You can mark it down on the calendar, former Express Brandon Yip scored his first NHL goal on December 22 2009 in his 3rd NHL game on Jonas Hiller of the Anahiem Ducks at 2:09 of the first period.
Check out the video of the goal below.
See his post game scrum below.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Monday, December 21, 2009
MATT COOK UPDATE
Here's an article on former Express captain Brady Cook's brother Matt from the Edmonton Journal.
Click here to read the article
Click here to read the article
Saturday, December 19, 2009
EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS
Here's the highlights from Burnaby's two games this week vs. Williams Lake and Quesnel.
Below is the highlights from the Williams Lake 4-2 win over the Express.
Below is the highlights from Burnaby's 5-2 win over Quesnel Friday night.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
Below is the highlights from the Williams Lake 4-2 win over the Express.
Below is the highlights from Burnaby's 5-2 win over Quesnel Friday night.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
YIP EXCITED FOR DEBUT
No surprise, Brandon Yip is very excited for his NHL debut tonight vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Adrian Dater of the Denver Post wrote a great article on the Express alum.
Click here to read the article
EXPRESS SPLIT FINAL 2 GAMES BEFORE BREAK
The Express split a pair home games this week, falling 4-2 Wednesday night to the Williams Lake Timbervoles. Then bounced back Friday night to head to the Christmas break on a winning note with a 5-2 win over the Quesnel Millionaires.
Wednesday, the Jekyl and Hide Express continued to leave people scratching their heads with their inconsistent performances.
After coming off a pair of solid outings the weekend before battling the Victoria Grizzlies and Surrey Eagles to overtime picking up 3 out of 4 points,
the Express put themselves in a position to finish their pre-christmas schedule on some form of a roll.
Williams Lake came to Burnaby with just one win on the road all season long, they arrived to the rink less than an hour before puck drop and it appeared the cards were lining up for the Express to take full advantage of the circumstances.
But it didn't happen, the Express did outshoot Williams Lake 40-31 and goaltender Evan Dauenhauer wasn't forced to be overly spectacular.
It was hard to comprehend how the Express didn't come out ready to play and jump on the Timberwolves early. As a result, Williams Lake opened the scoring on a powerplay goal by Jason Diehl in the final minute of the first period.
The Express did pull even early in the second on a pretty passing play of their own on the powerplay with Brad Reid re-directing a James Bettauer pass home at 2:04.
The game remained tied going into the third period. And by this point, the game was very much up for grabs and the vibe was the game could go either way. Nothing was giving you any indication that eventually the way the Express were playing they were going to pull away in spite of the 27-16 shot advantage through 40 minutes.
It's games like Wednesday's that can be really scary when a club like Williams Lake was allowed to hang around and be one shot away from taking the lead themselves.
That's exactly what they did with Justin Bardarson breaking the deadlock at 2:03 of the third to give Williams Lake their second lead of the game at 2-1.
Bardarson struck again with a powerplay marker 3 minutes later to give Williams Lake a 3-1 lead.
By that point you knew the game was over even with 15 minutes remaining in the game. The way Burnaby was playing there was no indication they were going to be able to make up the 2 goal deficit.
Justin Hogan scored Williams Lake's 3rd goal in a 5 minute span to ensure the T-Wolves victory on this night.
Garrick Perry rounded out the scoring with a shorthanded goal to make the final 4-2 Willams Lake.
This was a game the Express had to win if they were serious about keeping within striking distance of the Cowichan Valley Capitals for the final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference. The game was Burnaby's game in hand on the Caps. A win would have allowed them to pull within one point of the final playoff spot.
Last week Cowichan sent a message by defeating those same Timberwolves and Burnaby had to respond but failed to do so. It's losses like Wednesday night that make the hill steeper and steeper to climb for the Express in their push to for the playoffs.
Wednesday's result made Friday's game for Burnaby vs. Quesnel that much more vital.
They couldn't afford a similar let down for a second straight game.
Burnaby got off to a rare fast start with Brad Reid opening the scoring just 41 seconds into the game on a delayed penalty.
The lead lasted just 21 seconds however as Joshua Desmarais responded for Quesnel at 1:02.
From that point on, Express goaltender Nick Enegren showed he was ready to play. The Mills sent plenty of rubber his way in the first period. But the rookie netminder showed he was ready for the challenge. He was very aggressive in his crease challenging the shooters. Allowing the puck to hit him and limiting the rebounds.
The strong play of the Express goaltender kept the game tied and allowed them to take the lead late in the first period. Colby Kulhanek's wrist shot from just inside the blueline handcuffed Luke Siemens and slid in to re-store the Express lead at 18:26.
The goal for Kulhanek was just his second since coming to the Express, and his first since his Burnaby debut November 13th in Nanaimo. A span of 14 games.
With that goal the Express appeared to be in good shape to head to the room with the lead for what would have been just the 6th time all season.
