PHOTO: Cherie Morgan/Cherie Morgan Photography
The Penticton Vees (21-7-1-0) open up a three-game week with another Wicked Wednesday as they conclude their season series against the Prince George Spruce Kings (10-15-2-3) on Wednesday night at the South Okanagan Events Centre.
REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE VS. PRINCE GEORGE
Saturday, September 14th @ Rolling Mix Concrete Arena (4-3 Vees/OT) (BOXSCORE)
Wednesday, November 27th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (6:30 PM)
The Vees come into Wednesday night’s affair looking to get back into the win column after dropping a 4-0 decision to the Chilliwack Chiefs on Friday night at the South Okanagan Events Centre. The blanking was the second time the Vees have been held off the scoresheet this season as Yaniv Perets turned aside 25 of the 29 shots he faced in his 5th loss of the season in between the pipes.
Penticton will look to sweep the season series against Prince George after earning a 4-3 overtime victory against the Spruce Kings in mid-September at the Rolling Mix Concrete Arena. Colton Kalezic and Jack Barnes each tallied shorthanded goals with Danny Weight scoring in the 3rd period before Jay O’Brien helped the Vees to the win with his overtime marker. Former Vees netminder Derek Krall stopped 30 of the 33 shots he faced in goal.
Vees Leading Scorers:
Jay O’Brien (15-27-42)
Danny Weight (13-19-32)
Lukas Sillinger (11-19-30)
David Silye (9-20-29)
Colton Kalezic (8-12-20)
Despite the blanking on Friday night, Penticton still ranks high within the BCHL when it comes to goals scored, sitting in a tie for 3rd in the league with 106 goals in 29 games played on the season. The Vees are one of four teams to have reached the century mark in goals scored this season and are ranked 2nd in the BCHL with a +32-goal differential on the year.
Spreading out the offensive attack has been a big key for the Vees this season as they have three players in double digits when it comes to goals scored. Only Trail and Cowichan Valley have more on their rosters with Jay O’Brien leading Penticton in tallies with his 15 markers. The Hingham, Massachusetts native sits in a tie for 7th with his 15 goals while he ranks 2nd in the league with 42 points.
After opening the season with their fair share of games on the road, the Vees will see six of the final ten games ahead of the Christmas break played at the South Okanagan Events Centre. Penticton has already played 19 games on the road this season (20 including a BCHL Showcase Festival game) and will be a familiar fixture on home ice in the New Year with 14 of their 28 home games taking place in 2020.
The Prince George Spruce Kings enter Wednesday night concluding a five-game road trip which includes a 2-1 defeat to the Wenatchee Wild on Monday night at the Town Toyota Center. Evan Orr tallied the lone goal in the game for the Spruce Kings with Carter Woodside making his first start with Prince George, turning aside 31 of the 33 shots he faced in his 1st loss of the season.
Spruce Kings Scoring Leaders:
Nicholas Poisson (11-19-30)
Corey Cunningham (10-14-24)
Chong Min Lee (8-16-24)
Preston Brodziak (9-10-19)
Nolan Welsh (8-9-17)
A marathon road trip comes to its conclusion for the Spruce Kings in Penticton tonight as Prince George has been away from home for the last 10 days. A five-game road trip that has taken the Spruce Kings to Alberni Valley, Nanaimo, Merritt, Wenatchee and now finishing off in Penticton has seen the team go 1-3-0-0 in that span with three of the four contests being decided by just one goal.
Playing in his third season with the Spruce Kings, forward Corey Cunningham has found his offensive game, sitting second in team scoring with 10 goals and 24 points in 25 games played. The Prince George, BC native just had a three-game point streak snapped on Monday night that saw him score two goals and two assists for four points over that span. Cunningham’s 10 goals this season also has him 2nd in goal scoring on his team with Nicholas Poisson leading Prince George with 11 tallies.
Bloomfield, Ontario’s Jett Alexander has been a strong last line of defence for the Spruce Kings as the Prince George goaltender boasts a 2.78 goals against average and .908 save percentage during the 2019/20 campaign. Alexander has played the most minutes of any netminder in the league, logging 1,512 minutes in between the pipes this season and has played the most games of any other goaltender in the BCHL with 27 this season.
The Vees and Spruce Kings conclude their season set at 6:30 PM at the South Okanagan Events Centre on Wicked Wednesday, presented by Boston Pizza. Tickets are just $5 and available at the Valley First Box Office as well as online at ValleyFirstTix.com.
