josh Wyatt (F 6'02" 170 4/10/1991 Victoria, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
9 Matt Garbowsky (F 5'10" 170 7/26/1990 St. George, PQ, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
10 Andrew Pettitt (F 5''11" 180 10/22/1990 Whitehorse, YK, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
11 Steve Axford (F 5'10" 180 5/25/1991 Victoria, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
12 Jordan Grant (F 5'10" 180 8/17/1990 Ladysmith, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
14 Mitch Labreche (F 5'10" 175 5/3/1990 Nelson, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
15 Jason Yee (D 6'00" 175 7/17/1990 Sidney, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
16 Craig Eisenhut (F 5'11" 190 5/19/1990 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 04 PIMs)
17 Ben Schmidt (F 6'02" 195 3/17/1989 Campbell River, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
18 Brandon Formosa (F 6'00" 170 3/10/1993 Mission, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
20 Alex McDougall (D 6'00" 210 2/25/1990 Whitehorse, YK, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
21 Chad Niddery (F 5'10" 165 10/5/1990 Penticton, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
22 Mat Bodie (D 6'00" 160 3/7/1990 East St. Paul, MB, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
23 Carter Shinkaruk (F 5'10" 185 11/11/1991 Langley, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
24 Darcy Huisman (D 5'10" 175 3/15/1989 Smithers, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
25 Justin Dasilva (D 6'05" 215 5/22/1990 Cambridge, MA, USA) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
27 Robbie Bailey (F 6'03" 190 3/28/1989 North Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
35 Josh Watson (G 6'02" 180 9/7/1990 Lititz, SK, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
44 Cody Rainaldi (F 6'00" 185 2/15/1989 Hinton, AB, CAN) (GP 0 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6'01" 185 4/20/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 21 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 3 A 4 Pts 7 19 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 04 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 06 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 16 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 2 A 2 Pts 4 02 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 12 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 55 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 11 G 3 A 3 Pts 6 19 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 4 A 16 Pts 20 14 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 5 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 06 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 46 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 04 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 11 G 5 A 7 Pts 12 23 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 4 A 7 Pts 11 21 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 7 A 11 Pts 18 19 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Game 14 - vs Langley Chiefs

Game Notes ...
Game starts with a tilt between Jeremy Wiebe and Travis Irving just one second into the first period. Fight lasted for almost a minute with no clear winner as both traded some pretty good blows. Wiebe gave up a little bit on reach but was able to come in tight and get his shots in too.


Game Preview ...

The Spruce Kings are back home but this weekend won't be an easy one in the Castle as three teams that sit at or near the top in their divisions all come through over the course of the next four days. First up it is the Langley Chiefs who are second in the former Mainland Division and third in the Coastal Conference. For the Chiefs this is their first visit outside of their conference and in the seven road games so far in the season they are one game below .500 with 3 wins and 4 losses.

The Chiefs are led offensively by a former Western Hockey Leaguer that played for the team up the street; Marcus Watson has seven goals and and seven assists in a dozen games. Close behind the San Jose resident is Colten Beck, a nineteen year old with thirteen points. Rounding out the top three for the Chiefs is another twenty year old in Mac Roy who has registered ten points with five goals and five assists.

The Spruce Kings can counteract those numbers with even bigger ones led by off-season acquistion Brooks Robinson, the twenty year old has six goals to go along with his fourteen helpers for a total of twenty points. Close behind is his linemate and team captain, Sam Muchalla has seven goals and eleven assists for eighteen points in eleven games played. From there the defence proves that they can contribute offensively as well with Wes McLeod and Josh Pineiro having fourteen and twelve points respectively.

Zac Rasmussen is closing in the team leaders as well having scored four times and helped on six others since joining the Spruce Kings on September 18th. Brad Bourke is also been stepping it up and is coming off a point a game performance in the Spruce Kings recent road trip with a goal and a pair of assists. The goal scored in Trail was the game tying goal that wiped out a three goal differential to force overtime where Pineiro and Rasmussen were able to complete the improbable comeback.

The Spruce Kings are also starting to get a few healthy bodies back into the lineup as well, most noteably will be the return of Joe Morgan who missed out on the three game road trip last weekend. Don't expect to see Morgan back up on the top line however as Jeff Earnest has been battling hard to keep that spot and will start alongside Robinson and Muchalla for tonight's game against the Langley Chiefs.

Game time is 7:00pm with the game broadcast live on 93.1 CFIS-FM and also on the Spruce Kings website from the CFIS-FM Listen Live link.

Rosters ...

Langley Chiefs

2 Colten Hayes (D 6'02" 190 1/31/1990 Maple Ridge, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 06 PIMs)
4 Brad Bakken (D 6'03" 197 2/14/1989 Langley, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 12 PIMs)
5 Dennis Robertson (D 6'00" 195 5/24/1991 Fort St. John, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 5 Pts 5 27 PIMs)
6 Ryan Bakken (D 6'01" 180 4/8/1991 Langley, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 08 PIMs)
7 Matt Cronin (D 6'02" 185 5/21/1992 Langley, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 20 PIMs)
8 Tim Daly (D 5'11" 165 2/1/1992 Maple Ridge, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 3 A 5 Pts 8 16 PIMs)
9 Joe Walter (F 6'01" 190 5/29/1990 Langley, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 14 PIMs)
10 Brad Goss (F 6'01" 175 7/19/1989 Smithers, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 4 A 2 Pts 6 18 PIMs)
11 Mitch Pacey (F 6'03" 195 11/10/1991 Richmond, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 19 PIMs)
12 Mac Roy (F 5'11" 175 4/20/1989 Chilliwack, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 5 A 5 Pts 10 17 PIMs)
16 Kody Dhaliwal (F 5'11" 175 4/24/1991 Surrey, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 06 PIMs)
17 Max Fiedler (F 5'10" 190 4/7/1993 Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 5 G 2 A 0 Pts 2 02 PIMs)
18 Trevor Gerling (F 5'11" 180 6/30/1990 Seattle, WA, USA) (GP 12 G 1 A 6 Pts 7 08 PIMs)
19 Colton Beck (F 5'10" 175 6/10/1990 Langley, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 5 A 8 Pts 13 10 PIMs)
20 Jordan Sims (F 5'11" 190 12/28/1989 Fort Wayne, SK, CAN) (GP 10 G 1 A 1 Pts 2 06 PIMs)
22 Kevin Tuohy (D 5'07" 160 6/4/1991 Salisbury Mills, ON, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
23 Josh Myers (F 5'11" 180 9/26/1990 Colorado Springs, CO, USA) (GP 11 G 2 A 1 Pts 3 21 PIMs)
24 Marcus Watson (F 6'03" 198 1/17/1989 San Jose, CA, USA) (GP 12 G 7 A 7 Pts 14 08 PIMs)
25 Travis Irving (F 6'04" 190 4/9/1990 Maple Ridge, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 19 PIMs)
28 Brandon Thompson (F 5'11" 165 11/10/1990 North Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 4 A 5 Pts 9 16 PIMs)
33 Andrew Walsh (G 6'02" 185 12/15/1990 Dawson Creek, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 06 PIMs)
35 Matt Green (G 6'01" 175 10/8/1990 Buffalo, NY, USA) (GP 6 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 06 PIMs)
44 Drew Spencer (F 5'10" 185 3/1/1991 Surrey, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 02 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6'01" 185 4/20/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 21 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 3 A 4 Pts 7 19 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 04 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 06 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 16 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 2 A 2 Pts 4 02 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 12 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 55 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 11 G 3 A 3 Pts 6 19 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 4 A 16 Pts 20 14 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 5 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 06 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 46 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 13 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 04 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 11 G 5 A 7 Pts 12 23 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 4 A 7 Pts 11 21 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 7 A 11 Pts 18 19 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Looking Back at the Weekend Road Trip