But just seconds after Kulhanek's goal, Luke Challer was sent off after an undisciplined charging penalty giving Quesnel a late powerplay.
The Mills made Challer and the Express pay for the penalty as Desmarais scored his second of the game from Trevor Hertz and former Express Jacob Verheyden and the teams went to the room tied at 2.
The shots were 18-10 in the first period. And thanks to Nick Enegren's strong play, he kept his team in the game. And was the difference that prevented Burnaby from going to the dressing room trailing.
Burnaby re-stored their lead on a early powerplay as James Bettauer fired a shot past Siemens at 2:43.
The story again however in the second period was the play of Nick Enegren who stopped all 19 shots allowing Burnaby to take their lead to the third period.
Rich Manley rewarded the Express netminder with an insurance goal at 2:10 of the third period banging home a loose puck to give the Express a 4-2 lead.
Then rookie Alex Petan put the game away for the Express with his first BCHL goal from James Bettauer and Sean Dinsmore at 13:03 to put the Express up 5-2. Dinsmore's assist was his first BCHL point.
The 5-2 win for the Express takes away some of the sting of the loss to Williams Lake two nights before.
Shots:
Burnaby 35
Quesnel 46
Powerplays:
Burnaby 1/6
Quesnel 1/4
3 stars:
3. Jimmy Geerin - Had 1 assist on James Bettauer's game winning goal in the 2nd period.
2. Colby Kulhanek - 1 goal and 2 assists for the homeside.
1. Nick Enegren - The biggest reason for the Express victory stopping 44 of 46 shots he faced. Including all 28 sent his way in the final 2 periods.
Honourable mention:
James Bettauer - 1 goal and 3 assists from the Express blueliner.
Burnaby kept pace with the Capitals for the final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference as Cowichan Valley blanked Williams Lake 5-0 extending their winning streak to 5 games. The Express are still 3 points back of the Caps for the final playoff spot.
Cowichan Valley will wrap up their pre-christmas schedule Sunday vs. the Alberni Valley Bulldogs.
Burnaby will now take 11 days off and return to action after the holidays on December 29th at home vs. the Langley Chiefs.
Wednesday, the Jekyl and Hide Express continued to leave people scratching their heads with their inconsistent performances.
After coming off a pair of solid outings the weekend before battling the Victoria Grizzlies and Surrey Eagles to overtime picking up 3 out of 4 points,
the Express put themselves in a position to finish their pre-christmas schedule on some form of a roll.
Williams Lake came to Burnaby with just one win on the road all season long, they arrived to the rink less than an hour before puck drop and it appeared the cards were lining up for the Express to take full advantage of the circumstances.
But it didn't happen, the Express did outshoot Williams Lake 40-31 and goaltender Evan Dauenhauer wasn't forced to be overly spectacular.
It was hard to comprehend how the Express didn't come out ready to play and jump on the Timberwolves early. As a result, Williams Lake opened the scoring on a powerplay goal by Jason Diehl in the final minute of the first period.
The Express did pull even early in the second on a pretty passing play of their own on the powerplay with Brad Reid re-directing a James Bettauer pass home at 2:04.
The game remained tied going into the third period. And by this point, the game was very much up for grabs and the vibe was the game could go either way. Nothing was giving you any indication that eventually the way the Express were playing they were going to pull away in spite of the 27-16 shot advantage through 40 minutes.
It's games like Wednesday's that can be really scary when a club like Williams Lake was allowed to hang around and be one shot away from taking the lead themselves.
That's exactly what they did with Justin Bardarson breaking the deadlock at 2:03 of the third to give Williams Lake their second lead of the game at 2-1.
Bardarson struck again with a powerplay marker 3 minutes later to give Williams Lake a 3-1 lead.
By that point you knew the game was over even with 15 minutes remaining in the game. The way Burnaby was playing there was no indication they were going to be able to make up the 2 goal deficit.
Justin Hogan scored Williams Lake's 3rd goal in a 5 minute span to ensure the T-Wolves victory on this night.
Garrick Perry rounded out the scoring with a shorthanded goal to make the final 4-2 Willams Lake.
This was a game the Express had to win if they were serious about keeping within striking distance of the Cowichan Valley Capitals for the final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference. The game was Burnaby's game in hand on the Caps. A win would have allowed them to pull within one point of the final playoff spot.
Last week Cowichan sent a message by defeating those same Timberwolves and Burnaby had to respond but failed to do so. It's losses like Wednesday night that make the hill steeper and steeper to climb for the Express in their push to for the playoffs.
Wednesday's result made Friday's game for Burnaby vs. Quesnel that much more vital.
They couldn't afford a similar let down for a second straight game.
Burnaby got off to a rare fast start with Brad Reid opening the scoring just 41 seconds into the game on a delayed penalty.
The lead lasted just 21 seconds however as Joshua Desmarais responded for Quesnel at 1:02.
