The Penticton Vees (32-12-1-1) start a three-game road trip tonight, when they visit the Merritt Centennials (18-19-2-8) at Nicola Valley Memorial Arena. The road trip also sees the Vees make stops in Nanaimo and Victoria on Friday and Saturday.
Season Series
Oct 7th Merritt 1 at Penticton 5
Oct 8th Penticton 4 at Merritt 3 (OT)
Oct 21st Penticton 4 at Merritt 2
Nov 19th Merritt 2 at Penticton 3 (OT)
Dec 30th Merritt 2 at Penticton 4
Jan 13th Penticton 2 at Merritt 3
Feb 1st Penticton at Merritt
Penticton is coming off back-to-back losses over the weekend, losing 6-3 Saturday in Trail and 3-1 in Vernon the night before. The Vees haven’t won since January 21st, as they’re 0-3-1-0 in their last four games heading into tonight. They’ll look to turn the page on a challenging month, as the Vees finished January with a 3-6-0-1 record.
Merritt has a sour taste in their mouth from last week as well, as they dropped both their games to Trail (5-3) and Prince George (3-1) Wednesday and Friday- both were at home too. In fact, the Cents’ are just 1-2-0-1 in their last four home games and have only won nine of their 25 homes this season.
Tonight also is the regular season finale between the two teams, as the Vees have won five of the previous six contests, but Merritt did pick up a 3-2 over the Vees back on January 13th. The Vees have won two of their three trips to Merritt, scoring a 5-4 OT win on October 8th and a 4-2 win on October 2st.
Penticton is also trying end a six-game slide on the road, as their last road win was back in late November against West Kelowna; six of their eight road losses have come against Interior Division opponents.
The Vees got some good and bad news when it came to the blue-line. The good news is defenceman James Miller will likely be back in the line-up, as he missed the last seven games with an upper-body injury. The bad news is Mitch Meek will miss the final month of the regular season, with an upper-body injury sustained in practice this week. The 20-year-old had played in 43 games this season, registering three goals and 19 points. Gabe Bast has rejoined the team but won’t be ready to return for at least another week. Greg Brydon is still with the Okanagan Hockey Academy, and Sam Rossini continues to rehab his knee injury from the pre-season. A good piece of news up front will be the return of Ryley Risling. The 20-year-old is done serving his four-game suspension and will dress tonight; in 42 games, Risling has 13 goals and 24 points.
Mat Robson will likely start in net for the Vees and is 27-10-1-1 on the year, owning a 2.15 goals-against average and sports a .922 save percentage. Against Merritt, Robson is 3-1-0, with a 2.15 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage.
Nicholas Jones continues to lead the Vees in scoring with 49 points in 46 games; he has a team-best 29 assists. Grant Cruikshank leads the Vees in goals with 28 and Chris Klack is riding a six-game point streak heading into tonight; he has a goal and eight points over that stretch.
Zach Risteau leads the Centennials in both goals (22) and points (43) and has three goals in six games against the Vees; two of those three came back on January 13th.
Jacob Berger and Colten Lancaster have both faced the Vees this year in the Merritt net. Berger has a 1-3 record against the Vees, owning a 4.50 goals-against average and a .885 save percentage.
Vees Scoring vs. Merritt
Grant Cruikshank 3-2-5
Chris Klack 2-3-5
Joe Leahy 2-3-5
Nicholas Jones 0-5-5
Turner Ripplinger 1-3-4
Centennials Scoring vs. Vees
Henry Cleghorn 2-2-4
Mike Faulkner 1-3-4
Stephan Seeger 1-3-4
Cade Gleekel 0-4-4
Zach Risteau 3-0-3
Fans can listen to tonight’s game on EZ Rock AM 800 locally, or on the iHeartRadio Canada app for their iPhone, iPad, smartphone or tablet. If you’re streaming through your web browser, go to the EZ Rock AM 800 website. The game is also available via the BCHL webcast at www.HockeyTV.com