When you only look at the scoresheet, sometimes the real successes are missed. Now in a three game road trip ... the longest road trip to date this season I might add ... the Spruce Kings came up with three points and were one shot away from potentially making it a five point weekend.

The bread in this particular road trip sandwich was a pair of teams that were and remain tied in the standings; the Westside Warriors and Salmon Arm Silverbacks both had to come from behind to post 4-3 victories over the Spruce Kings. The Warriors did it in overtime while the Salmon Arm Silverbacks finally cracked the league's best road penalty kill team with a pair early in the third and then held on for the same 4-3 final, but in regulation time.

The filling for that sandwich was a desparate team looking to add some points in the win column. The Trail Smoke Eaters are team that can play a physically demanding game and can be relentless. The Smokies seemed to be on the way to breaking out of their funk at the expense of the Spruce Kings building up a 3-0 lead in the first period. The visitors were able to regain their composure and starting working at getting shots through to the net.

Justin Fillion was the first to start chipping at the lead with a shot from the high right point that went through a pair of legs and then bounced off the five hole cushion and behind Garrett Beckwith. In the second period the Spruce Kings got their garbage goal off a goal mouth scramble and a delayed penalty call.

With Zac Rasmussen trying to setup a screen in front of Beckwith he was cross checked to the ice resulting in the delayed penalty. From their the puck went off the stick of Nick DeSousa putting it out into the slot where a sprawled out Rasmussen swung at it giving it to RJay Berra standing at the side of the net. Berra snapped the one-timer into the back of the net and the Spruce Kings found themselves back to within one.

Early in the third a pair of defenceman played key roles in tying up the game. The play started deep inside the Spruce Kings zone where Wes McLeod made the perfect play. Pinching off the forechecker, McLeod was able to tap the puck off the wall where it was picked up by Brad Bourke. The newest member of the Spruce Kings defensive core had been playing as a forward when Prince George traded for him from Merritt. Bourke moved the puck up the right side wall and at one time was thinking pass when the puck bobbled in the nuetral zone leaving Bourke no choice but to gain the blue line and fire a shot on net.

Proving once again that there is no such thing as a bad shot on goal, the puck fooled Beckwith and went in above his glove hand leavivng the score tied at three. From there both teams worked to get the go-ahead goal, but neither could turn on the red light and that included the first full five minute sudden death overtime period as well.

Just over a minute into the three-on-three second overtime period, the Trail Smoke Eaters one last chance for a shot on goal that Alex Wright was able to stop and turn aside. Again McLeod used his soon to be patented pinch play to hold off the forechecker and get the puck to Josh Pineiro. The twenty year old defenceman carried the puck up the right side wall and wrapped wide around behind the net where he spotted Rasmussen coming down the slot. With a quick pass, Raz wasted no time and in one continuous move was able to beat the Trail goaltender back to the short side of the net with a quick wrister.

The win was big as the team had to battle from being three goals down late in the first period after having spent over five hours on the bus getting to Trail. Excuses could have been plenty, but the players sucked it up and systematically went to work stealing away momentum from the home team and frustrating them on their chances. The Smoke Eaters had five powerplay opportunities but like they did the night before, the Spruce Kings didn't allow any odd man goals against.

After the game was another five hour bus ride back to the team's home base in Vernon. Perhaps the long road trip finally caught up with them or it was just a case that you can't stop every power play chance that the other team gets, but a third game with an identical 4-3 score would not come out in favour of the Spruce Kings.

Sunday afternoon was the wrap to the road trip with a matinee game in Salmon Arm. The Silverbacks were fairly well rested having only played one other game on the weekend in their own barn. The Spruce Kings surprised the Silverbacks not once but twice to take a 1-0 lead to the dressing room after the first period and then answer quickly back in the second period after Salmon Arm had tied the game.

While the Spruce Kings were up 2-1, they also ended up with a power play and were trying to tame that beast when they gave up a short handed breakaway chance to Brett Knowles. The Silverbacks forward went hard in on Alex Wright before getting caught by Nick DeSousa and stopped by Wright. The referee following in on the play ruled that there was enough interference to warrant a penalty shot.

Knowles pushed the puck into the Spruce Kings zone with only his right hand on the stick, when he got between the faceoff circles he made one last push that pulled Wright to his left leaving the right side of the net open. Knowles pulled the puck back to his forehand and fired along the ice looking to find the inside of the post. Wright kicked out with his right leg to make a spectacular save with the blade of his skate and then slapped the puck down the ice with his goal stick.

The save could only be characterized as one of the unbelievable kind, so much so that the Silverbacks general manager Rylan Ferster had to tap me in the shoulder to ask if that was even possible. One could have only hoped that the save would provide the adrenaline boost that the visitors needed, but unfortunately this is where things would start to come undone for Prince George.