From that point on, Express goaltender Nick Enegren showed he was ready to play. The Mills sent plenty of rubber his way in the first period. But the rookie netminder showed he was ready for the challenge. He was very aggressive in his crease challenging the shooters. Allowing the puck to hit him and limiting the rebounds.
The strong play of the Express goaltender kept the game tied and allowed them to take the lead late in the first period. Colby Kulhanek's wrist shot from just inside the blueline handcuffed Luke Siemens and slid in to re-store the Express lead at 18:26.
The goal for Kulhanek was just his second since coming to the Express, and his first since his Burnaby debut November 13th in Nanaimo. A span of 14 games.
With that goal the Express appeared to be in good shape to head to the room with the lead for what would have been just the 6th time all season.
But just seconds after Kulhanek's goal, Luke Challer was sent off after an undisciplined charging penalty giving Quesnel a late powerplay.
The Mills made Challer and the Express pay for the penalty as Desmarais scored his second of the game from Trevor Hertz and former Express Jacob Verheyden and the teams went to the room tied at 2.
The shots were 18-10 in the first period. And thanks to Nick Enegren's strong play, he kept his team in the game. And was the difference that prevented Burnaby from going to the dressing room trailing.
Burnaby re-stored their lead on a early powerplay as James Bettauer fired a shot past Siemens at 2:43.
The story again however in the second period was the play of Nick Enegren who stopped all 19 shots allowing Burnaby to take their lead to the third period.
Rich Manley rewarded the Express netminder with an insurance goal at 2:10 of the third period banging home a loose puck to give the Express a 4-2 lead.
Then rookie Alex Petan put the game away for the Express with his first BCHL goal from James Bettauer and Sean Dinsmore at 13:03 to put the Express up 5-2. Dinsmore's assist was his first BCHL point.
The 5-2 win for the Express takes away some of the sting of the loss to Williams Lake two nights before.
Shots:
Burnaby 35
Quesnel 46
Powerplays:
Burnaby 1/6
Quesnel 1/4
3 stars:
3. Jimmy Geerin - Had 1 assist on James Bettauer's game winning goal in the 2nd period.
2. Colby Kulhanek - 1 goal and 2 assists for the homeside.
1. Nick Enegren - The biggest reason for the Express victory stopping 44 of 46 shots he faced. Including all 28 sent his way in the final 2 periods.
Honourable mention:
James Bettauer - 1 goal and 3 assists from the Express blueliner.
Burnaby kept pace with the Capitals for the final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference as Cowichan Valley blanked Williams Lake 5-0 extending their winning streak to 5 games. The Express are still 3 points back of the Caps for the final playoff spot.
Cowichan Valley will wrap up their pre-christmas schedule Sunday vs. the Alberni Valley Bulldogs.
Burnaby will now take 11 days off and return to action after the holidays on December 29th at home vs. the Langley Chiefs.
Friday, December 18, 2009
YIP GETS CALL FROM AVALANCHE
(Taken from Avalanche website.)
The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that the team has recalled forwards Chris Durno and Brandon Yip from the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League.
Yip, 24, missed the first two months of the season due to a hand injury suffered during a preseason game on Sept. 18 at St. Louis. He made his professional debut with Lake Erie on Dec. 1 and has gone on to record two goals in six games with the Monsters. Colorado’s seventh selection (eighth round, 239th overall) in the 2004 Entry Draft, Yip spent the past four seasons at Boston University (Hockey East), where he helped the Terriers win the 2009 NCAA championship as a senior.
He played 2 seasons with the Express from 03-05 scoring 51 goals and 131 points in 99 career games.
Durno, 29, is being recalled for the fourth time this season. He has collected two points (0g/2a) with a +2 plus/minus rating in nine games with the Avalanche this year. The Scarborough, Ontario native has tallied 18 points (10g/8a) in 17 games with the Monsters, ranking him second on the club in scoring. He is tied for first on the Monsters in goals.
The Avalanche also announced that forwards Justin Mercier and Ryan Stoa have been reassigned to Lake Erie.
Yip is expected to make his NHL debut Saturday night when Colorado takes on Columbus.
Monday, December 14, 2009
EAGLES @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS
Here's the highlights of Saturday's 4-3 OT win for the Eagles over the Express.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
KNEE INJURY SIDELINES WIERCIOCH'S WORLD JUNIOR BID
A pre-existing knee injury has ended former Express Patrick Wiercioch's bid to make Canada's National Junior team for the upcoming World Junior Championships in Saskatchewan later this month.
Hockey Canada's medical staff has sent Wiercioch back to his college club the Denver Pioneers due to the injury following his medical exam.
Tyler Cuma of the Ottawa 67's has been called up to take Wiercioch's place at camp.
Wiercioch was one of the players cut from camp before the tournament got underway last year.
Ottawa selected Wiercioch in the 2nd round of the 2008 NHL draft 42nd overall.
Wiercioch played with the Express in the 06-07 season as a 16 year old scoring 9 goals and 25 points in 42 games.
