Jan. 24th vs. Westshore Wolves - Hockey Ops.

Good Evening Hockey Fans,

Thank you for coming out this evening as we prepare to host the Westshore Wolves in VIJHL action.  It’s been a while since the Wolves have come to town, in fact with a quirky schedule we played them three times in the first five home dates.  The last time the Wolves graced the friendly confines of the Panorama Recreation Centre was a way back on October 3rd, 2013.  That’s right, October 3rd.  It was our 9th game of the season so we had not even hit the quarter mark, that was a long, long time ago.  And a lot of water has gone under the hockey bridge since then, let me recap it for you.  We currently sit in a solid 2nd place in the VIJHL South Division while Westshore has a slim chance to catch us, it looks like they will not be caught by the Kerry Park Islanders.  We currently sit eight points ahead of the Wolves and have nine games remaining while the Wolves only have seven games to go.  If we were to win tonight, it would all but clinch 2nd place in the South and it would all but nail down the dance partners for the Playoffs in the South.  Yes, we will be playing the Wolves in Round #1 and the only question right now is - who will have home-ice advantage?

I will talk a bit more about this matchup but I wanted to touch on the week that was and the weekend that will be.  As you might recall, we blasted the Saanich Braves last Friday by a 10-2 score.  We then loaded up and hit the road making the short trek to George Pearkes on Wednesday evening to take on the Braves for the final time this season.  We looked sluggish to start off and it took about 25 minutes of playing time before the kids hit their stride.  And when they did, we started to score goals quickly and ended up on the right side of a 6-3 score.  This game was our 8th and final contest with Saanich and we managed to take 15 of 16 points on the season.  We actually played to a tie in 70 minutes of hockey the very first time we played in Saanich this season, but then dominated the rest of the way.  All in all, we have to be pretty happy with the way all eight games went and I know our staff will take the points.

Our schedule takes a sharp turn at this point in the schedule, it will be a lot tougher from here on in.  I actually think this is great for the Club as we will be in tough right off the bat in Round 1, no doubt we will have our hands full with the Wolves.  We travel to Oceanside tomorrow night and play against a Generals team that is playing inspired as of late.  And then next Thursday we travel to Esquimalt where we take on the Victoria Cougars and renew the rivalry once again.  We host the Kerry Park Islanders next Friday night and then turn the calendar on January and look to our last five games in the first two weeks of February.  We will play Nanaimo, Campbell River, Victoria once again, the Wolves one more time and finally wrap up our VIJHL Regular Season schedule against the Kerry Park Islanders.  Our Club still has a real shot at finishing in 2nd place overall in the VIJHL and this could really pay dividends in the Playoffs.  Yes, some big games to go down the stretch before we turn our attention to the 2nd season.

In some other news, the VIJHL All-star game will take place in Duncan at the Big Stick this Sunday afternoon at 3:30 pm.  A big congrats goes out to Connor Logan, Sean Buchanan, Stephen Heslop, Jackson Skerratt, Tate Coughlin and Alex Milligan.  Of course Alex was playing for the Kerry Park Islanders when he was selected to the squad, but we are thrilled for him as well and I wish all of these players good luck and good health in Sunday’s game.  The format will be North vs. South and there has always been a lot of entertainment value in the game.  This year the contest is hosted by the Kerry Park Islanders, so please get out and support the Islanders and the players on Sunday.

