The Penticton Vees (41-6-1-0) head down to Vancouver Island today, as they embark on a three-game Island Division road trip that starts in Victoria tonight against the Grizzlies (21-22-0-4).
The Vees are coming off a weekend sweep of the Trail Smoke Eaters, picking up 6-1 and 4-3 wins Friday and Saturday and have won 10 of their last 12 games. Victoria started 2016 by rattling off seven straight wins but that was abruptly halted with back-to-back losses to Alberni Valley (6-3) and Nanaimo (7-2) on Saturday and Sunday.
Scott Conway scored three-goals last Saturday in the Vees’ 4-3 win in Trail and is now one goal away from joining the 50-goal club; he would be the 23rd player in franchise history to hit he milestone. The franchise hasn’t had a 50-goal scorer in the last 16 seasons, as you have to go back to the 1999-2000 season when Chuck Kobasew had 54-goals with the Panthers. What might more impressive is the fact Conway could get goal number 50 in just his 49th game, if he can score tonight against the Grizz.
This is just the second “three in three” weekend for the Vees this season and first with all three being played away from the SOEC. Their other three-game weekend was back in late October, when they played Merritt (2) and Trail during the Halloween weekend; the Vees won all three games.
Tonight is the first meeting between the two teams this season and first since November 7th, of 2014, when the Vees edged the Grizz 4-3 in overtime at the Q Centre. On that night, Matt Serratore scored in double-OT, as they kicked-off that Island trip with a win. The Vees were 2-0 versus Victoria last season, as they also won 2-1 at the SOEC. The Vees have also felt right at home at the Q Centre, as they’re 4-0-0-1 in Victoria in the last five years. They actually might think of relocating to the Island.
Penticton is 6-0-1-0 against the five Island Division teams this year, the only blemish being a 4-4 tie with Alberni Valley back on December 4th. If you include last season, the Vees are 13-2-2-1 against the Division; 4-2-1-1 on the road. The last time the Vees lost to the Grizzlies was in the 2013-2014 season, when the Grizz scored a 2-1 win at the SOEC late in the regular season.
The Grizzlies have won three of their nine games they’ve played against Interior teams, most recently bagging a 4-1 win at home against Salmon Arm on January 23rd. Despite their recent success, they’ve struggled at home against the Interior, posting a 1-3-0-0 mark.
The Vees will have a different look on the back-end this weekend, as Dixon Bowen slides back to the blue-line to help fill the void left by an injury to David Eccles. Bowen will be paired up with fellow North Dakota commitment Colton Poolman. Bowen, who’s a natural center, practiced this week on the blue-line and didn’t look out of place. Eccles, Gabe Bast and Desi Burgart won’t play on this trip, as the three are sidelined with injuries; Eccles might be ready for next weekend.
After not playing last weekend, Anthony Brodeur is your likely starter tonight in Victoria. The 20-year-old was dealing with a minor tweak last week but looks to be good to go. Brodeur leads the BCHL is wins (24), goals-against average (1.85) and save percentage (.938). He suffered just his first loss of the season last week in Merritt.
Veteran Brayden Gelsinger spearheads the Grizz offense as he leads the team in goals (21), assists (34) and points (55); he’s the only Grizzly in the Top 20 in BCHL scoring (19th). PJ Conlon (43) and Cole Pickup (41) are a distant second and third respectively in team scoring.
The Grizzlies have a lot of size on their blue-line, as they have only one defenseman who is less than 6’1 and that’s rookie Mark Krabben (5’11). The six other defensemen are 6’1, 6’2, 6’2, 6’2, 6’3 and 6’3. Kevin Massey leads the group in scoring with nine goals and 31 points in 45 games and 9th among BCHL defensemen in scoring. Massey also has a mean streak in him as he is the second most penalized defenseman in the league; his 81 penalty-minutes are second only to Merritt’s Nick Fiorentino.
Victoria has two 18-year-old rookies in net in Mitchel Benson and Matthew Galajda the latter has shoulder most of the load in net. Galajda has 17 wins in 35 games and is third in the BCHL with a 2.44 goals-against average, and he’s fifth in save percentage (.916); Galajda will likely face the Vees tonight.
Its retro night at the Q Centre as the Grizzlies will be going back to the 90’s by wearing Victoria Salsa jerseys. The team through the 90’s and early 00’s had the in-famous Jalapeno and then Chilli pepper logos.