Shortly after the penalty shot, the Spruce Kings found themselves unable to get the puck past the official in the nuetral zone and instead ended up getting sent back into their own zone. From there a mad scramble ensued that saw Alex Wright forced to make two big saves, but third shot towards the net tipped off a stick and went over the glove and gave the Silverbacks a two-two tie.

Before the end of the second period, Jeff Earnest was assessed a double minor that would carry over into the third period. While on the penalty kill another call would go against the Spruce Kings giving the Silverbacks a two man advantage that they would capitalize on. Still on the powerplay, Salmon Arm would get another two man advantage extending their power play into over five minutes of continuous pressure that resulted in a goal from an impossible angle.

Mark Zengerle just flipped one from behind the goal line towards Wright and the puck took a Salmon Arm bounce into the net. Now with a two goal lead, the Silverbacks just stayed on task trying to wear down their opponents. Prince George would get one goal back on a head's up play from Sam Muchalla who fed the puck to Pineiro in the high slot who snapped in his sixth of the season. A late push with Wright on the bench saw Muchalla run out of room and then have the puck gloved off his stick.

With a powerplay late in regulation, the Spruce Kings just couldn't get any more chances and as the puck was cleared out of the Silverbacks zone, Justin Fillion was assessed a minor that brought the puck back into the Spruce Kings zone with only 2.4 seconds remaining in the game. Wright would have to make one more save, but the damage had already been done and the Spruce Kings came up on the wrong end of this 4-3 score.

So that was what transpired on the score sheet, but take a closer look and you'll see some interesting things. How about only two powerplay goals against in sixteen opportunites ... that leaves the Spruce Kings with the league's best penalty kill numbers for visiting teams. Brad Bourke picked up a goal and two assists as he finds his grove in the Spruce Kings lineup. Saturday night's hero was Zac Rasmussen with the overtime winner and a key assist in the second period. And Sam Muchalla getting back onto the scoresheet in two of the three games including a pair of goals and an assist on Sunday.

There is a longer list of players that include Alex Wright who has been adding consistency between the pipes and coming up with huge saves. Josh Pineiro continues to add offensive numbers while patrolling the blue line. Kyle Manlow picked up his first BCHL point, a beautiful goal on the rush in Westside. RJay Berra has been playing on a line with Zac Rasmussen and Nick DeSousa and those three have been causing troubles for the opposition who now have two lines to watch out for. Of course the top line continues to be called upon to win key faceoff draws with Brooks Robinson taking most of them and Jeff Earnest adding a physical element to the top line's offensive threat.

Wes McLeod is another player that has been making huge contributions; unofficially with 15 points as a defenceman, Wes is waiting to find out whether his name will be called as a member of the Team Canada West roster for the World Junior A Challenge. Speaking with Rylan Ferster on Sunday, all I know for sure is that the announcement will come later this week. I also know that Ferster is extremely impressed with the abilities of Wes and spoke highly of him in our first intermission interview.

It all leaves me waiting for the next game and to see what they can do next. Well the next game is Thursday night against the Langley Chiefs and Friday night against the Powell River Kings. Following a Saturday night off, the Spruce Kings will then host the RBC Royal Bank Cup Champions as the Vernon Vipers meet the Spruce Kings for the first time on Sunday afternoon.

If you're looking for a good deal on tickets, may I suggest the Family Pack ... it offers a family of four tickets, pop and popcorn for everybody for just $35. Of course there are 15 and 5 game punchcards as well as single tickets. Give the Spruce Kings office a call at 250.564.1747 to get more details.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Game 13 - at Salmon Arm Silverbacks

Game Preview ...
The Prince George Spruce Kings wrap up their first longest road trip of the season with a matinee game today in Salmon Arm. The three game road trip has featured two overtime games that ended with identical 4-3 scores, the first in favour of the other team and the second for Prince George. The Silverbacks are coming off a 3-1 victory over the visiting Alberni Valley Bulldogs.

The talk going in to this game centres around the former Silverback now Spruce King agitator, Zac Rasmussen. Acquired on September 18th, Rasmussen has been proving to be a huge asset for Prince George and last night capped that off with the overtime winner at 1:22 of the second overtime frame. Rasmussen is a twenty year old that is loving it in Prince George and has his adrenaline at an all-time high for this game tonight.

Rosters ...

