vees:blog

19:05 PM - Big crowd on hand tonight at Pen-Mem. Perdicaro, Ouellette and Viselli start up front, Paltridge and Westover on Defense, and Bonar in Net.

FIRST PERIOD

TWEET!!!! Bonar losses his helmet on the first play of the game. It will be interesting to see how the Warriors respond to last nights LATE blowout at the hands of the Vees… It was 1-0 after 40 minutes, and ended up 7-2. Perhaps they’ll keep Murtagh in net for the whole game tonight.

2:00 - Great pressure form the Warriors early. They’ve elected to start last night’s final goalie Michael Tomescu. I didn’t expect that. I bet they close out with Murtagh.

SCORES!!!! Travis Ouellette has notched another. Viselli and Perdicaro draw the assists. 1-0 Vees at 4:00.

6:54 - Just like last night the game has started a bit tentatively, these teams are feeling each other out. Unlike last night, I am happy to report that I remembered to turn the lights off on my car, and haven’t been paged over the PA to this point.

12:34 - SCORES!!!! - Travis Ouellette gets his second (he’s heating up!), another assist to Viselli and Westover get the other. 2-0 Blue. I wish the BCHL had detailed pre-season stats, so I could tell you how many that is from Ouellette, but alas I have no clue.

18:00 - MacKenzie just bowled over a Warrior trying to cut to the Vees net. The Warriors had the early pressure, but the Vees have held the edge in scoring chances.

BZZZZZZZ!!!! End of Period. 2 - Rip for Penticton. Shots on net are 14-8. Westside 0/3 and Penticton 0/0 on the Power Play.

SECOND PERIOD

SCORES!!!!! Ouellette! HATTRICK!!. Assists to Viselli (3rd of the night) and Perdicaro (2nd of the night) :20 seconds the time of the goal. 3 - Bagel Vees.

SCORES!!!! Andreassen bangs home a rebound, he sat out last night’s game, but has scored in every game he has dressed. Johansen and Westover get assists at 2:22.

SCORES!!!!! Westside is on the board. Tough-guy Brad Plumpton scores, assist to Nick Zaino time of the goal 4:37. 4-1 Vees.

7:40 - SCORES!!!! Perdicaro from an ugly angle! Yuck. Viselli gets his 4th assist of the night, while Paltridge gets his second apple. 5-1

Now in net for the Westside Warriors… DEVON MURTAGH!

8:23 - Scuffle in front of the Vees bench. Plumpton and Grossmann had to be separated by the officials after a 10 man pile had formed.

Now in net for the Vees is Anthony Borelli who played the full game last night. Still 5-1 Vees.

I’m watching the game with a couple friends who have come in from Vancouver. One is a pal from Australia. It’s his first hockey game and is thoroughly enjoying it!

Perdicaro, Viselli and Ouellette just spent a full minute cycling down low in the Westside zone.

SCORES!!!! 6-1 Vees. C-Mac leveled another Warrior to free up the puck and Nathan Westover drove one home from the point (3rd point for him!). The goal came at 14:09 and was followed by a Curtis MacKenzie vs. Ron Kelly vs. the Linesman fight. The poor Zebra got the worst of the exchange.

MacKenzie will not be intimidated!!

15:26 - FIGHT!!!! Perdicaro and Viselli are off to the locker room to join C-Mac. 6-1 the score. 3 fights. I love hockey. Gibson and Gagne were the Warriors at the square dance. I had a bad angle on those fights as it was in the one corner of the rink I can’t see, dang!

SCORES!!!! Josepher on a 5-on-3, from Devon Krogh and Garrett Milan. It’s 7-1 at 15:50 of the 2nd!!

16:50 - WOW, Matt Paltridge nearly took a Warriors head off! That has to be the hit of the game (soon to be brought to you by Desert Stone Custom Granite!), but a charge was called on the play.

BZZZZZZZ!!!! End of the SECOND.

THIRD PERIOD

I wonder what Fred Harbinson’s plan is with his goaltenders. Bonar has allowed 4 goals in 4.5 pre-season periods, while Borelli has allowed 2 goals in 3.5 periods. Neither has looked bad, both have had to play in games that were out of reach at some point. That would be a good poll question… (metal note).

While the goaltending situation may be a bid murky here in Penticton, that certainly isn’t the case with the Warriors. Murtagh has look far superior to Tomescu last night and tonight.

12:20 - SCORES!!!! the Warriors have their 2nd of the night (one less than Ouellette)! Johnny Rogic scores (as he did last night) assists to Alex Grieve and Brett Lyon.