OK then, let’s take a peek at our roster as we get ready to play the final three weeks of the season.  I am happy with our goaltending, both Heslop and Joey Karrer are stopping pucks and I believe both are in a battle for the right to be the starter in the playoffs.  Karrer has come on as of late and he’s trying to make a statement that he deserves to be between the pipes as the playoffs open.  Heslop is the incumbent and when he is on his game, I believe that he can be as good as anyone in the game.  His game has been a bit up and down as of late and we are looking for him to be consistent from here on in.  As I said, we are very comfortable with both and so we shall see how this battle settles for both.  On defence we are as deep as this squad has ever been.  We actually have nine defencemen on the roster and have converted both Grayson Vickers and Brett Sjerven to forwards at this point.  Things could change but if the playoffs were going to start today, this would be our game plan.  Grayson is playing solid up front but we are still looking for him to be more physical.  He scored in Saanich on Wednesday but did turn off a couple hits and we see this as an area where we could be a lot better as a team.  Two Friday’s ago we sat out Braedan Pearce to pass along the message that we need physical play, we expect physical play and this message will be passed to others on our roster if they do not respond.  We have a big team and we feel that to be our best we have to play our size.  Brett is a kid that is still adjusting to playing up front but there is never a question about his willingness to bring a physical element every single shift.  I watched on Tuesday night during practice and thought it was the best I had seen Brett skate all year.  Perhaps he is adjusting to the new position, it does take a bit of time, but he still has 9 games to nail it down and I know he will.  Reece Costain was away the past two games on a family outing, something that was planned several months ago.  He brings a physical element like no other player in our League.  I saw Tate Coughlin throw a couple big checks on Wednesday.  I saw Connor Logan throwing his weight around.  I saw Jackson Skerratt getting involved.  Jordan Law and Cody Allison are always playing way bigger than they are.  Alex Milligan and Tylor Branzsen add scoring and grit.  We need to have every single forward playing their size, playing physical and if we can get a 100% buy-in, I would hate to play against this team.  On the back end we have seven D, albeit, Iver Oedegaard might be out for a bit as he is really quite sick.  Cody Breitenstein and Matt Sheeran have been seeing a lot of time together and in my mind they are as good as any pairing in the VIJHL when they are on.  Spencer Loverock missed a lion’s share of the Regular Season but he is back and paired with Sean Buchanan.  These two kids can skate and if they play big, the pairing should be tough to crack.  And Des Bast and Kyle Richardson can both play tough and are two kids that I would not want to run into.  Yes, being physical will be the calling card of our coaching staff for the next nine games and I believe that this message will be heard and it will make us a very tough opponent.

 I mentioned our wrap-up awards dinner last week but I will mention it once again this evening.  We play our final Regular Season game on February 14th and then the following night on FEBRUARY 15TH we will have our Awards’ Dinner at the Glen Meadows Golf & Country Club.  The best meal that is served by Glen Meadows is the Deluxe Buffet Dinner and that is what will be served at the dinner.  We will start mingling at 4:30 pm and dinner will be served at 5:30 pm.  The dinner will be followed by the presentation of awards portion of the evening and this is always one of my highlights of the season.  Of course as in years gone by, each and every one of you is invited to join the team for the dinner.  Tickets for the evening will be $40. which will include the meal, gratuity and tax.  If you have not come out and joined us in the past, please take this opportunity - you will not be disappointed.  If you have been at the dinner in the past, please join us once again ~ Saturday, February 15th at the Glen Meadows Golf & Country Club on McTavish.

If you look below you will see a ballot for your selection of the Peninsula Panthers Fan Favourite.  Last year Grayson Vickers packed home the award and this season it is truly up for grabs.  There are quite a number of players that have a shot and so if you have a favourite, please jot down the information and pass it along to Coreen who is taking tickets at the front.  Coreen will also have tickets available for the dinner - see her and she will help you out.

Tonight is tabbed as Sponsor Appreciation Night and we do want to thank you all for attending and for your financial assistance this past season and seasons gone by.  It’s tough to run a hockey club and make ends meet.  It’s impossible without great sponsors and we have always been blessed to have some of the best.  Perhaps you are reading this and might be considering picking up some sponsorship with the Club.  Coreen can help to direct you to Tracy, Jason or Tanya, our Marketers and of course we would be more than happy to find some package that might fit exactly what you are looking for.  If we don’t have something that you like, simply tell us and we will try and be creative with you and your needs.

And to our fans, once again thank you for your attendance at the games.  After tonight we only have 3 regular season games left in the schedule but we hope to see you at every one and then of course into the playoffs.  We are looking for 13 in a row at home tonight!

Pete Zubersky