Salmon Arm Silverbacks

4 Mike Puddifant (D 6'00" 192 6/27/1991 Salmon Arm, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 1 A 1 Pts 2 34 PIMs)
5 Jayson Reardon (D 6'01" 200 6/24/1990 Lumby, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 37 PIMs)
8 Jagger Dirk (D 6'00" 170 5/4/1993 Penticton, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 3 A 5 Pts 8 12 PIMs)
9 Christopher Hoe (F 6'00" 175 1/30/1990 Burnaby, BC, CAN) (GP 4 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 02 PIMs)
10 Greg Noyes (D 6'01" 174 5/26/1990 Lucan, ON, CAN) (GP 11 G 4 A 7 Pts 11 14 PIMs)
11 Charlie Vasaturo (D 6'03" 202 12/7/1990 Sewell, NJ, USA) (GP 11 G 0 A 4 Pts 4 14 PIMs)
12 Tyler Gubb (F 6'02" 210 6/11/1989 Stouffville, ON, CAN) (GP 11 G 5 A 8 Pts 13 18 PIMs)
14 Justin Krabben (D 6'04" 182 6/30/1991 Rocky Mtn. House, AB, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
15 Devon Roeszler (F 6'00" 175 4/12/1990 Chatham, ON, CAN) (GP 11 G 1 A 2 Pts 3 08 PIMs)
16 Josh Manson (F 6'03" 190 10/7/1991 Prince Albert, SK, CAN) (GP 6 G 1 A 1 Pts 2 09 PIMs)
17 Brett Knowles (F 5'11" 180 4/25/1991 Vanderhoof, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 12 PIMs)
18 Rick Soo (F 5'11" 177 3/15/1991 Tokyo, , JPN) (GP 5 G 1 A 1 Pts 2 00 PIMs)
19 David Killip (F 5'10" 155 3/31/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 10 A 6 Pts 16 20 PIMs)
20 Devin Gannon (F 6'00" 185 10/31/1991 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 2 A 1 Pts 3 17 PIMs)
22 Bobby Lipsett (F 6'00" 197 3/27/1989 Salmon Arm, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 3 Pts 3 20 PIMs)
28 Josh Monk (D 5'11" 190 4/5/1992 Langley, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 15 PIMs)
29 Kurt Williams (G 5'10" 167 11/15/1991 Faribault, MN, USA) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)
41 Tony Ierfino (G 6'01" 190 2/11/1989 Montreal, PQ, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 04 PIMs)
88 Mark Zengerle (F 5'11" 178 5/12/1989 Rochester, NY, USA) (GP 11 G 9 A 18 Pts 27 06 PIMs)
91 Travis Statchuk (F 5'10" 175 3/31/1990 Wadena, SK, CAN) (GP 10 G 5 A 12 Pts 17 13 PIMs)
94 Corey Chakeen (F 5'11" 182 7/18/1989 Clarendon Hills, IL, USA) (GP 11 G 7 A 4 Pts 11 12 PIMs)
98 Matt Cassidy (F 5'10" 180 2/23/1990 London, ON, CAN) (GP 11 G 1 A 1 Pts 2 00 PIMs)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6'01" 185 4/20/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 00 PIMs)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 21 PIMs)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 04 PIMs)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 3 A 3 Pts 6 15 PIMs)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 04 PIMs)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 06 PIMs)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 09 PIMs)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 2 A 1 Pts 3 02 PIMs)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 11 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 04 PIMs)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 50 PIMs)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 10 G 3 A 1 Pts 4 15 PIMs)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 4 A 15 Pts 19 14 PIMs)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 5 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 10 PIMs)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 06 PIMs)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 7 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 02 PIMs)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 46 PIMs)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 3 A 6 Pts 9 04 PIMs)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 10 G 4 A 6 Pts 10 23 PIMs)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 4 A 7 Pts 11 13 PIMs)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 19 PIMs)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 00 PIMs)

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Game 12 - at Trail Smoke Eaters

Game Preview ...

The Spruce Kings find themselves in Trail tonight to take on the Smoke Eaters as part of their three game road trip that wraps up Sunday afternoon in Salmon Arm. This will be the first meeting of the season between the Smoke Eaters and the Spruce Kings, leaving only three more including two back in Prince George. Both teams will be looking for wins with both teams coming off one goal losses last night. The Spruce Kings were able to take one point last night in an overtime decision whereas the Smoke Eaters lost in regulation time.

On Friday night the Spruce Kings opened their three game road trip with a quick goal less than four minutes into the game. Sam Muchalla tipped a hard shot by newly acquired Brad Bourke past Kevin Jebson, the Warriors starting goaltender. Prince George held onto three one goal leads through regulation; unfortunately, the only time that Westside led the game was when they scored their game winner 1:11 into the overtime period.

In the Cominco Arena, the Trail Smoke Eaters scored twice in a span of nine seconds to take a 2-1 lead on the visiting the Cowichan Valley Capitals. The home team was unable to hold onto their lead giving up the tying goal just past the midway mark of the game. The Capitals restored their one goal lead in the first minute of the third period and then held the Smoke Eaters off the rest of the way to take the two points away from Trail.

The Smoke Eaters are likely to be a nasty bunch and the Spruce Kings won't be pushovers either as both teams don't like their current records. For the Spruce Kings it is slightly better as they have been playing .500 hockey through their last nine outings. The Trail Smoke Eaters are a little below that with only two wins in their first twelve games to start the season. The Smokies last win came against the Burnaby Express one week ago in Trail.

Roster moves have been a part of the shakeup for both squads with the Spruce Kings replacing five players from the opening weekend and the Smoke Eaters making deals that have seen four players come in. Feeling more like a library book, Kiefer Smiley finds himself back in the Interior Conference after being loaned out again by the Cowichan Valley Capitals. Last year it was the Quesnel Millionaires that put Smiley to work for them with the loss of Jeff Malcolm to an injury. This time it isn't so much an injury as much as it is the lack of numbers by their off-season acquisition Devon Murtaugh from the Westside Warriors.

Earlier in the season Marc-Antoine Chaput was acquired from the Surrey Eagles and just this weekend the Smoke Eaters picked up defenceman Mitch Kaufmann and Josh McEwan a forward who is a cousin to Spruce Kings rookie defencman, Clayton McEwan. McEwan picked up two minors and a fighting major in his first appearance with his new team. Kaufmann didn't figure on the score sheet in his first game with the Smoke Eaters.

Recent changes for the Spruce Kings included a trade that saw Andrew Pickering dealt to the Merritt Centennials for a twenty year defencman. Brad Bourke picked up his first point as a member of the Spruce Kings off a hard shot from the right point that Sam Muchalla tipped in to opening the scoring against Westside. Bourke has been looking to improve his game steadily and was happy with the first half performance but wishes he could have done more especially in the final minutes of the third period.

With the Spruce Kings on a powerplay to end regulation and roll over into an extra frame if necessary, Ed Dempsey put Bourke out on the right point to try and duplicate his first period shot. Unfortunately for Bourke and the Spruce Kings, the best shot from just inside the blue line was blocked by the wrist of Grayson Downing and then a second attempt rattled off the boot of Downing's skate.

Although they didn't get any power play goals, the Spruce Kings also prevented the Westside Warriors from getting any which is a huge feat that not many other teams can brag about. The Spruce Kings with their road best penalty kill on the road held the league's best home power play unit to nothing more than a few shots on five attempts.

The Spruce Kings will be looking to build on their penalty kill success as well as the successes they had with the top two lines. Sam Muchalla, Brooks Robinson and Jeff Earnest set the tempo early and tried to keep the heat on the Warriors all night. After the game the Westside Warriors broadcaster asked me if that top line also drove the bus and suggested that they put up nearly forty minutes of ice time each.

Game time tonight is 7:30pm from the Cominco Arena in Trail with the game audio available from 93.1 CFIS-FM and also from the Spruce Kings website, just click on the CFIS-FM Listen Live link at any time. Pregame show will get underway at 7:15pm with player and coaches interviews followed by the call of the game with yours truly. You can text me or email me and I will try and get to your message through the course of the game.

