Tonight the weekly program catches up with Vees Alumni Zac Dalpe who was drafted by Carolina this Spring and is playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes. Also John McGraw the play-by-play voice of the Colgate Raiders will get us caught up to speed with Austin Smith and Alex Evin’s play.
There will be highlights from weekend action in Trail, a look at the upcoming schedule, the weekly Interior Conference Power Rankings will be unveiled, and we’ll present the news and notes from the defending BCHL champs.
Boston Pizza Vees This Week airs Monday nights at 6 PM on EZ Rock AM 800.
Twelve games marks exactly 1/5th of the BCHL’s 60 game season, and so let us pause and take account of a young Penticton Vees squad tattooed with the label of ‘defending champs’ despite a huge roster turnover.
A look at the standings finds the Vees in the midst of the tight Interior Conference, but well back in the number of games played. It’s tough to get a sense of where they rank in the Interior, because the rest of the conference has played 15-19 games (as opposed to 12), and the Vees have played Quesnel once, and are yet to play Merritt, arguably the two weakest teams in the conference (by contrast Salmon Arm have played the pair 7 times each, Prince George and Westside 6 times and Trail 5 times,).
Also of note, the Vees have played just 3 home games this season, a remarkably low number due to the construction of the S.O.E.C.. The Vees are a perfect (3-0-0-0) at home, but then again what really is a home game? Today the Vees will conduct their first practice (!) at the S.O.E.C., which will start to give them a feel for the rink. Memorial Arena’s dwarfed dimensions and deceptive corners will now be replaced with a brand new boards and NHL size ice.
Starting tomorrow the Vees will enjoy a three game home-stand (doubling their home games played), before departing on their longest road trip of the season where they play @ Merritt, @ Powell River, @ Surrey, @Burnaby, and @ Langley over a span of 8 days.
Making the long journey more challenging is the fact that the Vees will likely be without the services of top centre Denver Manderson, and gritty 17-year-old standout Curtis McKenzie for all but the first of the 5 game road trip. Manderson and McKenzie have been named to a 25 man expanded roster for Team Canada West of the World Jr. ‘A’ Challenge that will get pared down to 22 for the international tournament.
As for the team itself, the biggest challenge for this club is trying not to be dwarfed by comparisons to last years club. The diaper-clad 08/09 release of the Vees features 6 players born in ‘91 & ‘92, 10 rookies, and 5 players who played Midget last season.
The D-core is veteran (4 x 20-year-olds, 2 x 19-year-olds, and 1 x 16-year-old) and the strength of the club, injuries and suspensions excused, they have resembled one of the best groups in the league. Goyens has been steady, Jobke equal to the task, Grossmann as intimidating as ever, and the top four have been sound.
Upfront, the late return of Denver Manderson gives the Vees one of the top offensive players in the BCHL. Perdicaro, Vandenberg and McKenzie have produced with consistency, but aside from the aforementioned quartet the forward ranks need to find the back of the net more regularly. Milan has shown flashes of brilliance, but is still trying to find out what does and doesn’t work in the BCHL. Ditto for Junior ‘B’ standouts Travis Ouellette and Ryan Viselli. Youngsters Ryan Johansen and Logan Johnston are young and improving with each game, playing in an ‘energy-line’ role. Veterans Brad Reid, Mitch Lebreche and David Andreassen have been steady if not spectacular, and Joey Holka has added physicality while his playmaking skills are still adjusting to the quick pace of the BCHL.
Between the pipes inconsistency has plagued the rookie tandem of Borelli and Bonar. It also doesn’t help that for the last 3 years the Vees have had been backstopped by arguably the best goalie in the BCHL at the time (Alex Evin last season, and Cory Milan in previous years). Bonar is just 17 and has at least another year and a half of development in Junior A ahead of him, while Borelli is 19 and has the pressure of living up to the expectations of a #1 goaltender in his first season in the BCHL.
If the club can play well at home for their next three games, tread water on the road without two players from their top line, they have an 8 game homestand waiting for them come mid-November.
I chatted with Fred Harbinson ahead of practice today…