He then went to the Omaha Lancers of the USHL where he won a national championship in 2008.
Wiercioch is in his second season at Denver where he has 2 goals and 10 assists in 16 games.
EAGLES NEED OT TO DEFEAT EXPRESS
The Express picked up 3 out of 4 possible points this weekend after falling 4-3 in overtime to the Surrey Eagles Saturday night. That result comes 24 hours after a dramatic 5-4 win for the Express over Victoria Friday.
Burnaby has now picked up points in 3 of their last 4 games. The only game in that span where the Express didn't pick up points was last Sunday vs. the Cowichan Valley Capitals.
The red hot Rich Manley opened the scoring on one of the most beautiful goals you will see this season in the BCHL.
With the Express shorthanded, Brad Reid broke away with Manley, Reid came down the left wing lost his footing as he entered Surrey's zone, he was still able to dish the puck across the puck to Manley who knocked the puck out of the air and past Vinny Lessard.
The goal for Manley was his 5th in his last two games. That goal comes after Manley's first career 4 goal game in junior 24 hours earlier vs. Victoria.
Reid's helper extended his point streak to 4 games. (4G, 4A) And in Reid's last 7 games he has 6G, 4A, 10PTS.
Burnaby opened the 2nd period with a 2 man advantage for a full 2 minutes with Surrey being assessd a roughing penalty to Wes Vannieuwenhuizen and a bench minor at the 20:00 mark of the first period following some rough stuff at the horn.
Jimmy Geerin added to Burnaby's lead on the powerplay as he blasted home his 4th of the season to give the Express a 2-0 lead just 39 seconds into the second period.
The goal for Geerin extended his point streak to 4 games. (3G, 2A). Furthermore, Geerin has 3 goals and 6 assists for 9 points in his 11 games.
Surrey cut into Burnaby's lead midway through the 2nd period as Jason Grecica chipped the puck over Nick Enegren at 11:15.
Then in the final minute of the 2nd period the Eagles pulled even. Chris Santiago jammed the puck under Nick Enegren who was lying on the ice but behind his goal line and the powerplay goal saw the two teams head to the third period tied at 2.
It didn't take long for the Eagles to take their first lead of the game in the third period. Mike Krgovich came down the left wing and put a perfect pass on the tape of Grant Toulmin who had a tap in on a 2 on 1 break to give Surrey a 3-2 lead just 36 seconds into the third period.
The goal didn't rattle the recenlty resiliant Express. James Bettauer pulled the Express even less than 4 minutes later as his blast changed directions on Vinny Lessard and dribbled in to tie the game at 3.
The Express have now erased a third period deficit in 3 of their last 4 games.
For the 2nd straight meeting between these two teams at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre, Vinny Lessard was the difference between the Express and victory. He stopped 34 of 35 Express shots in a 2-1 Surrey win on October 17th. On this night, Lessard stopped 39 of 42 Express shots through 60 minutes as the teams went to overtime.
The extra session didn't last long as the Eagles controlled the puck in the opening minute of overtime in the Express zone, they bided their time and Adam Basford found Cole Gelly pinching in and the Eagles defenceman made no mistake picking the top corner on Nick Enegren for Gelley's 1st goal of the season on the only shot of overtime at 1:03 to give Surrey the 4-3 win.
The encouraging sign for the Express is the amount of rubber they've directed towards the oppostion goal the last 2 games. 42 Saturday vs. Surrey and 49 Friday vs. Victoria for 91 total shots on goal in the last 2 games.
It's also encouraging to see the Express show the ablity to come from behind in the third period for the 3rd time in the last 4 games.
In the race for the playoffs, the Express did fall one point back of Cowichan Valley as they knocked off the Prince George Spruce Kings 3-2 Saturday night. The Caps will wrap up their northern road trip Sunday afternoon in Williams Lake.
The expansion Timberwolves will be Burnaby's next opponent as they will pay a visit to the Bill Copeland Sports Centre Wednesday night. Then the pre-christmas schedule will wrap up for the Express Friday night when the Express host Jacob Verheyden and the Quesnel Millionaires.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
GRIZZLIES @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS
Here's the highlights of Friday's 5-4 dramatic OT win for the Express over the Grizzlies.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
MANLEY'S CAREER NIGHT LEADS EXPRESS IN COMEBACK WIN
Rich Manley had a night he'll never forget Friday at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre. The Buffalo native scored all 4 Express goals in regulation including the game tying goal with 3:27 remaining in the third period.
Then Brad Reid the former Victoria Grizzly played overtime hero scoring the game winning goal on a breakaway.
Victoria got off to a quick start by opening the scoring on their first shot of the game by Alex Allan just 16 seconds into the game.
By the time the second period was a minute old Victoria had built up a 3-0 advantage. Then Rich Manley went to work chipping away at the Victoria lead. He cut the lead down to two with his first of the game at 3:21.
Victoria restored their three goal lead moments later when Alex Allan set up Dustin Mowrey who blasted home the feed to give Victoria a 4-1 lead.
