February 6th- Game Recap

The Warriors needed the win tonight in the worst way. I detailed the implications of a regulation loss in the preview for tonight's match-up, and will not fully analyze what it means until next Thursday when there is a better understanding.

Both the Warriors and the Silverbacks will have played 52 games after Wednesday night's action, and the Interior division should have a better understanding of what the final 6 games will hold, or what teams will have to do in those 6 games.

Tonight's game featured some great opportunities early on for the Warriors as Kylar Hope had a break-away attempt stopped by Angus Redmond. Hope walked in and went to wire a slap-shot but Redmond got the arm on it.

Later in the frame the Warriors hit a pair of crossbars as well, but it remained scoreless.

I thought that the Warriors took a couple of bad penalties in the middle frame after Salmon Arm made it 2-0. They looked to me to be non-focused and frustrated penalties after giving up the goals, with a too many men call and a roughing call well after the whistle.

As for the goals, the 1st one comes on a 6 on 5 and a delayed penalty and after Stephen Heslop makes the stop, its tucked over the line. Heslop wasn't deemed to have had any possession to get the play blown dead, which could have ended the opportunity.

The 2nd goal was one that I'm sure the Warriors would like to have back. They struggled to get the puck out of their own zone, and then when they did, they couldn't get it deep enough for a change, so the same unit got stuck. Run around in your own zone a little longer, and Ross Heidt has all day to score.

The 3rd period saw the Warriors play more desperately, and if it wasn't for a beautiful tip by Taro Hirose, I thought they had a good chance of tying this one up. Hirose deflected a Chase Priskie shot from the point at about the top of the circle, and had it bounce down off the ice and over the pad of Stephen Heslop. Very tough save for the West Kelowna goaltender.

The Warriors got a power-play marker in the 3rd to make it 3-1 when Nick Rutigliano tee'd one up from the point. You can't see who it hit in front, but by the reaction of the Warriors it is most definitely Rutigliano's 1st goal in the BCHL. The boxscore online doesn't say so, but everyone else believes it, as Jonathan Desbiens (who got credited with it) was the first to grab the puck for the kid known as "Tigs"

There was a little bit of rough stuff late after a Silverbacks empty netter but nothing crazy or of concern. Warriors will be back on the bus tomorrow to Chilliwack to take on the Chiefs. Look for a game preview by Noon.

February 6th GAME PREVIEW - Warriors @ Silverbacks

The West Kelowna Warriors and Salmon Arm Silverbacks will meet for the 7th time this season, with the Warriors leading the season series by a 4-2 margin.

Last weekend the Warriors split with Merritt then got a big Tuesday win against the Vernon Vipers for a mini two game streak.

The Silverbacks got lights out goaltending from Angus Redmond in back-to-back shutouts of the Vipers. Salmon Arm has only allowed 1 goal in their last 3 games (Penticton beat them 1-0 on January 28th.)

There is no need to say anything to the players or coaches in this game about its playoff implications, as everyone is well aware of the scenario in both locker rooms. For those of you who may not be aware of it, let's take a look.

The Warriors sit 4 points ahead of the Silverbacks with 8 games left on West Kelowna's schedule. The Silverbacks have 2 games in hand on the Warriors, and will play those games in hand on Sunday against Surrey, and Wednesday when they head to Trail. Ultimately, all things will be considered equal after Wednesday night.

There are 5 different scenarios as to how it could all end up after tonight's game, so I'll try to keep it as simple as possible.

• West Kelowna could be anywhere from 2-6 points up on the Silverbacks after the action tonight.
• Currently, West Kelowna has the season series edge, however the BCHL tie-breaker (should the teams be tied in points AND in wins after the season) is "points accumulated in games between tied teams" and then "goal differential in games between tied teams"
• Should the Warriors win tonight, or go to OT, forget about the tie-breakers because West Kelowna would have more season series points so they'd have the edge. If there is a loss in regulation, this is how I have it figured out:
• West Kelowna would have accumulated 8 points in 7 games vs. SA (4 wins)
• Salmon Arm would have accumulated 8 points in 7 games vs. WK (3 wins + 2 OTL)
• Therefore each team would have the same number of points, thus pushing it to goal differential in games between these two teams.
• West Kelowna: 19 Goals For, 19 Goals Against (0 differential before tonight)
• Salmon Arm: 19 Goals For, 19 Goals Against (0 differential before tonight)
• Salmon Arm needs to win tonight in regulation and then they would have the tie-breakers.
• It's a complicated scenario based on a lot of "maybe's" but we'll have more on this after tonight's result.
• Remember Warriors fans, if there is a tie in points, it goes by WINS first, and right now West Kelowna has 3 more than the Silverbacks. The muddy picture will be murky after tonight, and somewhat transparent Thursday morning. Stay tuned.

