They’re playing for keeps now. The Penticton Vees open their 2016-17 BCHL season tonight in Prince George, as they face the Spruce Kings at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena; face-off is 7 pm.
The Spruce Kings lifted the curtain on their season last night at home and tied the Merritt Centennials 2-2. Newcomer and freshly minted RBC Cup champion, Brett Mennear had a goal and an assist to help lead the way for the Spruce Kings. Another trade acquisition looked sharped as well, as goalie Stefan Wornig, formerly of Powell River, stopped 35 of 37 shots.
It’s been 167 days since the Vees season ended last March in West Kelowna in the Interior Conference Final, but hey, who’s counting? It was a longer summer than expected but the Vees are looking to have a big season, as they host the 2017 Western Canada Cup. For the returning players, this day couldn’t have come soon enough.
Back from last season is Captain Nic Jones and Alternate Captains Gabe Bast and Owen Sillinger. Also returning for this season is defencemen David Eccles and Griffin Mendel, and forwards Ben Brar and Taylor Ward. New faces on the blue-line are Joe Leahy, Mitch Meek and Jonny Tychonick. Upfront are Ty Amonte, Ty Barnstable, Grant Cruikshank, Noah Jordan, Jacob Kamps, Chris Klack, Jared Nash, Turner Ripplinger and Ryley Risling.
In goal the Vees have two new puck-stoppers in Nolan Hildebrand and Mat Robson. Robson is the 20-year-old veteran who was with Clarkson University last season. Hildebrand played next door at the Okanagan Hockey Academy last season and was an Affiliate Player with the Vees.
The puck hasn’t even dropped yet and Vees are dealing with some adversity. Injuries have stung the Vees in last week, as they’ll be without defenceman Sam Rossini and forward Tuner Ripplinger. Rossini suffered a lower-body injury against Vernon back on August 30th and Ripplinger suffered an off-ice training injury and will be sidelined for a couple weeks. The Vees did get some good news as Bast, Tychonick and Ryley Risling got a clean bill of health and will dress tonight.
It’s almost a full calendar year since the Vees have played in PG. They were last up here in October of last year and scored a 5-2 win over the Spruce Kings. That game was highlighted by a two-goal output by Dixon Bowen and in his BCHL debut, Zach Driscoll picked up the win. Fast-forward nearly a year and the Vees are looking for a similar result.
Like Driscoll last season, very likely Mat Robson makes his BCHL debut tonight in the BC Central Interior. The 20-year-old has looked great in Training Camp and in pre-season, where he was a perfect 3-0 with one shutout. Nolan Hildebrand will likely make his BCHL debut next weekend in one of the Vees three games on their Island Division road trip.
If you’re new to the BCHL and the Vees, the confines in PG at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena feel a bit “cozy.” It’s not the biggest ice surface, with a smaller than normal neutral zone and shallow, more square corners. For players, they have less time they would normally have and plays develop at a much higher rate of speed. In confines such as this rink, puck management will be even more scrutinized.
A few storylines to keep tabs on tonight is one, can Grant Cruikshank keep up that scoring pace he had in the pre-season? Cruikshank had 12 points in just five games for the Vees to lead them in scoring in the pre-season. I’m curious to see what he, Ty Amonte and Nic Jones can do as a line. Secondly, there’s quite a few making their debut for the Vees but what about Bast, Risling and Tychonick? The trio didn’t play any exhibition games due to injury and or rehab and tonight will be there first meaningful hockey of the season. Will they show signs of rust? Or will adrenalin take over? Lastly, I think everyone is excited to see this revamped defensive corps in action. They’re big, they play with an edge and they can move the puck in a hurry. The transition game will be critical tonight.
As mentioned off the top, the Spruce Kings Friday had the rare season-opening tie against Merritt. Goaltender Stefan Worning was named the game’s first star and deservingly so, after stopping 35 of 37 shots, including going 12-12 in the two overtime periods. Brett Mennear had a solid debut scoring and finishing with two points in the tie. Mennear was the futures owing after PG dealt both Jake Lebrun and Bryan Basilico to West Kelowna at the January trade deadline.
Spruce Kings Preview with Broadcaster Ryan Lepper
After a 14-win season and missing out on the post-season, GM Mike Hawes and Head Coach Chad Van Diemen have been busy retooling the PG roster. Wornig and Mennear were brought in as mentioned, along with former Centennials defenseman Cooper Prechel, and Salmon Arm rear-guard Sam De Melo. Their roster was constructed with speed in mind, so tonight could setup for a track meet.
Fans can listen to tonight’s broadcast on the home of the Vees, EZ Rock AM 800, starting with the pre-game show at 6:40 pm. The game will be also broadcasted on Fasthockey pay-per-view. Don’t forget to follow our Twitter account @PentictonVees for coverage of tonight’s game.