SCORES!!!! Warriors again! A Power Play Goal. Justin Schultz from Nick Zaino and Brad Plumpton at 15:51. Schultz has looked good tonight. He was drafted 43rd overall at the NHL Entry Draft in Ottawa this Spring, two picks before former Vees F Zac Dalpe.

7-3 the score.

BZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!! GAME OVER.

Pinder’s 3 Stars

1 - Ouellette (hatty!) 2 - Viselli (4A and a fight) 3 - Westover (1G, 2A)

18:36 - The last time these two teams locked horns here at Royal LePage Place the Vees withstood a late push from the Warriors and swept their way to the BCHL Final. Tonight, the stakes are much, much, much lower.

Aren’t you excited??

Anthony Borelli will get the start in net for the Vees, he has come on strong after a slow start in camp. An ‘89 (19 year-old season), Borelli is the greybeard of the goaltending trio, with Sean Bonar and Andrew Walton both two seasons younger. Borelli played at Salisbury Prep, not to be confused with salisbury steak. Mmmm Steak.

Devon Murtagh will start for the Westside Warriors. He’s a ‘89 from Kelowna, BC (across the bridge). That’s all I know about him.

18:45 - Warm up is now over and most of the 1500 seats are empty. Interesting to see if the crowd will be substantial with it being a long weekend and an exhibition tilt.

18:48 - Oh, Crap! I just heard my license plate number announced over the PA. I left my lights on.

I’ll be back…

FIRST PERIOD

Vees Starting Line-up: Perdicaro, Ouellette, Viselli, Josepher and MacLeod for the Vees. Isaac MacLeod (younger brother of former Vees F Alex MacLoed) is just 16 but he looks 7 ft tall!

Warriors Starters: Watson, Bailey, Kakoske, Plumton and Hutchinson

3:00 - Trupp just ran in to a bigger Warrior and gave him a good jolt. Hayden has been impressive since arriving!

Oh! Viselli nearly beat Murtagh on a partial break. Nice Save. Visselli has been piling up points all pre-season.

Shots are 5-1, but Westside is heading out on the Power Play… Stefanski for Interference.

8:40 - Penalty Killed… no shots for the Warriors.

Not the torrid pace we saw Wednesday Night in Pen Memorial.

15:10 - Still zeros… Vandenberg just rang one off the iron from the slot. Now Borelli makes a nice pair of stops, sliding right to left with traffic in front of him.

16:23 - Murtagh makes another good stop from in close. This time he robs Logan Johnston on the Power Play. I’m told Murtagh played for the Nelson Leafs of the KIJHL last season.

Travis Ouellette had had a few chances early, he’ll be counted upon for offense this season. He leads the team with 5 vowels in his last name.

It has been a tactical and defensive battle early on here, it may take a goal to losen things up.

BZZZZZZZZZZ!!!! Period Over. 10-5 the shots on net, favouring the Vees.

Time for a coffee, I shouldn’t have napped before the game… I hope I’m not boring you as much as I am myself!

SECOND PERIOD

I caught up with Curtis MacKenzie’s dad at the intermission, I filled him in on Curtis’ monster game Wednesday in Penticton. The MacKenzies were kind enough to have the whole team over for a dinner last Spring, when we drove through Golden on our way over to Camrose for the Doyle Cup. Great people.

Great 3 way passing play from MacKenzie to Milan to Vandenberg, he just got robbed and actually placed both hands over his face in disbelief, he can’t buy one tonight. We’re still tied, nil-nil.

4:35 - Murtagh is becoming the story tonight. The Shots are 15-8 for the Vees.

4:53 - Garrett Watson just rocked Vandenberg. Tough night for him!

SCORES!!!!! MacKenzie on a jam in at the side of the net. Vandenberg and Milan draw assists on the goal. 1-0 Vees.

10:00 - NEW GOALIE ALERT!!!! Micheal Tomescu is the new protector of the twine for the Warriors. Murtagh impressed me, a solid performance.

I’m up in the press box here in Royal LePage Place, and was just asked who I thought would be the leadership group for the Vees this year (Captain and Alternate Captains). Tough Question. All of the lettered players from last season are gone (Hextall, Wagner, Guzzo and McMurphy). Not sure what Fred Harbinson and the guys (there’s usually player input too) will decide to do.

Tons of icings this game. Mark Howell (Warriors Head Coach and Director of Player Personal) always seems to play the Vees really tight.