Tonight's Stats:

Salmon Arm Silverbacks - 21-19-3-5 5th in Interior Division (50 Pts) HOME - 12-8-2-2 AWAY - 9-11-1-3 Top Scorer Andrew Farny  (95) D (14 G, 32 A) GF - 152 GA - 148 PP - 11th - 21.2% (36 for 170) PK - 9th - 77.7% (146 for 188)	West Kelowna – 24-20-0-6 T-3rd in Interior Division (54 Pts) HOME – 14-9-0-1 ROAD – 10-11-0-5 Top Scorer Liam Blackburn (96) F (21 G, 47 A) GF – 171 GA – 185 PP – 9th - 22.2% (53 for 239) PK – 4th - 80.4% (164 for 204)
Head-to-Head Lifetime – West Kelowna is 30-19-1-8 All-time vs. Salmon Arm 2013/2014 Head to Head – West Kelowna went 6-1 vs. Salmon Arm 2014/2015 Head to Head - West Kelowna is 4-2 against Salmon Arm

Vipers @ Warriors - February 3rd Game Recap

West Kelowna had a pair of 3rd period goals in a great hockey game at Royal Lepage Place. The Warriors still lose the Season Series to the Vernon Vipers by a 4-3 total but must be pleased with the result tonight as the playoff picture looms larger on their minds every given night.

Here is what I saw tonight:

• Power-play - The Warriors were given 7 power-play opportunities and only capitalized once, on a 5 on 3 in the 3rd when they opened the scoring. It was West Kelowna's 3rd two-man advantage of the night and about time they capitalized. Rylan Ferster called his time-out and had almost a minute with the unit as referees explained the penalty (Goalie Interference to Colten McCarthy after hitting Stephen Heslop when he played the puck). Liam Blackburn had the goal after good puck movement
• Penalty Kill - The Warriors PK Units received a boost with Brett Mennear back in the line-up but West Kelowna has been doing a solid job down a man in recent games. They have killed off 24 of the last 27 penalties, including 4 perfect nights including all 3 of the recent 3-game road trip.
• Stephen Heslop - The AP goaltender made his 2nd start for the Warriors after Andy Desautels was scratched with the flu. He didn't need to be overly spectacular but dealt with some traffic and made 34 saves for his first BCHL win and shutout. This also marked the 5th time this season that a Warriors goaltender has recorded his 1st BCHL win, which has to be some kind of league record I'm sure. (Scott Patton, Michael Lenko, Brett Huber, Jordan Reynolds, and Heslop)  It was also the 2nd time that a Warriors AP has gotten his 1st BCHL win in shutout fashion (Reynolds and Heslop)
• The Flu - Getting to the rink tonight and hearing that the Warriors would be without Desautels, Jordan Masters, and Kristian Blumenschein was a bit of a cause for concern, plus the fact it wasn't known if guys like Liam Blackburn were going to play either as a bug hit the team. The 16 skaters that did play did so admirably, as it wasn't even noticeable that West Kelowna only had 5 defensemen on the back-end. Kyle Marino filled in up front and saw some good minutes as he added size to that forward group for the 5th game in a row.

With the playoff picture still murky, the Warriors head to Salmon Arm to take on the Silverbacks Friday at the Shaw Center. Catch the action by making the drive, or tune in on Fast Hockey, at 95.1 FM WDCR, or online at www.wdcr.ca

Let me know what you think of tonight's recap and what else you thought on tonight's hockey game in the comments section below.

-Kyle Anderson

February 3rd vs. Vernon

The West Kelowna Warriors begin January with a 2 point cushion on the 5th place Salmon Arm Silverbacks. Cushion probably isn't the right word either, as that's not a very big gap with 9 games remaining plus the 'Backs have a game in hand (and 2 games after tonight.)

This evening's game at Royal Lepage Place is the 7th game against the Vernon Vipers this season, with the Vipers winning 4 (Sept 26th @ RLP, Oct 18th @ RLP, Dec 10th @ KTP, Jan 16th @ KTP) and West Kelowna winning 2 (Sept 27th @ KTP, Nov 21st @ RLP in OT).

The Warriors will look to win on home ice for the 6th time since Christmas (5-2).

Vernon is currently comfortable in 2nd place, 11 points ahead of 3rd and 13 points behind the Penticton Vees, who have all but wrapped up 1st place, unless the Vipers go undefeated and Penticton goes 3-6-0-1 over the remaining games.

Here is the statistical breakdown

Vernon Vipers - 30-14-1-2 2nd in Interior Division (63 Pts) HOME - 18-6-1-1 AWAY - 12-8-0-2 Top Scorer Liam Coughlin (94) F (19 G, 37 A) GF - 177 GA - 132 PP - 12th - 20.2% (38 for 188) PK - 3rd - 80.6% (162 for 201)	West Kelowna – 23-20-0-6 T-3rd in Interior Division (52 Pts) HOME – 13-9-0-1 ROAD – 10-11-0-5 Top Scorer Liam Blackburn (96) F (20 G, 45 A) GF – 169 GA – 185 PP – 9th - 22.5% (52 for 231) PK – 5th - 79.9% (159 for 199)
Head-to-Head Lifetime – West Kelowna is 27-24-2-6 All-time vs. Vernon 2013/2014 Head to Head – West Kelowna went 2-3-1-1 vs. Vernon  2014/2015 Head to Head - West Kelowna is 2-4 against Vernon this season

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.