Dec 11th @ Alberni PREVIEW

The West Kelowna Warriors start a 3-game island swing tonight in Port Alberni, as they take on the Alberni Valley Bulldogs. The Bulldogs defeated the Warriors 10-5 on November 21st.

West Kelowna has had all week to get ready for the trip after a disappointing weekend saw them drop a pair of games to both Cowichan Valley and Merritt. It was a weekend of lost opportunity as the Salmon Arm Silverbacks dropped a pair as well, as the Warriors failed to gain any ground in the Interior Division standings.

The Bulldogs are returning home after 9 games on the road, and have a heavy home schedule in the latter half of this season. The Bulldogs have played just 11 of their 28 games to this point, as they play a pair on home ice this weekend.

For the Warriors, look for Brett Clark to get his first start in goal for the Warriors tonight. Clark ended up not starting last Saturday after all signs pointed to him being in the goal, but Rylan Ferster confirmed that Clark will get the nod.

Speaking of goaltenders, the Warriors added another goalie yesterday, acquiring Matthew Greenfield from Tri-City of the USHL for Futures. The 20-year-old goaltender will arrive in Kelowna on Monday, and is expected to dress next Friday night when the Warriors host the Penticton Vees. The Warriors will carry 3 goaltenders for the time being.

West Kelowna will look to bounce back off of the loss to the Bulldogs a couple weeks ago, and see if the day-early travel to the island is a benefit to the club. Pre-game show goes live at 6:40 tonight, puck drop at 7 on both FastHockey and www.mixlr.com/bchlwarriors

Stats Pack:

Alberni Valley – 11-17-2-1 HOME – 6-5-0-1 ROAD – 5-12-2-0 Top Scorers Chris Schutz (15 G, 13 A) Nathan Dingmann (14 G, 11 A) Josh Adkins (10 G, 15 A) GF – 89 GA – 119 PP – 4th – 33 for 143 (23.1%) PK – 16th – 123 for 165 (74.6%)	West Kelowna – 17-12-0-2 HOME – 11-6-0-1 ROAD – 6-6-0-1 Top Scorers Liam Blackburn (15 G, 25 A) Kylar Hope (15 G, 20 A) Jonathan Desbiens (18 G, 16 A) GF – 119 GA – 114 PP – 3rd – 34 for 137 (24.8%) PK – 11th – 121 for 154 (78.6%) Next Game – Saturday December 12th 6:00 pm vs Nanaimo – Frank Crane Arena
Head-to-Head Lifetime – West Kelowna is 5-6-3-3 vs Alberni Valley All-Time The Warriors are 2-2-2-2 in Port Alberni. Head-to-Head This Season November 21st – Alberni Valley wins 10-5 in West Kelowna