Rosters ...

Trail Smoke Eaters

1 Kiefer Smiley (G 5'11" 180 2/23/1990 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 00)
2 Graeme Strukoff (D 5'11" 185 3/30/1991 Chilliwack, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 Pim 27)
3 Ben Matthews (D 6''03" 197 3/23/1991 Chugiak, AK, USA) (GP 9 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 Pim 13)
4 Wade Bennett (D 5'08" 170 4/22/1990 Gardena, CA, USA) (GP 9 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 Pim 04)
5 David Piccard (D 6'00" 200 6/7/1990 Anchorage, AK, USA) (GP 9 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 04)
6 Eric Walker (D 6'01" 187 2/23/1993 Castlegar, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 0 A 3 Pts 3 Pim 14)
7 Steve Koshey (D 5'08" 175 3/27/1991 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 2 A 4 Pts 6 Pim 04)
8 Tommy Rizzardo (D 6'00" 205 2/25/1990 Dallas, TX, USA) (GP 4 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 Pim 04)
9 Travis St. Denis (F 5'07" 155 9/9/1992 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 6 A 5 Pts 11 Pim 14)
10 Darnell Dyck (F 6'02" 185 4/18/1991 Chilliwack, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 2 A 1 Pts 3 Pim 09)
11 Sam Mellor (F 5'10" 175 11/21/1992 Cranbrook, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 6 A 3 Pts 9 Pim 02)
14 Scott Jacklin (F 5'11" 178 3/9/1990 Kimberley, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 4 A 4 Pts 8 Pim 13)
16 Matt Wilkins (F 5'11" 175 1/26/1991 Kimberley, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 9 Pts 9 Pim 10)
17 Nick Sandor (F 6'00" 187 2/15/1989 Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 0 A 10 Pts 10 Pim 02)
18 Josh McEwan (F 5'10" 175 4/7/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 09)
20 Sean Nugent (F 6'02" 210 11/8/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 Pim 24)
21 Justin Brown (F 5'11" 180 10/12/1991 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 1 A 3 Pts 4 Pim 09)
22 Thomas Abenante (F 5'09" 160 3/16/1990 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 00)
23 Tye Lewis (F 5'10" 185 6/24/1989 Vancouver, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 7 A 10 Pts 17 Pim 08)
24 Marc-Antoine Chaput (D 5'10" 170 12/11/1991 Masouche, PQ, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 Pim 14)
25 Paul Mailey (F 5'09" 165 7/28/1990 Trail, BC, CAN) (GP 12 G 2 A 1 Pts 3 Pim 04)
26 Mitch Kaufmann (D 6'00" 192 8/9/1991 Red Deer, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 00)
35 Garrett Beckwith (G 6'00" 180 1/4/1990 Parsipany, NJ, USA) (GP 8 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 00)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6'01" 185 4/20/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 Pim 00)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 5 A 8 Pts 13 Pim 21)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 Pim 04)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 2 A 3 Pts 5 Pim 15)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 2 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 04)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 06)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 09)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 2 A 1 Pts 3 Pim 00)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway, AB, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 02)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta, CA, USA) (GP 10 G 1 A 0 Pts 1 Pim 02)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake, BC, CAN) (GP 8 G 0 A 2 Pts 2 Pim 45)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier, AK, USA) (GP 9 G 3 A 1 Pts 4 Pim 13)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 4 A 15 Pts 19 Pim 14)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank, BC, CAN) (GP 5 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 Pim 10)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 Pim 06)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo, BC, CAN) (GP 6 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 02)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 02)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 0 A 1 Pts 1 Pim 39)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 11 G 2 A 5 Pts 7 Pim 04)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach, CA, USA) (GP 9 G 4 A 5 Pts 9 Pim 23)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops, BC, CAN) (GP 10 G 3 A 5 Pts 8 Pim 13)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George, BC, CAN) (GP 9 G 5 A 10 Pts 15 Pim 19)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster, BC, CAN) (GP 1 G 0 A 0 Pts 0 Pim 00)

Friday, October 9, 2009

Game 11 - at Westside Warriors

Game Preview ...
The Spruce Kings start a three game in three day road trip with their first stop in Westside to meet the Warriors. The road trip will also include stops in Trail and Salmon Arm, but the Spruce Kings know they have to pay attention to their first opponent. In the season opener, the Warriors came into the Coliseum and handed the Spruce Kings an 8-3 loss. The game saw a handful of fights that are sure to have left memories that a month hasn't had a chance to fully erase yet.

The Spruce Kings are more interested in building on their recent successes and going into the Warrior's Den and leaving with a pair of points. Just four points back of the Warriors, the Spruce Kings have a chance to use all three of their games this weekend to close the gap and catch the front runners in the Interior Division. Both the Westside Warriors and the Salmon Arm Silverbacks are tied with twelve points in third place behind the Penticton Vees (20 pts) and the Vernon Vipers (16 pts). The past two BCHL Champions are battling each other tonight while the Salmon Arm Silverbacks sit idol waiting for the Spruce Kings on Sunday afternoon.

Rosters ...

