PHOTO: Cherie Morgan/Cherie Morgan Photography
The Penticton Vees (5-1-0-0) will look for revenge as they host the Prince George Spruce Kings (6-1-0-0) on Frontline Workers Appreciation Night at the South Okanagan Events Centre on Friday night.
REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE VS. PRINCE GEORGE
Wednesday, October 26th @ Rolling Mix Concrete Arena (7-1 Spruce Kings) (BOXSCORE)
Friday, October 29th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (7:00 PM)
Wednesday, December 1st @ Rolling Mix Concrete Arena (7:00 PM)
Saturday, February 19th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (6:00 PM)
Friday, March 4th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (7:00 PM)
The Vees and Spruce Kings will meet for the second time this season and complete a home-and-home set after a 7-1 defeat for Penticton in Prince George on Wednesday night at the Rolling Mix Concrete Arena. Fin Williams scored the lone goal in his return to Prince George as the former Spruce King found the back of the net on the power play. Kaeden Lane turned aside 14 of the 19 shots thrown his way in his 1st loss of the season while Colin Purcell denied 7 of the 9 shots he faced in the 3rd period.
Vees Leading Scorers:
Fin Williams (3-5-8)
Josh Nadeau (4-3-7)
Luc Wilson (4-3-7)
Bradley Nadeau (3-3-6)
Casey McDonald (3-2-5)
An addition to the roster is always a welcome one and the Vees will be happy to get another reinforcement on the blue line tonight as defender Ryan Hopkins will make his Vees and BCHL debut. The University of Maine commit has been sidelined for the majority of the opening month with an injury but will make his season debut tonight after playing in three exhibition games. Hopkins played the last two seasons with Stanstead College, located in Stanstead, Quebec, while playing in 58 games with the program and scoring 8 goals and 23 points in that span.
The Vees will look to keep their power play rolling strong after a special teams battle took place on Wednesday. Although surrendering five power play goals against, the Vees were able to find the back of the net on the man advantage courtesy of Fin Williams’ first power play goal of the season. Penticton has now scored a PPG in three straight games, including four goals in that span with Luc Wilson leading the team with a pair of goals on the power play.
Responding to a loss is always important and it is something the Vees have done very well historically. Including the 5-0-0-0 preseason, Wednesday night marked the lone loss that the 2021/22 version of the Vees has suffered. The 2019/20 Vees were 6-6-0-0 after a loss during the regular season while the 2020/21 Vees finished the season at 3-0-0-0 following a defeat.
The Prince George Spruce Kings come into the game on Friday night after a 7-1 victory over the Vees at the Rolling Mix Concrete Arena. Nick Rheaume scored a hat-trick in the game while Austin Fraser tallied twice as well for Prince George. John Herrington and Josh Wright also scored in the win while Aaron Trotter turned aside 22 of the 23 shots for his 4th win of the season.
Spruce Kings Scoring Leaders:
Nick Rheaume (7-6-13)
John Herrington (6-6-12)
Simon Labelle (1-7-8)
Kilian McGregor-Bennett (1-7-8)
Dylan Schives (1-6-7)
After scoring his first career BC Hockey League hat-trick on Wednesday, Spruce Kings forward Nick Rheaume sits 3rd in the league in scoring with 13 points through his team’s opening 7 games. The Sherbrooke, Quebec native is one point off of surpassing his season total of 14 points in 20 regular season games a year ago. The University of Massachusetts-Lowell commit is now 2nd in the BCHL in goals with 7 this season and tied for 9th in the league in assists, sitting at 6.
John Herrington is enjoying similar success to his teammate Rheaume as both sit atop the Spruce Kings in scoring with Prince George owning 3 of the top 20 league scorers. The Hudson’s Hope, BC native is two points off of his total from last year with 12 and the third-year forward has had plenty of success on the power play as well, scoring three times on the man advantage this year. The Lake Superior State commit has points in every game but one so far this season, including a goal and two assist performance on Wednesday.
The Spruce Kings and their power play have been the most dominant in the BCHL this season, scoring 5 times on the man advantage in Wednesday night’s victory and a league-leading 14 goals on the season. Prince George has gone 14-for-30 over the course of the season, operating at 46.7% on the season.
The Vees and Spruce Kings will play the second of their five-game season series tonight at the South Okanagan Events Centre. Puck drop is slated for 7:00 PM with tickets available for purchase at the SOEC Box Office as well as online at valleyfirsttix.com while the game will also be broadcasted on Bounce Radio 800 as well as streamed on BCHLTV.ca beginning with the pre-game show at 6:40 PM.