18:00 - Shots are 24-13 for the Vees with less than two minutes to play in the second.

Murray Maxwell (Vees long-time Equipment Manager) will be upset to hear the BC Lions have lost 30-25 to the Montreal Alouettes. Murray is always hunting scores from around the CFL, NHL, WHL, KIJHL and of course the BCHL. The Lions are in trouble in the West, which may be good news as the 4th place team should crossover and play in the East in the Playoffs, likely an easier route to the Grey Cup.

END OF PERIOD. 1-0 Vees. Shots are 24-14 for the defending champs.

THIRD PERIOD

At this point on Wednesday there had been 11 goals scored. Tonight just a single.

The Vees start the period with 1:08 of Power Play time. Both teams are 0/1 at this point.

0:34 - Plumpton just got called for a hit from behind. 5-3 now for a few tics. Not anymore! A couple good blocks and Vees blunders keep the puck away from th

SCORES!!!! Vandenberg from Mackenzie at 2:23, just four seconds after the Power Play ended.

MEMO FROM THE DEPAERTMENT OF OBVIOUS INFORMATION: MacKenzie’s line with Vandenberg and Milan has looked strong!

SCORES!!!! The Warriors are on the board! Speedster Johnny Rogic gets the goal. Assisted by Tyler French and Gavin Currie.

SCORES!!!! Travis Ouellette pokes a loose puck home, 3-1 Vees at 5:14. Assists to Anthony Perdicaor and Ryan Viselli.

FIGHT!!! Logan Johnston and Garrett Watson drop the mitts, but not before Garrett looks at the bench and gets the nod from his coach - talk about discipline!! Watson lands on top, but Logan lands the most punches and handles the challenge of bigger and older (3 years older) opponent nicely!

Colton Jobke (Vees 16-year-old D-man) is in the booth here and tells me that Tomascu (Westside Goalie) grew up near him. Michael Tomescu is from North Delta (also the home of Nathan Westover), while Jobke is a South Delta guy. Tomescu was the last goalie cut from the Major Midget Greater Vancouver Canadians last year. The Starting goalie there last year, you ask?? Why, Sean Bonar, you silly!! Jobke has been in Kelowna Rockets camp since Vees camp ended. He wants to keep his NCAA eligibility alive this year and likely won’t play in Kelowna.

SCORES!!!! Vinny Muchalla snipes short side from the right faceoff circle. Assists to the aforementioned Westy and Brad Reid at 10:15

SCORES!!!! Vees again! Reid from Muchalla, 5-1 Blue. Just 24 seconds after the last tally! This isn’t going terribly well for Tomescu.

SCORES!!!! Warriors get their second of the night. Currie from Regier and Howe. 5-2 Vees. Time of the goal 14:11

SCORES!!!! Vees strike right back! Wow, this has opened up! Ouellette from Viselli and Perdicaro (another productive trio tonight). Just 17 seconds after the Warrior goal.

17:30 - Things are getting physical. The Vees’ Bob Pond just got a penalty for playing without his helmet (it was knoecked off, he wasn’t going MacTavish on his own).

SCORES!!!! MacKenzie!!! Shorthanded with 23.4 seconds to play on a break-away. If you read the last game blog you know how strong my feelings are (!!) for Curtis MacKenzie. It’s only pre-season, but he looks sooo comfy out there!

BZZZZZZZZZ!!!! Game Over. 7-2 Vees.

Pinder’s 3 Stars 1 - Ouellette (Vees F) 2 - MacKenzie (Vees F) 3 - Murtagh (Warriors G)

Next Game: Tomorrow in Pen-Mem. 7:05 puck-drop.

Yeah, should be fun.

I’ll try to be a bit quicker on my toes in terms of answering questions or comments posted during the game.

I expect a more competitive battle between the South Okanagan foes at Royal LePage Place tonight.

The Warriors are somewhat of an unknown quantity at this point. I’m looking forward to tonight’s tilt.

Blogging begins in 3 or 4 hours! Type to you soon!

18:05 - Okay, so I’m not terribly sure how this is going to work, but hopefully the end result is something mildly entertaining and/or informative. I’m sitting in Section G Row A Seat 9 about to embark on my most ballsy blog-related endeavor. For the next 3 or so hours I’ll be posting random musings, stats and hockey related tidbits - not to be confused with Timbits (please advertise on the Blog Tim Hortons… I’ll take contra!!)