Westside Warriors

2 Matthew Maher (D 6'02" 195 4/11/1990 Avon)
3 Caylen Walls (D 6'01" 200 11/7/1991 Lyalta)
4 Scott MacDonald (F 6'00" 180 10/7/1991 Vancouver)
5 Jason Nash (D 5'11" 180 3/29/1991 Oxnard)
7 Michael Quinn (D 6'00" 175 11/20/1990 Surrey)
8 Joel Woznikoski (D 6'04" 185 3/22/1989 Surrey)
9 Cole Wilson (F 6'01" 195 6/19/1990 White Rock)
10 Quinn Gould (F 6'02" 190 5/2/1990 Fort McMurray)
11 Justin Bertow (F 6'02" 180 4/18/1991 Saskatoon)
14 Kyle Singleton (F 6'01" 180 8/30/1990 Beaverton)
16 Cam Reid (F 6'02" 183 8/25/1991 Delta)
18 Colton Sissons (F 6'00" 173 11/5/1993 North Vancouver)
19 Dru Morrison (F 5'09" 165 5/10/1992 Russell)
20 Spencer Humphries (D 6'02" 205 4/30/1992 Delta)
22 Trevor Bailey (F 5'08" 170 3/21/1989 Winfield)
23 Alex Grieve (F 6'00" 190 5/18/1990 Calgary)
24 Brendan Ellis (D 6'02" 206 1/5/1989 Kelowna)
25 Max French (F 5'08" 160 10/7/1992 Kelowna)
26 Tyler Krause (F 5'11" 165 9/15/1991 Kelowna)
27 Izaak Berglund (D 6'00" 200 2/27/1991 Little Falls)
28 Grayson Downing (F 5'11" 170 4/18/1992 Abbotsford)
30 Cam Gorchynski (G 6'02" 175 12/4/1992 Chilliwack)
33 Kevin Jebson (G 5'11" 205 4/11/1989 Surrey)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6'01" 185 4/20/1990 Prince George)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990 Kamloops)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991 Kelowna)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990 Prince George)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991 Prince George)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990 Sicamous)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990 Prince George)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990 Fraser Lake)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989 Onoway)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991 Murrieta)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991 Williams Lake)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991 Whittier)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989 Duncan)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989 Westbank)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989 Kitimat)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992 Nanaimo)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990 Prince George)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991 Vernon)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990 Prince George)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989 Huntington Beach)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989 Kamloops)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990 Prince George)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990 New Westminster)

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Game 10 - vs Quesnel Millionaires

Rosters

Quesnel Millionaires

4 Justin Sotkowy (D 5'11" 175 8/30/1990)
5 Sam Higgins (D 5'10" 165 3/23/1990)
6 Spencer Graboski (F 6'02" 170 1/6/1993)
7 Matthew Herskovitz (D 6'02" 200 12/3/1989)
9 Brett Howe (F 5'11" 185 5/22/1990)
10 Lucas Ford (F 5'11" 195 6/18/1991)
12 Huck Saunders (F 6'01" 190 4/9/1990)
14 Skyler Smutek (D 6'00" 175 5/7/1990)
16 Trevor Hertz (F 6'00" 189 10/11/1989)
17 Taylor Holst (F 6'01" 185 4/24/1989)
18 Erik Hansen (F 5'11" 175 10/10/1989)
19 Breyden DeCock (F 5'09" 176 3/1/1990)
20 Darick Ste-Marie (F 5'11" 195 9/19/1989)
21 Tyler French (F 5'07" 165 9/15/1990)
22 Mitch Galbraith (F 6'02" 183 4/21/1990)
24 Brandon Watson (F 5'11" 173 2/24/1992)
25 Rylan Stanyer (D 6'02" 210 4/19/1990)
26 Chris Kerr (F 6'00" 175 10/22/1992)
27 Eliot Raibl (D 5'11" 184 3/28/1989)
28 Tyler Billon (D 6'02" 190 7/18/1992)
29 James Werner (F 5'10" 185 1/2/1990)
31 Kirby Halcrow (G 6'02" 218 3/13/1991)
35 Luke Siemens (G 5'11" 165 11/6/1992)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6'01" 185 4/20/1990)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990)
10 Brad Bourke (D 6'01" 175 4/21/1989)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991)
12 Joe Becker (F 5' 10" 175 1/29/1990)
14 Jordan Duncan (F 5'09" 180 1/28/1992)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'00" 200 11/15/1989)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990)

Monday, October 5, 2009

Weekend Moves

In two separate deals with the same team, the Spruce Kings added a couple of D-men from the Centennials in exchange for Andrew Pickering and some future considerations. The short version is Tyler Miller for futures and Brad Bourke for Pickering. Press releases posted on the Spruce Kings website.

Pleasant Surprise

Sometimes someone shows you something you would not have quite expected to see from them creating a pleasant surprise and leaving you wanting more. On Saturday night, amongst a disappointing loss came a bright light from an unexpected source. This particular player is a bit of an unknown being an eighteen year old rookie in the BCHL. More apt to drop the gloves then even try to contribute offensively - Jeremy Wiebe managed to get no less than six shots on goal.

In the previous meeting between the Spruce Kings and the Williams Lake Timberwolves, Wiebe left the rink wearing the hard hat for his efforts in that game. When I thought back to what transpired on Wednesday night, all I could remember was his two fights including one where he was jumped from behind and was still able to come back and win that one. In fact, I don't think I've seen Wiebe fare any less than a draw with any opponent.

Perhaps on Saturday night that was the thought when he met with his fourth different opponent from the Timberwolves in the team's three meetings. With tilts against Calvin Johnson (September 25, 4:30 of the second period), Anthony DeLong (September 30, 7:41 of the second period) and Keenan Bailey (September 30, 14:55 of the third period), newly acquired Casey Fratkin thought he would have a go with Wiebe. The fight started out fine for Fratkin, but didn't end that way. After getting the first two shots in, Fratkin found himself at the wrong end of a pair of rights and a couple of lefts that sent the twenty year old to the dressing room for the rest of the first period.

With the fighting major and being on a line reserved more for the supporting cast, I didn't see Wiebe on the ice again until the second period. That appearance turned into a scoring opportunity for the Spruce Kings as Wiebe found himself on a two-on-one breakaway with defenceman Justin Fillion. Last year's rookie of the year elected to pass to Wiebe who was able to connect on the one-timer for a quality shot on goal that left the goaltender no option but to cover up and force a face off.

I thought that would be Jeremy's one and only shot of the game and at the time remember making the comment on the broadcast that he didn't have the softest hands in the league but was starting to be known more for his rock hard hands. A few shifts later Jeremy had another scoring chance as he was left alone in the faceoff circle and directed a shot towards the net that was knocked down by a defenceman.

Head coach, Ed Dempsey must have saw something in those two shifts because the rookie found himself moved up to work with a new pairing and was even given some powerplay time. In the third period, Jeremy Wiebe ended up getting a lot more ice time and ended the game with a total of six shots on goal. That was good enough for me to recognize him as the game's third star on the broadcast, even if the lack of production on the scoresheet prevented the star selection committee from choosing him in Williams Lake.

