Photo: Jack Murray
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Game Time: 6:00 pm PST
Location: Western Financial Place
Radio: Bounce 800 am
Webcast: Hockey TV
Penticton Vees
GM & Head Coach: Fred Harbinson
2022-23: GP 36 33-3-0-0, 1st Interior Conference
Home: 17-0-0-0
Away: 16-3-0-0
GF: 194
GA: 65
Power Play: 36.6% (1)
Penalty Kill: 84.2% (3)
Top Scorer: Bradly Nadeau (31-41-72)
Top Scorer vs. Cranbrook: Bradly Nadeau (3-3-6)
| Last 5 Games | Next 5 Games |
| 4-0 W @ Vernon (Jan. 25) | Feb. 3 at Surrey, 7:00 pm |
| 5-3 W vs. Cowichan Valley (Jan. 14) | Feb. 4 at Victoria, 7:00 pm |
| 7-2 W @ Trail (Jan. 13) | Feb. 10 vs. Coquitlam, 7:00 pm |
| 3-0 L @ Prince George (Jan. 7) | Feb. 17 vs. West Kelowna, 7:00 pm |
| 3-0 W @ Prince George (Jan. 6) | Feb. 18 @ Merritt, 7:00 pm |
| Season Series |
| 7-1 W vs. Cranbrook (Sep. 24) |
| 4-3 W vs. Cranbrook (Oct. 26) |
| 4-1 L @ Cranbrook (Dec. 10) |
Last Game: The Vees made it three-straight wins on Wednesday, blanking the Vernon Vipers 4-0 at Kal Tire Place. Bradly Nadeau scored twice and Brett Moravec, and Aydar Suniev also scored in the win. Bradly had three points in the win. His older brother Josh had two helpers. Luca Di Pasquo earned his third shutout of the season, as he made 20 stops. It was the Vees first game in 11 days coming out of the BCHL All-Star break.
Tonight’s Game: Tonight, is the fourth of five meetings with the Cranbrook Bucks. The Vees have won two of three games in the season series, but it was the Bucks earning a 4-1 victory over Penticton at home in their last encounter on Dec. 10. After tonight, the season series wraps up in Penticton on February 10. The Vees have a 15 point lead on Cranbrook for top spot in the Interior Conference. Don’t let the gap fool you, the Bucks have won three in a row and eight of their last 10. This is a marquee matchup of the two top teams in the Interior.
Cranbrook Bucks
GM & Head Coach: Ryan Donald
2022-23: GP 36 25-10-1-0, 2nd Interior Conference
Home: 14-3-0-0
Away: 11-7-1-0
GF: 133
GA: 85
Power Play: 16.3% (17)
Penalty Kill: 84.1% (4)
Top Scorer: Jack Silich (18-13-31)
Top Scorer vs. Penticton: Jaden Fodchuk (0-3-3)
| Last 5 Games | Next 5 Games |
| 3-1 W vs. West Kelowna (Jan. 27) | Feb. 3 vs. Prince George, 7:00 pm MST |
| 5-2 W vs. Vernon (Jan. 15) | Feb. 4 vs. Vernon, 7:00 pm MST |
| 2-0 W vs. Wenatchee (Jan. 13) | Feb. 10 @ Trail, 7:00 pm |
| 4-3 L @ Chilliwack (Jan. 7) | Feb. 11 vs. Trail, 7:00 pm MST |
| 4-1 W @ Merritt (Jan. 6) | Feb. 17 @ Wenatchee, 7:05 pm |
Last Game: The Bucks picked up their third win in a row, beating West Kelowna 3-1 at home Friday night. It was Cranbrook’s first game coming out of the BCHL All-Star break and first in 12 days. After a scoreless first period, Blake Cotton and Cameron Kungle scored in the second to put the Bucks up 2-0 after 40 minutes. The two teams traded goals in the third. The big story was the return of goaltender Nathan Airey. Airey made his first start since Dec. 16, after sustaining an injury. In his return, Airey stopped 24 of 25 shots.
Cranbrook owns the third-best home record behind Penticton and Nanaimo, with just three losses at Western Financial Place. One of those 14 wins was over Penticton, back on Dec. 10, a game in which they dedicated from start to finish. They are also one of the best defensive teams in the BCHL. Through 36 games, the Bucks are only giving up 2.36 goals per-game. That’s second only to the Vees (1.81).
The Bucks have quite the balanced attack too, with no player averaging over a point per-game, but have eight players with 20 or more points.
Up Next: Cranbrook finishes their six-game home stand next weekend with a pair of games against Prince George and Vernon. Including tonight, four of their next five games are at home. In February, that changes, as six of their 11 games are on the road.