Just spoke with Vees Head Coach and freshly appointed Director of Hockey Operations Fred Harbinson. He told me about a couple that always wave to him before each game… religiously. Got us talking about how great the fans are here in Penticton.

Jayson Moonie just dropped by to say hi and encourages all to join the Penticton Vees group on Facebook. Word.

18:26 - The PA Announcer here in Penticton is Roy Brown, he used to be the PA announcer at Taylor Field (Now Mosaic Stadium) for the Saskatchewan Roughriders, but is secretly a Calgary Stampeders fan. Don’t worry Roy, your secret is safe with me.

The Merritt Centennials have just taken the ice for the warm up… FOLLOWED BY YOUR PENTICTON VEES!!!!! ‘I Can’t Drive 55′ by Sammy Hagar begins playing as the first skate touches the ice. Sounds like a weaker version of Van Halen’s ‘Bad Medicine’ if you ask me. And with that, hockey season has arrived in Penticton.

Sean Bonar will get the start for the Vees between the pipes. Sean is one of the top ‘91 goaltenders in BC and has multiple top end NCAA progams stalking him despite the fact he hasn’t played a single minute in the BCHL (wow).

18:38 - I spoke with local forward and former KIJHL sniper Dustin Johnson before the game. He was traded from Nanaimo in the offseason after being nabbed off the Vees ‘AP’ list last season. Dustin was contemplating playing in Portland of the WHL this year but has decided to pursue his NCAA goals and stay in the BCHL. Johnson is in great spirits and says the Cents will be veerrrrry tough this year… this could be fun tonight!

Warm up is over… the highlight was watching a Vees player get all twisted up in a warm-up drill and crash into Sean Bonar. I don’t think crashing your own net in warm-up is the best way to earn a roster spot!

Speaking of which the Vees are at 30 players and have to have that chopped down to 23 by the start of the season (just 9 days away).

18:49 - I just got asked by some guy if I was looking at porn. uh, weird question to ask… and the answer is ‘NO’! I asked the gentleman (let’s use that term loosely) if he was from Merritt - “Penticton actually”.

I’m going to miss this old barn… as nice as the new SOEC will be I doubt there another rink in North America that can rival the character that Pen Memorial has. My favorite piece of memorabilia is the editorial cartoon in the SW corner of the building.

19:01 - Josepher, Viselli, Paltridge, Ouellette, and Perdicaro start for the Vees.

Merritt just took a penalty :11 seconds in… not a great game-plan!

Garrett Milan just got his first GASP from Vees fans (many more to come) on the power play as he nearly put one home.

SCORES!!!! Just after the PP ended Hayden Trupp (younger brother of Evan) wireds one home from the slot ***UPDATE*** the goal was credited incorrectly as it was Rajan Sidhu with the blast not Hayden Trupp. Assists to Curtis Mackenzie and Brad Reid 1-0 Vees! Time of the goal 2:14. Great pass from C-Mac. I’m expecting a huge season from him, he is a beauty!

SCORES!!!! Perdicaro in the slot! 2-0 good guys… another great feed. Assists to Ryan Viselli and Devon Krogh at 4:55

19:12 - SCORES!!!! 3-0 Vees. Ryan Viselli from Joe LaLeggia and Travis Ouellette. Graeme Gordon the Merritt Goalie just got burnt leaving the crease to play with the puck. 8:15 is the time of the Power Play tally.

Brad Reid just rang one off the iron shorthanded on a 1-on-1. He was acquired from Victoria where he and his younger brother played last season. He is bigger than I remember.

SCORES!!!! Vandenberg just tucked one home. Unassisted. Things are getting ugly for Merritt!

Milan just undressed a defender and got robbed by Gordon (that’s better Graeme).

MacKenzie gets 2 minutes for hitting too hard (boarding is what was announced)! I love this kid!

19:27 - 1:32 remaining in the 1st. It’s all Vees. The shots on net shouldn’t be very close.

19:31 - SCORES!!!! David Andreassen just scored his 3rd pre-season goal in his 4th pre-season period… okay 5th (last night’s 5-4 win for the Vees went into OT). That with :08 seconds remaining… ouch, I smell a Merritt goaltending change. Andreassen got mobbed by Centennials after the goal… no fight though.

PERIOD 1 OVER - shots on net 13-8 for Penticton… I wonder if they counted the goals! ***UPDATE*** they did!

I need a hotdog… It’s 5-0 Vees.