On Tuesday night be sure to watch for number 22 and see if you don't see what I have been seeing develop over the course of the past few games. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you of one other thing that was different about Jeremy Wiebe on Saturday night ... he was wearing a newer light weight jersey as he was wearing the jersey with only one number 2 on it. I wonder now if he will want to go with the single two for the rest of the season.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Game 9 - at Williams Lake Timberwolves

Game Preview ...
This is the third time in four games that the Spruce Kings will have the Williams Lake Timberwolves as opponents and it is the second meeting between the two in enemy territory. On Wednesday night the Spruce Kings came away with a 6-0 shutout victory, but it wasn't easy as the Timberwolves played a physically demanding game that resulted in a few fighting majors and more.

Both Luke Hannas and Jeremy Wiebe were involved in two fights through the course of a game that resulted in game misconducts. For Hannas, he also drew a match penalty that resulted in a three game suspension of which tonight's game is the second game the Williams Lake resident will sit out. Despite the penalty tally on Wednesday night, the feeling is that tonight's game will be tamer (at least to start) as both teams are looking to pick up a win twenty four hours after a loss.

The Timberwolves were in Quesnel last night where they dropped their sixth consecutive loss on the young seasaon while the Spruce Kings saw their chances to hit the .500 mark evaporate in the third period. In the pre-game interview Ed Dempsey expressed concern that the team may have allowed the Surrey Eagles to steal those two points with a few missed assignments that resulted in "easy goals." Perhaps that was the catalyst for change as the Spruce Kings acquired a local hockey product in Tyler Miller.

With both BCHL and WHL experience, Miller could be a much needed ingredient in the lineup and especially the blueline. Along with that experience, Miller adds some size at 6' 03" and 210 pounds ... and only 18 years old. Talking with Tyler before the game he told me that he was very excited to get back into the game and was looking to make contributions with smart defensive play.

Game audio is on 93.1 CFIS-FM and also from the CFIS-FM Listen Live link on the Spruce Kings website.

Rosters ...

Williams Lake Timberwolves

1 Kirk Croswell (G 5'11" 175 9/23/1990)
2 Trevor Fitzgerald (F 5'11" 185 12/18/1992)
3 Casey Fratkin (F 5'10" 165 6/5/1989)
4 Darren Tarasoff (D 6'01" 195 3/10/1990)
5 Colin Wandfluh (D 5'11" 180 8/8/1990)
6 Riley Sweeney (D 5'11" 185 8/31/1992)
7 Calvin Johnson (F 5'10" 165 5/28/1992)
8 Dane Rupert (F 5'08" 170 4/16/1991)
9 Josh MacDonald (F 6'00" 180 5/6/1990)
11 Ryan Stanimir (F 6'00" 175 3/4/1990)
13 Laine Keyes (F 5'09" 170 4/13/1990)
14 Kyle Leung (F 5'07" 165 3/5/1990)
15 Quinn Gallacher (F 6'02" 205 8/5/1991)
16 Anthony DeLong (F 6'00" 165 2/8/1991)
18 Justin Hogan (F 5'11" 185 8/28/1990)
19 Keagan Little (F 6'00" 170 10/3/1989)
21 Keenan Bailey (F 6'00" 175 2/10/1991)
22 Justin Bardarson (F 5'10" 190 6/6/1990)
23 Trent Murdoch (F 5'11" 155 7/31/1991)
24 Jake Harcoff (D 5'10" 185 10/17/1990)
26 Josh Garneau (D 5'09" 175 5/4/1991)
27 Jake Diehl (F 6'02" 195 7/24/1989)
28 Kyle Beaulieu (D 6'03" 195 1/16/1991)
55 Evan Dauenhauer (G 5'11" 175 12/19/1989)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6'01" 185 4/20/1990)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6'02" 185 9/30/1990)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6'00" 180 11/26/1991)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5'11" 175 4/23/1990)
6 Tyler Miller (D 6'03" 210 1/24/1991)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6'01" 180 12/19/1990
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6'01" 205 2/1/1990)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6'00" 180 11/13/1990)
10 Andrew Pickering (F 5'10" 175 6/2/1989)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5'10" 165 6/28/1991)
12 Joe Becker (F 5'10" 180 1/29/1990)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6'02" 185 9/9/1991)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5'10" 175 2/8/1991)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5'11" 180 8/18/1989)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6'01" 200 11/15/1989)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5'08" 180 4/7/1989)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5'10" 160 5/26/1992)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6'00" 175 4/5/1990)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6'00" 180 7/20/1991)
23 RJay Berra (F 6'00" 180 7/26/1990)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5'10" 211 8/25/1989)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5'09" 178 5/8/1989)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5'08" 150 8/14/1990)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5'10" 170 7/21/1990)

Officials

Ref - Kris Hartley
Line - Mike Boisvert
Line - Ryan Dawson

Friday, October 2, 2009

Game 8 - vs Surrey Eagles

Game Preview ...
The Spruce Kings will meet their first Coastal Division opponents tonight as the Surrey Eagles start a three game in three night Northern road trip. The Spruce Kings are coming off of back-to-back wins over the Williams Lake Timberwolves and will be looking to use that as momentum tonight and clip the wings of the Eagles. Surrey has been on a .500 pace since the start of the season and is coming off an overtime win, overtime loss and regulation time loss from last weekend.

Spruce Kings have been getting a few bodies back into the lineup and tonight Nick DeSousa will make his return after missing out on the last four games. On Wednesday night Stewart Lambert made his way back into the lineup and will be looked to help out as the home team will still be short a total of four players. Jonathan Gibson is a new addition to the IR list while Luke Hannas will start his three game suspension tonight after being assessed with a match penalty in Williams Lake on Wednesday night.

Rosters ...

