Storybook win for Vander Heiden

18-year-old goaltender Jordan Vander Heiden waited, and waited and waited and then.....well he waited just a little bit more.  And on Monday evening at the Panorama Recreation Centre in Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League action, he finally made his first career Junior start between the pipes.  And not only did the big backstop pick up his first win, he also picked up the 1st star in the game along the way. 

In a way, the win for the Club was really just icing on the cake.  The Peninsula Panthers had already locked in their playoff fate and will face the Oceanside Generals on Monday, February 16th at the Panorama in a one-game winner take all.  The loser will run for the exits and pull out their golf clubs, ditching their skates and gloves and shin pads for the year while the winner will move on to take on the Campbell River Storm in the best-of-7 affair.  But the 3-1 win over the Saanich Braves meant a whole lot more than just the two points in the standings. 

The Panthers had started off the season racking off 13 straight losses before picking up a much-needed over the Campbell River Storm back on October 17th.  The Team had a lot of issues, one of them being between the pipes. Many of the issues were addressed and the wins began to mount. In late October, they managed to pick up 18-year-old goaltender Alex Olson and he quickly showed that he was a solid  #1 in the League.  Management decided that they needed a great person to back up Olson; somebody who would accept the backup role and be the ultimate team player.  Taylor Findlay came aboard and he was a perfect fit however, he had a prior commitment in Toronto and would be forced to leave in January for school.  As Findlay played the back-up role to perfection, Vander Heiden was preparing to take the role when Findlay departed.  Vander Heiden had not been playing hockey and he practiced with the Club along with Findlay, trying to get back into playing shape.  He had previously mopped up on two earlier occasions in the late minutes of games but Monday night was his first real opportunity to show what he could do and he took the ball and ran with it.

Saanich Braves castaway 18-year-old Josh Poland scored the first goal of the game at the 6:22 mark of the opening period when he gathered in a pass for Spencer Loverock in the neutral zone.  Poland showed unusual patience as he juked a Braves defenceman and then rammed in a seeing-eye shot to the top corner past the blocker of the visitors goaltender Riley Mathieson.  The goal meant a lot to the former Braves forward after having been obtained by the Panthers early in the season in a cash transaction.  It was his 12th tally of the year and he leads the Club in this category.  Mathieson and Vander Heiden held solid the rest of the period, although the Braves goaltender was the busier of the two.

The prettiest goal of the evening was scored at the 4:46 mark of the 2nd frame by Panthers defenceman Brett Carpendale.  Cody Allison picked up a loose puck in the neutral zone and threw it to the left side to affiliate player Matthew MacLeod, who was making his Junior debut as well.  MacLeod is a lengthy 16-year-old forward who hails from the Peninsula and toils with the Peninsula Eagles Midget AA squad.  He gathered in the disk and somehow spotted Carpendale as he raced towards Mathieson.  The young winger dished the puck past a would-be defender to Carpendale but there was simply no room to operate.  Carpendale made a great move in tight and somehow backhanded a sweet shot past Mathieson; it would prove to be the winner.  But the Braves were not finished and Kyle Schnettler cracked open the scoring for the Braves, beating Vander Heiden at the 12:27 mark, making it a 2-1 game.  Both teams exchanged chances however, with 40 minutes in the books the score remained a one-goal game.  Vander Heiden made the best save of the night and of his Junior career midway through the stanza.  A Braves marksman gathered in the puck all alone to the right of the Panthers target with a wide open net and nothing to stop him but air.  But Vander Heiden somehow managed to snake out his right leg just as the shot was making its way into the cage; a save that brought a lot of cheers from the Panthers' bench.

More saves from both goaltenders would follow in the 3rd frame and as the script usually goes, the team trailing by a goal pulls their netminder for the extra attacker.  With Mathieson on the bench as the clock began to wind to 00:00, and with a number of seconds of frantic play in the Panthers end of the ice, the puck finally saw it's way to the stick of Panthers' leading scorer 18-year-old Grayden Hohl.  The slick winger made a crafty play in his own end on the right half-wall and after getting out of his own end, he chipped the puck to linemate Mitch Newman who went in alone on the empty net.  17-year-old Newman made no mistake giving the Panthers an insurance marker they were looking for and giving Vander Heiden a chance for a big cleansing breath.  Loverock picked up another point on the assist.

The Panthers outshot the Braves 25-20 on the night.  Vander Heiden, MacLeod and Mathieson were named the game's three stars.

"Every singe teammate and staff were happy about the win but more thrilled about Jordan picking up his 1st win," explained Pete Zubersky.  "He is a pretty laid back kid but when he skated off the ice after the warmup I saw him take a couple deep breaths.  I know his heart was probably racing when the puck dropped but he was solid all night long and what a great feeling for the youngster when he collected the star of the game."

Zubersky had a couple comments for two affiliate players who were in the lineup.  "16-year-old Matt MacLeod and 17-year-old Ty Hermsen both played a solid game for us and we gave them a lot of minutes; minutes they deserved.  Allison is a nice influence playing on a line with them.  He is a veteran and I saw him talking to the pair all night long.  I was excited to see the two compete.  Both are from the Peninsula Midget team and both are not out of place at this level.  We shall see how it goes but if an opportunity comes up to use them again, we certainly will."

The Panthers have one regular season game remaining - this Friday at home against the visiting Kerry Park Islanders.  As the game is dubbed "Peninsula Minor Hockey Appreciation" a large crowd is expected and fans are asked to come just a bit early.  The puck is set to drop at the usual 7:30 pm.