The Grizzlies top line of Alex Allan, Dustin Mowrey and Madison Dias was putting on quite a show of their own in the first half of the game combining for 4 goals and 6 assists for 10 points leading the Victoria attack.
Manley again cut Victoria's lead down to 2 before the 2nd period was done with his second of the game.
The Express went to the third trailing by 2 and the numbers indicated that a comeback was unlikely as the Express went into the third period Friday night with a record of 0-17 when trailing after 2 periods.
Manley completed his first BCHL hat-trick at 6:28 with a powerplay goal to cut the Victoria lead to one.
The momentum that Burnaby was building at that point could have been easily squashed seconds after Manley's third goal with Luke Challier being called for Unsportsmanlike conduct. The Express penalty killers bailed out their aggitator by killing off the penalty allowing themselves to stay withing striking distance of Victoria.
Manley continued his career night scoring his 4th of the game on a delayed penalty to Victoria to complete the Express comeback.
Hear Manley's 4th of the game here.
Manley joined some prestigous company in the Express 4 goal game club. Kyle Turris 4x, & Tyler McNeely are the only other players I have under my records who have scored 4 goals in a game. (My records go back only as far as the 04-05 season.)
The Grizzlies had one last chance to win the game before regulation was done when rookie defenceman Stefan Gonzales was called for tripping at 18:32. The Grizzlies had their chances before the third was done including Dustin Mowrey snapping a shot off the crossbar.
The Express held off at least until the end of regulation to pick up one point. They then killed off the remaining seconds of the Gonzales penalty in overtime at 4 on 3.
With a second life, the Express took advantage of the big kill and finished off the Grizzlies as Brodie Jamieson put a perfect stretch pass on the tape of Brad Reid who made no mistake on the breakaway deking to the forehand and sliding it past Ryan Holfield to give the Express their first OT win of the season.
Hear Reid's OT winner here.
The win allowed the Express to keep pace with the Cowichan Valley Capitals for the 7th and final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference as Cowichan Valley knocked off Quesnel 5-4 in Quesnel Friday.
Burnaby's attack generated a season high 49 shots on the Victoria goal Friday night.
The Express will return to action Saturday night when they play host to the Surrey Eagles.
Then Brad Reid the former Victoria Grizzly played overtime hero scoring the game winning goal on a breakaway.
Victoria got off to a quick start by opening the scoring on their first shot of the game by Alex Allan just 16 seconds into the game.
By the time the second period was a minute old Victoria had built up a 3-0 advantage. Then Rich Manley went to work chipping away at the Victoria lead. He cut the lead down to two with his first of the game at 3:21.
Victoria restored their three goal lead moments later when Alex Allan set up Dustin Mowrey who blasted home the feed to give Victoria a 4-1 lead.
The Grizzlies top line of Alex Allan, Dustin Mowrey and Madison Dias was putting on quite a show of their own in the first half of the game combining for 4 goals and 6 assists for 10 points leading the Victoria attack.
Manley again cut Victoria's lead down to 2 before the 2nd period was done with his second of the game.
The Express went to the third trailing by 2 and the numbers indicated that a comeback was unlikely as the Express went into the third period Friday night with a record of 0-17 when trailing after 2 periods.
Manley completed his first BCHL hat-trick at 6:28 with a powerplay goal to cut the Victoria lead to one.
The momentum that Burnaby was building at that point could have been easily squashed seconds after Manley's third goal with Luke Challier being called for Unsportsmanlike conduct. The Express penalty killers bailed out their aggitator by killing off the penalty allowing themselves to stay withing striking distance of Victoria.
Manley continued his career night scoring his 4th of the game on a delayed penalty to Victoria to complete the Express comeback.
Hear Manley's 4th of the game here.
Manley joined some prestigous company in the Express 4 goal game club. Kyle Turris 4x, & Tyler McNeely are the only other players I have under my records who have scored 4 goals in a game. (My records go back only as far as the 04-05 season.)
The Grizzlies had one last chance to win the game before regulation was done when rookie defenceman Stefan Gonzales was called for tripping at 18:32. The Grizzlies had their chances before the third was done including Dustin Mowrey snapping a shot off the crossbar.
The Express held off at least until the end of regulation to pick up one point. They then killed off the remaining seconds of the Gonzales penalty in overtime at 4 on 3.
With a second life, the Express took advantage of the big kill and finished off the Grizzlies as Brodie Jamieson put a perfect stretch pass on the tape of Brad Reid who made no mistake on the breakaway deking to the forehand and sliding it past Ryan Holfield to give the Express their first OT win of the season.
Hear Reid's OT winner here.
The win allowed the Express to keep pace with the Cowichan Valley Capitals for the 7th and final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference as Cowichan Valley knocked off Quesnel 5-4 in Quesnel Friday.
Burnaby's attack generated a season high 49 shots on the Victoria goal Friday night.