Surrey Eagles

1 Paul Barclay (G 5' 11" 185 6/5/1989)
3 Wesley Vannieuwenhuizen (D 6' 03" 205 4/20/1992)
4 Jeff Regier (D 6' 01" 195 1/3/1991)
5 Paul Levarsky (D 6' 01" 205 1/16/1989)
6 Derek Henderson (D 5' 11" 188 2/9/1990)
7 Doug Marshall (D 6' 02" 200 2/16/1990)
10 Morgan Bonner (F 5' 10" 185 3/23/1991)
11 Jamus Lane (F 6' 01" 195 2/8/1992)
13 Michael Krgovich (F 6' 00" 180 1/29/1990)
14 Jason Grecica (F 6' 02" 205 5/5/1990)
16 Manraj Hayer (F 5' 09" 155 1/20/1993)
17 Bradley McGowan (F 5' 11" 175 4/9/1990)
20 Richard Vanderhoek (F 5' 10" 180 1/20/1991)
21 Erik Cooper (F 5' 10" 172 10/30/1991)
22 Jesse Pauls (D 5' 10" 160 2/10/1992)
24 Neil Blunden (D 5' 11" 176 2/5/1990)
27 Cole Gelley (D 6' 00" 180 1/14/1991)
28 Clayton Chessa (F 5' 10" 185 4/22/1991)
29 Vinny Lessard (G 6' 01" 185 5/11/1990)
66 Grant Toulmin (F 6' 05" 210 3/2/1989)
86 Tyler Morley (F 5' 08" 160 12/19/1991)
89 Andrew Wallace (F 5' 10" 180 4/27/1989)
96 Chris Santiago (F 5' 11" 180 9/22/1989)


Prince George Spruce Kings

1 Alex Wright (G 6' 01" 185 4/20/1990)
3 Wes McLeod (D 6' 02" 185 9/30/1990)
4 Clayton McEwan (D 6' 00" 180 11/26/1991)
5 Justin Fillion (D 5' 11" 175 4/23/1990)
7 Jesse Scrimbit (D 6' 01" 180 12/19/1990)
8 Jonathan Gibson (D 6' 01" 205 2/1/1990)
9 Nick DeSousa (F 6' 00" 180 11/13/1990)
10 Andrew Pickering (F 5' 10" 175 6/2/1989)
11 Kyle Manlow (F 5' 10" 165 6/28/1991)
12 Joe Becker (F 5' 10" 180 1/29/1990)
15 Luke Hannas (F 6' 02" 185 9/9/1991)
16 Jeff Earnest (F 5' 10" 175 2/8/1991)
17 Brooks Robinson (F 5' 11" 180 8/18/1989)
18 Colten Derickson (F 6' 00" 200 11/15/1989)
19 Joe Morgan (F 5' 08" 180 4/7/1989)
20 Jeff Datoff (D 5' 10" 160 5/26/1992)
21 Stewart Lambert (F 6' 00" 175 4/5/1990)
22 Jeremy Wiebe (F 6' 00" 180 7/20/1991)
23 RJay Berra (F 6' 00" 180 7/26/1990)
24 Josh Pineiro (D 5' 10" 211 8/25/1989)
25 Zac Rasmussen (F 5' 09" 178 5/8/1989)
26 Sam Muchalla (F 5' 08" 150 8/14/1990)
35 Kyle Nielsen (G 5' 10" 170 7/21/1990)

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Source of Contributions

Looking at the score sheets over the past couple of games it's not hard to see who is contributing. The top line of Sam Muchalla, Brooks Robinson and Joe Morgan have combined for a total of 21 points in three games; add in Wes McLeod and there's another eight points. In fact most of those goals have come from the veteran defenceman's stick who has notched five goals in those three games.

Robinson is the leader as far as being the setup man goes and it all starts in the faceoff circle for the twenty year old centreman. Eight of his nine points are assists coming from the hard work of winning and controlling the draw. Joe Morgan may not like the idea that he doesn't have a goal to show for his hard work on the top line, but being in the right place at the right time to find the right guy has paid off with four helpers.

Perhaps the biggest breakout over the past couple of games is that of Sam Muchalla who has lit the lamp in breathtaking fashion with highlight reel goals. After getting off to an admittedly slow start on the opening weekend that resulted in missing two more games, the Spruce Kings captain has been the biggest contributor with his nine points including one game winning goal. That particular goal showed off the heads up play making ability of another veteran from the blue line, as Josh Pineiro feathered a perfect bank shot to spring Muchalla on an uncontested breakaway.

That goal was scored on Friday in front of the home town fans, but for those listening to the game in Williams Lake on Wednesday night they also picked up on the American born player registering a Gordie Howe hattrick. Pineiro was probably the happiest guy on the night and didn't need any help identifying the significance of such a feat. Pineiro's goal is the only short handed goal scored by the team so far and full credit has to go to Zac Rasmussen and Joe Morgan.

Rasmussen found the puck in his feet along the wall in front of his own bench and turned on the rockets with a move that caused one Timberwolves defenceman to blow a tire creating a two on one with Pineiro and Joe Morgan trailing on the play. Rasmussen dropped the puck to Morgan who looked to be teeing up a howitzer but instead slipped a nice pass through the legs of the defenceman and onto Pineiro's stick. The play was so perfect that Pineiro had to admit that he never realized he had scored until he got mobbed by his team mates.

One other player that has helped to lead his team to a three victories in four games and back-to-back wins over the Williams Lake Timberwolves is Alex Wright. The Prince George minor hockey product played the role of backup to Kevin Genoe last year. This year after some preseason seasoning with the Spokane Chiefs, Wright is looking at laying claim to the starter's role ... something he is well on his way to doing. Already in the top five among Spruce Kings netminders for shutouts, goals against average and save percentage, Wright is looking to find his place in the record book for all time wins as well.

Again those are hard numbers that can be crunched at any time by anybody, what isn't nearly as noticeable is the contributions of the unsung heros. Following the game in Williams Lake, Jeremy Wiebe came out of the dressing room wearing the Spruce Kings hard hat for his efforts in the game. If you don't think that is an honour, I beg to differ especially after seeing Jeremy still wearing his hard hat following a Thursday skate. Wiebe found himself involved in two fights Wednesday night and in all had to answer the call against three different Timberwolves over the two games ... that call was answered successfully each and everytime I might add.

Now all of these players and the long list of players not mentioned here comes the task of maintaining their momentum and reaching that all important .500 mark. The Spruce Kings will head into a pair of weekend games against the Surrey Eagles (Friday) and the Williams Lake Timberwolves (Saturday) with a chance to register more wins than losses on the season.

Currently sitting with three wins and four losses, the Spruce Kings know they control their own fate and will be ready for the challenge of their first Coastal Division opponent on Friday night. Game time at the Coliseum is 7:00pm with the game available on 93.1 CFIS-FM and also online from the Spruce Kings website as well as the BCHL Fanzone for those that won't be able to attend in person.