Panthers Prep During Final Week of Pre-season - PART 1

The management and staff of the Peninsula Panthers have been working hard during the past several months and now it will be time to see how they performed this past off-season.  With almost an entirely revamped lineup, Head Coach and General Manager Rob Armstrong is ready to head into the opener Friday, September 7th @ 7:30 pm at the Panorama Recreation Centre.

The returning veterans are less than a handful, Logan Gibson, Cody Allison and Grayson Vickers.  Gibson is a 20-year-old who is gritty and has tremendous speed.  He developed a lot towards the end of last season and, although he is not a big-bodied forward, he can play physical and seems to enjoy this side of the game.  Gibson seemingly is looking at making his final year in Junior Hockey a big one - he has aspirations to continue playing after this season is complete, hopefully combining it with some type of education package.  His focus is what the team is hoping for and the early betting line in Vegas has Gibson wearing a letter for the club.  Allison might be the hardest worker on the team and he too took a large step towards the end of last season and into the playoffs.  His role expanded and he joined with Gibson to be the number one penalty-kill unit up front for the club.  18-year-old Allison, although not big in size, has a huge heart and will do anything to help the club win.  He is fearless, will dive in front of pucks, give or take a big hit and will chip in with the occasional tally.  Vickers is a big 19-year-old defenceman and for him to have an impact on the club he will need to bring a physical element with him to the rink day in and day out.  Last season was his inagural campaign with the club and in Junior Hockey and Armstrong is looking for him to add grit to a very young lineup.  Vickers can blast the puck and should chip in with a goal here or there but his real value is to bring a physical element to the club.

Several young kids gained much experience when they joined the club late in the season and into the playoffs.  They are still considered rookies due to their limited time in the VIJHL but they are tried and tested under fire, helping the club to get by Oceanside in six games and then edging out the Saanich Braves in a protracted seven-game series before being pushed to the sidelines in the VIJHL Final series.  Talented Peninsula Minor Hockey product, 17-year-old Spencer Loverock, suffered a broken leg only days into last season and did not play with the Panthers in League action until there were only five games left in the schedule.  Once added to the lineup, he seemed to get better every game, moved rapidly up on the depth chart and was arguably in the top pairing when the playoffs last year came to a close.  Loverock might just be the best skating rearguard in the VIJHL and seems to go up and down the ice all night long without breaking a sweat.  He will need to be better in the offensive end and will get ample opportunity to do just that early and often with the club.  Goaltender, Stephen Heslop, started the playoffs in the back-up role after joining the Panthers in the Playoffs after the JDF Midget AA team was eliminated in their playoffs.  Heslop was expected to get some playing time however when the club travelled to Oceanside in game one of the first series and were quickly down 2-0 after less than three minutes had been played, Heslop was thrust into action and carried the starters title for the remainder of the Panthers playoff run.  Heslop is tabbed by the Panthers as their starting goalie and, although he is only 17 years old, much is expected of him.  The club has asked him to be their hardest working player and if he can find a way to do this and remain disciplined at the same time, the sky will be the limit for this youngster.  Two 18-year-old local kids, Kyle Richardson and Cole Glover played key roles in the playoffs after their Midget teams had been eliminated last season while Zack Smith, another Peninsula product, joined the team however saw limited action due to an injury.  Richardson is a strong-skating-Defenceman who has a very big upside.  He had a tendency to not play hard at all times in the past while in Minor Hockey and this is something that Coach Armstrong will be asking Richardson to correct early in this season.  Richardson played quality minutes in some of the Panthers biggest games of the year during the playoffs and at times was a physical force.  He will be asked to bring this type of play to the rink each and every night and if he can do just that, Richardson will be a big factor in the Panthers success.  Glover was a huge surprise for the club when he joined the team for the playoffs.  He played on all three of the top lines, killed penalties and saw plenty of time on the powerplay.  He has an infectious smile, has leadership qualites and, being a local Peninsula product, is the icing on the cake.  He is well known in the community and will be an instant hit with the Peninsula crowd.  17-year-old Zack Smith can flat out score.  He has a ton of talent but his ability to put the puck in the net is something that is special.  Smith played on the Major Midget team last season and at times struggled.  Armstrong believes that Smith could really have a big year for a 17-year-old but consistency will be a key for him.  The club wants to see a big work ethic from Smith and if he buys into this, his junior career could really take off. 

The club looked near and far and five players have moved to the Peninsula for the season and will join the team.  "Whistler Will" Finlay and Jonas Horvath from Whistler, Reece Costain from Aldergrove, Cole Golka from the Edmonton area and Cody Breitenstein from L.A. should bolster a very young but talented squad.  Golka is diminutive but might be the most skilled out of the bunch.  He can skate and he can score and Golka should see a lot of time on the team's top line and the number one power-play unit.  Golka played in Notre Dame last season but he should quickly adapt to the Junior game.  Finlay displayed  sweet touch around the net and a never-say-die attitude in a Spring camp here on the Peninsula in April.  He is an energy forward and the 17-year-old is looked upon to add some scoring to the lineup.  He played on the same Midget team as 18-year-old Jonas Horvath who is a big, defensively-minded forward who might start the season on the shelf.  He broke a foot over the summer months and, although he is just recently skating, indications are that he most likely will not be ready to go for the opener.  Horvath will not be pushed into action however when he finally is inserted into the lineup it will udoubtedly be a big lift for the club. 17-year-old Reece Costain looks like he could be a big rugged forward and he too impressed in the Spring camp.  He has the ability to be physical but also has some touch around the net and might just turn into a top-end power forward.  He was looked at long and hard in a BCHL camp and should get some games in that league on a call-up basis.  Breitenstein will anchor the back end for the club.  He is a smooth and gifted defenceman with some size and a bit of grit.  He should see powerplay time and undoubtedly will put up points for the Panthers.  Breitenstein was a well known commodity by Armstrong getting to know the defender several years ago when he coached Cody in L.A.  Breitenstein came up to the Peninsula in April to attend the Spring camp and got better each time out.  He has been here for about a month and his game has picked up each and every day and he will play a big part in the club's season.

The team has signed some great young talent from Greater Victoria and are also waiting to see what happens to several others sprinkled around various Junior "A" camps.  Much more could, and more than likely will still happen, before the Panthers opener on the 7th, and a future article in the next few days will catch the reader up to date with the most recent developments and happenings with the club.  It will also discuss some of the other talented and new summer signings as well as any possible late additions which have or might arrive via late cuts from the "A" camps.