The Express will return to action Saturday night when they play host to the Surrey Eagles.
Friday, December 11, 2009
HEROLD NAMED TO ALL STAR TEAM
Burnaby captain Dylan Herold will represent the Express at this years All Star game in Nanaimo.
Herold's in his 4th and final season in the BCHL. This season he has 11 goals and 6 assists for 17 points in 32 games.
Here's the full press release from the BCHL...
The British Columbia Hockey League today announced the team of All-Stars that will take on the Vernon Vipers at the 2010 BCHL All-Star Game in Nanaimo on January 13th in Nanaimo. The BCHL All-Star squad includes a starting line-up and two coaches from each conference, Coastal and Interior.
Coastal Conference Starting Line-Up:
Forwards: Colton Beck (Langley Chiefs), Mike Krgovich (Surrey Eagles), Mitch MacMillan (Alberni Valley Bulldogs). Defencemen: Mat Bodie (Powell River Kings), Jordan Heywood (Victoria Grizzlies). Goaltender: Frank Slubowski (Alberni Valley Bulldogs).
Interior Conference Starting Line-Up:
Forwards: Trevor Bailey (Westside Warriors), Denver Manderson (Penticton Vees), Mark Zengerle (Salmon Arm SilverBacks). Defencemen: Brendan Ellis (Westside Warriors), Wes McLeod (Prince George Spruce Kings). Goaltender: Sean Bonar (Penticton Vees).
The complete BCHL All-Star Team line-up includes 12 forwards, 7 defencemen and 3 goaltenders and includes at least on representative from each BCHL team.
Forwards: Trevor Bailey (Westside Warriors), Justin Bardarson (Williams Lake Timberwolves), Colton Beck (Langley Chiefs), Beau Bennett (Penticton Vees), Cody Bremner (Nanaimo Clippers), Dylan Herold (Burnaby Express), Trever Hertz (Quesnel Millionaires), Mike Krgovich (Surrey Eagles), Mitch MacMillan (Alberni Valley Bulldogs), Denver Manderson (Penticton Vees), Andrew Pettitt (Powell River Kings), Mark Zengerle (Salmon Arm SilverBacks).
Defencemen: Mat Bodie (Powell River Kings), Brendan Ellis (Westside Warriors), Jordan Heywood (Victoria Grizzlies), Wes McLeod (Prince George Spruce Kings), Graeme Strukoff (Trail Smoke Eaters), Shayne Taker (Cowichan Valley Capitals), Steve Tresierra (Merritt Centennials).
Goaltenders: Loic Boivin (Nanaimo Clippers), Sean Bonar (Penticton Vees), Frank Slubowski (Alberni Valley Bulldogs).
The league also announced its All-Star Game coaches, who are selected based on team winning percentage as of December 1st. Nolan Graham and Shane Kuss were selected from the Coastal Conference, while Mark Ferner and Fred Harbinson represent the Interior Conference.
Under this season's new All-Star Game format, Harbinson will serve as head coach for the BCHL All-Stars, assisted by Graham and Kuss. Ferner will lead the Vernon Vipers alongside the rest of the Vipers' coaching staff.
The 2010 BCHL All-Star Game takes place on Wednesday, January 13th at the Frank Crane Arena in Nanaimo. For more information on the game, including ticketing and additional All-Star Week events, visit nanaimoclippers.com.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
EXPRESS RACE TO THE PLAYOFFS
Sunday's 4-1 loss to the Cowichan Valley Capitals was costly enough in a crucial 4 point game vs. the team the Express are directly battling with for the final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference.
The teams are tied with 21 points in the standings through 33 games, but Cowichan has the tie-breaker with a record of 10-22-0-1 compared to Burnaby's record of 9-21-0-3. Cowichan winning the last 2 head to head meetings doesn't help the Express cause as well.
With that in mind, I did a little number crunching to project where the two teams will finish in the standings. And the picture isn't pretty for the Express.
As we all know, the Express got off to a 5-0-0-1 start in the month of September for a total of 11 points in the first 6 games. Knowing what we know now, the record in the month of September was the exception rather than the rule. In that same time frame, the Caps record was 1-4-0-1 for 3 points in their first 6 games this season.
In the 27 games played since then, the Express have gone 4-21-0-2 for 10 points. In the same time, the Caps have gone 9-18-0-0 for 18 points.
So going back to the 6 game mark, I calculated both the Express and Capitals 54 game pace for the rest of the season.
Burnaby's 54 game pace since game 6 of the season is, 8-42-0-4 for 20 points. Cowichan's 54 game pace in the same time frame is 18-36-0-0 for 36 points.
Considering the pace that the two teams are on since game 6 of the season, that would see Cowichan Valley finish with a record of 19-40-0-1 for 39 points if you add their 54 game pace to the record they posted in their first 6 games.
Burnaby's final number will be 13-42-0-5 for 31 points if you add Burnaby's record after game 6 and the pace they're currently setting since their 5-0-0-1 start in September.