Here’s the Scoring Summery from the 1st

2:14 SIDHU - MacKenzie, Reid 4:55 Perdicaro - Viselli, Krogh 8:15 Viselli - LaLeggia, Ouellette PPG 12:12 Vandenberg (unassisted) 19:52 Andreassen (unassisted)

19:47 - NEW GOALIE ALERT! Merritt will start the 2nd period with Kyle Nielson in net. He’s a ‘90 (18 year old season).

19:55 - Heavy open ice hit by Cam Brodie of the Cents… Merritt play of the night??

SCORES!!!! Vandenberg at 6:11 for his 2nd of the night, Trupp and MacKenzie draw assists! C-Mac just made another GREAT pass! I’m developing a ‘man-crush’!!

6-0 homeside.

20:01 - Nearly a tussle between Andreassen and Paul Forster… 5-on-3 Penticton… Now 5-on-4… Now 4-on-4. I can’t keep up!!

20:06 - SCORES!!!! 11:14 of the 2nd and you can kiss the shutout goodbye for Bonar… he thought he had it frozen… he was wrong! Local boy Dustin Johnson gets the goal, assists to Forster and Herold.

Josepher just ran over a Cent… big hit.

6-1 if you’ve forgotten.

20:13 - SCORES!!!! SHG Andreassen, Again! Unassited. That’s his 4th in the pre-season. He’s on pace to beat Brett Hull’s 115 in a season!! ***UPDATE*** it was actually 105!

SCORES!!!! NOW MILAN at 14:49 assist to Trupp also short-handed!

SCORES!!! Merritt has their 2nd. A PPG scored by Dustin Johnson (his 2nd) assists to Forster and Hobbs. 15: the time of the goal.

It’s 8-2 Vees.

FIGHT!!!! MacKenzie and Jake Baker two ’91s, no check that, two BIG ’91s. MacKenzie hung in early and then rallied with a flurry of lefts to knock down Baker… I’m in love!!!

20:23 - SCORES!!!! Ryan Johansen with a nice dangle makes it 9-2 at 18:16 of the 2nd period. A Power Play Goal. Johansen walked right out of the corner and beat Nielson ‘five-hole’. He’s a 16 year-old with a big frame… lots to like if you are a scout.

END OF THE 2ND PERIOD - 9-2 Vees.

20:35 - Scoring Summery for the 2nd Period 6:11 Vandenberg - Trupp, MacKenzie 14:34 SHG Andreassen (UA) 14:49 SHG Milan - Vandenberg 18:16 PPG Johansen (UA)

Merritt 11:14 Johnson - Forster Herold 16:02 PPG Johnson - Hobbs, Forster

22:40 - THIRD PERIOD

There are 3 ’92s playing for the Vees (16-year-old season). All have been solid Johansen has a goal, Trupp is all over the score sheet, and LaLeggia has been really smart with the puck… he’s the smallest, so he has to be!

20:49 - SCORES!!! Dustin Johnson just got his hattrick goal!! 9-3, the Vees lead Dustin Johnson…er, the Merritt Centennials. Great to see Dustin ripple the net at this level. He was used sparingly in the playoffs by Nanaimo last season, but great things are ahead… he’ll play a ton in Merritt.

SCORES!!!!! Viselli just got another… I have no idea how many that is for him (it’s two, I just checked). Perdicaro and Ouellette get the assists at 9:28, It’s 10-3.

21:09 - FIGHT!!! Josepher and Alessio! FIIIGHt!!! Andreassen and Forster!

We’ll call the first a split decision for Alessio and Andreassen won a wrestling match by landing a few rights at the end.

Less than a minute to play.

MAKE THE FINAL (Vic Rauter shout out!) 10-3 Penticton.

PINDER’S 3 STARS (brought to you by Acadian Mechanical…see John Turner and his staff… oh, right. Not ’til Septemer 5th, you get the point!)

1 - Curtis MacKenzie: Goals, Assists, Fights, Penalties. I bet he can even beat Usain Bolt in a foot race! I’m gushing. 2 - Garrett Milan: I want to nick-name him ‘the torpedo’, a low level rocket! 3 - David Andreassen: Four goals and a tilt (tilly as the kids say) in 2 pre-season matches… a tip of the hat to Coach Fred and Co. for wrangling him out of Camrose.

It’s been fun, we’ll do it again Friday from Westside!

The Vees are 2-0 in the Pre-season. Next Home Game is Saturday as the Warriors visit. 7:05 Puck Drop.

[Send your comments and heckles to veesvoice (at) gmail.com]