January 24th Preview - @ Powell River

The Warriors will take on the Powell River Kings one week after defeating them 6-4 on home ice.

In that game, the Warriors got out to a 2-0 lead in the first period, then struggled early in the 2nd as Powell River scored 3 straight goals in 3:32 to take the 3-2 lead. It seemed that Rylan Ferster was about to call a time-out but decided against it.

Just 12 seconds after it became 3-2, Liam Blackburn was able to tie it up and right the ship so to speak. Andrew Johnson added a power-play marker before the end of the period and the Warriors lead heading to the 3rd.

They would go on to a 6-3 lead and it was just a late PP goal from the Kings that made it 6-4. That win a week ago helped the Warriors bounce back from two straight losses, and they'll look to do that again tonight at the Hap Parker Arena.

The projected starter in goal tonight for the Warriors is AP Stephen Heslop from the Princeton Posse. Cole Woodliffe of the Summerland Steam will also draw into the lineup as the Warriors will be without Bennett Huber and Brett Mennear.

Tonight's Stats:

Powell River Kings - 21-16-0-8 2nd in Island Division (50 Pts) HOME - 13-4-0-3 AWAY - 8-12-0-5 Top Scorer Jarid Lukosevicius (95) F (28 G, 31 A) GF - 162 GA - 165 PP - 4th - 25.4% (51 for 201) PK - 14th - 74.2% (144 for 194) Home PP - 2nd - 28.9% Home PK - 13th - 74.1%	West Kelowna – 22-18-0-5 4th in Interior Division (49 Pts) HOME – 12-9-0-1 ROAD – 10-9-0-4 Top Scorer Liam Blackburn (96) F (19 G, 44 A) GF – 159 GA – 170 PP – 11th - 22.1% (48 for 217) PK – 4th - 79.6% (144 for 181) Road PP - 5th - 23.5% Road PK - 7th - 77.5%
Head-to-Head Lifetime – West Kelowna is 7-4-1-2 All-time vs. Powell River 2013/2014 Head to Head – West Kelowna went 1-0-0-1 vs. Powell River  2014/2015 Head to Head - West Kelowna defeated Powell River 6-4 at Royal Lepage Place on Saturday January 17th.  West Kelowna is 4-2-0-1 at the Hap Parker Arena in their existence, but only has 1 win in the last 4 seasons (February 16th 2013)

Jan 23rd Recap

The West Kelowna Warriors began their island swing with a 5-1 loss to Alberni Valley on Friday night at the Alberni Valley Multiplex.

The Bulldogs got 3 first period goals on shots and seemed to sail from there although the Warriors got better as the game progressed firing 28 shots in the last 2 periods, but Billy Christopoulos stood tall.

Those goals in the first were created by Bulldogs pressure, as Mitch Makin buried his own rebound for the 1-0 lead. It was a bang bang play but Makin was able to come off the half-wall for the opportunities.

The 2nd goal looked a bit of a defensive breakdown from my angle as Taylor Derynck was able to walk into a one-timer at the top of the circles and he hammered it home to the top shelf. 

Just 39 seconds after that one Scott Clark got his first of two by walking out from behind the net and putting a backhander past Desautels.

The 2nd period had the Warriors with an extended power-play opportunity after back to back penalties to the Bulldogs. They would generate 8 consecutive shots but Christopoulos only had one tough save when Tanner Campbell had a short side shot get stopped by the shoulder.

The Warriora trailed 4-0 after 40 but began the 3rd on a mission to get back in n the game. They would hit an early crossbar and get stopped in tight a couple times as well.

With a power-play upcoming with 6:40 to go, Rylan Ferster pulled Desautels for the extra attacker, and with Kyle Marino in front, Jason Cotton was able to make it 4-1. 

Immediately following that goal, Andrew Johnson had a glorious opportunity to make it 4-2 but the puck just didn't go in for him. Liam Blackburn then hit a post late as well, as the Warriors couldn't catch a break.

The Bulldogs would seal the deal within empty net goal as Eric Margo got the puck coming off the bench and slid it home.

The Warriors seemed to have a legitimate gripe as the player Margo was replacing hadn't gotten off the ice, but the officials said it was a good change so it's a good goal.

overall the Warriors were bit in their own zone in the opening frame and had a 3-goal deficit to overcome. If they had potted a goal on the power-play in the middle of period 2, I liked their chances of making it closer down the stretch. Twenty minutes just isn't enough time to come back down 4 goals against a hard working and aggressive team like the Bulldogs.

The trip continues tomorrow morning as the Warriors will catch the Comox ferry and arrive in Powell River for their game tomorrow night against the Kings. Puck drops at 7:15. 

Check the blog tomorrow for the preview.

January 23rd - @ Alberni Valley

The West Kelowna Warriors begin a 3-game road trip at Weyerhauser Arena in Port Alberni tonight when they take on the Bulldogs.

This possible 12-point swing weekend will be one that the Warriors need solid play and results, and some help on the out of town scoreboard to try and distance themselves from the Salmon Arm Silverbacks, or vault over the Merritt Centennials.

Andy Desautels will be in goal tonight for the Warriors, as Scott Patton continues to recover from an injury. AP goaltender Stephen Heslop of the Princeton Posse joins the team on this trip to back up Desautels.

Alberni Valley Bulldogs - 20-16-2-3 4th in Island Division (45 Pts) HOME - 11-10-0-1 AWAY - 9-6-2-2 Top Scorer Kurt Gosselin (94) D  (12 G, 31 A) GF - 152 GA - 135 PP - 1st - 26.8% (51 for 190) PK - 3rd - 80.2% (150 for 187) Home PP - 9th - 23.2% Home PK - 3rd - 82.6%	West Kelowna – 22-17-0-5 4th in Interior Division (49 Pts) HOME – 12-9-0-1 ROAD – 10-8-0-4 Top Scorer Liam Blackburn (96) F (19 G, 43 A) GF – 158 GA – 165 PP – 10th - 22.4% (47 for 210) PK – 7th - 79.9% (139 for 176) Road PP - 4th - 24.2% Road PK - 11th - 76%
Head-to-Head Lifetime – West Kelowna is 6-3-3-2 All-Time vs. Alberni 2013/2014 Head to Head – West Kelowna went 2-0 vs. Alberni Valley 2014/2015 Head to Head - West Kelowna lost 4-2 to Alberni Valley at Royal Lepage Place on Sunday January 11th.