The math is simple, the pace the Express are on will see them miss the playoffs by 8 points considering where the two clubs are projected to finish the season if they maintain current pace in addition their record at the 6 game mark of the season.
If we use Cowichan Valley's magic number of a 39 point pace, the Express will have to post a 9-17-1 mark in their final 27 games to eclipse the Capitals in the standings and hit the 40 point mark. (Considering that Cowichan Valley maintains their tie-breaker advantage over Burnaby.)
And if Burnaby is to finish ahead of the Capitals for the final playoff spot, they will need to win the final head to head meeting between the two teams on Sunday February 14th at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.
Looking at the schedule leading up to that matchup, Burnaby will be coming off a 2 day break after playing host to the Powell River Kings on Thursday February 11th.
For Cowichan Valley, they will be playing their 3rd game in less than 3 nights plus travel after playing at home Friday and Saturday leading up to the final matchup with Burnaby.
Considering what we know now, the Express have to pick up their pace.
The teams are tied with 21 points in the standings through 33 games, but Cowichan has the tie-breaker with a record of 10-22-0-1 compared to Burnaby's record of 9-21-0-3. Cowichan winning the last 2 head to head meetings doesn't help the Express cause as well.
With that in mind, I did a little number crunching to project where the two teams will finish in the standings. And the picture isn't pretty for the Express.
As we all know, the Express got off to a 5-0-0-1 start in the month of September for a total of 11 points in the first 6 games. Knowing what we know now, the record in the month of September was the exception rather than the rule. In that same time frame, the Caps record was 1-4-0-1 for 3 points in their first 6 games this season.
In the 27 games played since then, the Express have gone 4-21-0-2 for 10 points. In the same time, the Caps have gone 9-18-0-0 for 18 points.
So going back to the 6 game mark, I calculated both the Express and Capitals 54 game pace for the rest of the season.
Burnaby's 54 game pace since game 6 of the season is, 8-42-0-4 for 20 points. Cowichan's 54 game pace in the same time frame is 18-36-0-0 for 36 points.
Considering the pace that the two teams are on since game 6 of the season, that would see Cowichan Valley finish with a record of 19-40-0-1 for 39 points if you add their 54 game pace to the record they posted in their first 6 games.
Burnaby's final number will be 13-42-0-5 for 31 points if you add Burnaby's record after game 6 and the pace they're currently setting since their 5-0-0-1 start in September.
The math is simple, the pace the Express are on will see them miss the playoffs by 8 points considering where the two clubs are projected to finish the season if they maintain current pace in addition their record at the 6 game mark of the season.
If we use Cowichan Valley's magic number of a 39 point pace, the Express will have to post a 9-17-1 mark in their final 27 games to eclipse the Capitals in the standings and hit the 40 point mark. (Considering that Cowichan Valley maintains their tie-breaker advantage over Burnaby.)
And if Burnaby is to finish ahead of the Capitals for the final playoff spot, they will need to win the final head to head meeting between the two teams on Sunday February 14th at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.
Looking at the schedule leading up to that matchup, Burnaby will be coming off a 2 day break after playing host to the Powell River Kings on Thursday February 11th.
For Cowichan Valley, they will be playing their 3rd game in less than 3 nights plus travel after playing at home Friday and Saturday leading up to the final matchup with Burnaby.
Considering what we know now, the Express have to pick up their pace.
LUCIC APPEARS ON VH1
Former Express Milan Lucic may be on the shelf with a high ankle sprain, but that doesn't mean he's still not getting around. He made an appearance this week at VH1's top 20 countdown. He talked about the upcoming Winter Classic January 1st between his Bruins and Flyers at Fenway Park.
Check out the video below courtesy of NHL.com
Check out the video below courtesy of NHL.com
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
YIP VIDEO POSTED
It's a few days old, but I found a post game interview with Brandon Yip this past week with the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL shortly following his professional debut.
Check out the video below in the Dekanich sent to ECHL posting to see the video.
Check out the video below in the Dekanich sent to ECHL posting to see the video.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
DEKANICH ECHL GOALIE OF THE WEEK
(Taken from Nashville Predators website)
Second-year pro picks up pair of wins during week
CINCINNATI, Ohio – The Cincinnati Cyclones, ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens and Nashville Predators, have learned that goaltender Mark Dekanich has been named the Reebok Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week. He becomes the first Cyclones player this season to earn a Player of the Week honor from the league.
Dekanich, 23, is in his second professional season and prior to this past weekend had every game of his career with Milwaukee (AHL). On Friday night (December 4), he turned aside 24 shots in regulation time and stonewalled Florida through four rounds of the shootout to claim a 2-1 victory in his ECHL debut. Saturday night (December 5), Mark re-routed all 27 Everblades shots in the Cyclones 3-0 win. He was recalled by Milwaukee on Sunday (December 6).
