It was shades of the 2006 Fred Page Cup final Saturday night between the Express and Vees at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre. Tight checking, disciplined defensive hockey between both the Express and the Vees. Penticton prevailed by a score of 3-1, but it wasn't due to a lack of a strong effort by the home side.
Burnaby needed to play that tight defensive game for a full 60 minutes to give them a chance to win. The Express executed the game plan pretty much to a "T".
The Vees had a pair of powerplays in the games opening ten minutes. The Express did an excellent job protecting the middle of the ice and limiting the quality chances for the Vees on the powerplay.
The strong penalty kill effort set the tone for the Express and gave them the confidence that if they stuck to their game plan, they would have a shot to shut down the high flying Vees.
The Express got a 7 minute powerplay early in the first period after a big hit by David Dotan that was followed by Luke Curadi protecting his teammate and getting involved in an exchange with Luke Challier.
The Express struck early on the powerplay as former Vee James Bettauer beat Joel Rumpel for his first Express goal in his 2nd Express game to open the scoring.
The extended powerplay continued as the 5 minute major for fighting was the first penalty in effect. The Express were then given a 2 man advantage with Matt Paltridge being called for high sticking. But, the Express could only manage the one goal by Bettauer on the 7 minute powerplay.
Burnaby took their lead to the second period. The Vees pulled even midway through the 2nd on a powerplay. Matt Paltridge made a great fake shot then dished the puck off to Beau Bennett who roofed his shot over the shoulder of Harrison May.
The Vees second goal of the period came on a powerplay as well. With Garrick Perry in the box for a questionable roughing penalty, Beau Bennett had time and space in the high slot and wired a shot top shelf on Harrison May.
The third period saw the Vees clamp down in defensive mode and shut down the Express. It wasn't a surprise to see the Vees give Burnaby trouble coming out of their own end. And when the Express did break through the Vees tight defence, Joel Rumpel was there to turn aside the 6 Express shots sent his way.
Penticton rounded out the scoring late in the third period as Simon Denis lost his footing behind his own net and Bennett picked up the puck and scored on a wrap around into the empty net to put the game away.
Shots:
Burnaby - 22
Penticton - 22
Powerplays:
Burnaby 1/6
Penticton 2/8
3 stars:
3. Beau Bennett - Led the offensive attack for the victorious Vees.
2. Harrison May - Posted his second straight strong performance in the Express crease in a losing cause.
1. Joel Rumpel - Stopped 21 of 22 Express shots to post his 2nd win of the season vs. the Express.
Now, on paper it's easy to see the Express losing the game. But their strong disciplined game for a full 60 minutes can go a long way to give the Express the confidence that they can play with the league's best. Is it pretty? no. Does it say the Express have the talent that can match the Penticton's, Vernon's etc? no. But what it does say they're capable of executing a game plan that gives them a chance to win vs. the BCHL's elite. And the Express will need a similar performance Sunday afternoon when they welcome the 26-1 Vernon Vipers to the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.
The last time Burnaby and Vernon met in early October in Vernon, the Vipers did knock off the Express 4-2. But, Burnaby played a similar disciplined defensive game that day like they did Saturday night vs. Penticton.
The performance the Express put in Saturday will go a long way giving the Express confidence that if they play Sunday like they did Saturday, they might just put themselves in a good position to win as the game winds down.
Sure, Penticton won Saturday night over the Express, but this result is a huge morale boost for this Express team. There's nothing to be disappointed about. The Express gave Penticton all they had Saturday night.
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