In Milwaukee this season, he is 5-5-2 with a 2.78 goals against average and a .891 save percentage. Mark had a season-high 29 save performance in a 2-1 win against Rockford on October 30. Last season, he was 15-10-2 with a 2.09 goals against average and a .923 save percentage. In 2008-09, he had six games with 30 or more saves—highlighted by a 46 save effort in a 3-2 win at Rockford on March 11. He also had a 27 save shutout at Chicago on February 20
The six-foot-two, 192 pounder from North Vancouver, BC was a fifth round draft pick (number 146 overall) of the Nashville Predators in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. He played four seasons collegiately at Colgate, where Dekanich turned in a 52-45-16 ledger with eleven shutouts. He had a 2.25 goals against average and a .923 save percentage. Mark holds the Colgate record for career save percentage (.923) and is second in goals against (2.25) and has the third-most wins (52). He holds ten of Colgate’s school records for goaltending.
Second-year pro picks up pair of wins during week
CINCINNATI, Ohio – The Cincinnati Cyclones, ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens and Nashville Predators, have learned that goaltender Mark Dekanich has been named the Reebok Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week. He becomes the first Cyclones player this season to earn a Player of the Week honor from the league.
Dekanich, 23, is in his second professional season and prior to this past weekend had every game of his career with Milwaukee (AHL). On Friday night (December 4), he turned aside 24 shots in regulation time and stonewalled Florida through four rounds of the shootout to claim a 2-1 victory in his ECHL debut. Saturday night (December 5), Mark re-routed all 27 Everblades shots in the Cyclones 3-0 win. He was recalled by Milwaukee on Sunday (December 6).
In Milwaukee this season, he is 5-5-2 with a 2.78 goals against average and a .891 save percentage. Mark had a season-high 29 save performance in a 2-1 win against Rockford on October 30. Last season, he was 15-10-2 with a 2.09 goals against average and a .923 save percentage. In 2008-09, he had six games with 30 or more saves—highlighted by a 46 save effort in a 3-2 win at Rockford on March 11. He also had a 27 save shutout at Chicago on February 20
The six-foot-two, 192 pounder from North Vancouver, BC was a fifth round draft pick (number 146 overall) of the Nashville Predators in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. He played four seasons collegiately at Colgate, where Dekanich turned in a 52-45-16 ledger with eleven shutouts. He had a 2.25 goals against average and a .923 save percentage. Mark holds the Colgate record for career save percentage (.923) and is second in goals against (2.25) and has the third-most wins (52). He holds ten of Colgate’s school records for goaltending.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
CAPS @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS
Here's the highlights of Sunday's 4-1 Cowichan Valley win over the Express at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre Sunday afternoon.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen and Purple Penguin Productions.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen and Purple Penguin Productions.
CAPS PULL EVEN WITH EXPRESS
The Cowichan Valley Capitals pulled even with the Express for the 7th and final Coastal Conference playoff spot with a 4-1 win over the Express Sunday afternoon.
The Express had a chance to open up a 4 point lead on the Caps in the standings, but they let it slip through their hands with a lackluster effort Sunday.
Burnaby's penalty killers rose to the challenge early in the first period with the Express taking 3 straight penalties and killing them all off. Included in that, was a 5 on 3 for the Capitals for 1:20.
The game remained scoreless until the 2nd period when Nick Anderson set up Jackson Garrett on the powerplay for a tap in at the lip of the Express crease.
Buranby had a reply with a powerplay marker of their own, Jimmy Geerin fired a pass up to Kolby Kulhanek who set up Brad Reid who re-directed it home to tie the game at 1.
The goal for Reid was his 3rd in his last 2 games. And he now has 5 goals and 1 assist in his last 5. Jimmy Geerin meanwhile now has 3 goals and 5 assists for 8 points in his last 9 outings.
Cowichan Valley re-stored their lead in the final minute of the 2nd period. Nick Anderson converted a Mike Hammond feed at 19:33.
When these two teams met 3 weeks ago in Cowichan, Laurent Brossoit put on a show in the third period stopping all 20 Express shots to seal a 35 save shutout a 3-0 Caps win.
A similar performance wasn't required Sunday. The 16 year old made the saves when called upon. Not too many of the 25 shots he faced were overly difficult. Brossoit has stopped 59 of 60 Express shots sent his way the last two games.
Cowichan Valley put the game away with goals by Nick Amies and Jackson Garrett's second of the game.
The Caps top line of Jackson Garrett, Mike Hammond and Nick Anderson all finished with 3 points. Garrett (2G, 1A), Anderson (1G, 2A) and Hammond (3A).
The Express and Caps are now even in the Coastal Conference standings with 21 points apiece. But Cowichan has the tie-breaker with 10 wins to 9 for Burnaby.
The Express had a chance to open up a 4 point lead on the Caps in the standings, but they let it slip through their hands with a lackluster effort Sunday.
Burnaby's penalty killers rose to the challenge early in the first period with the Express taking 3 straight penalties and killing them all off. Included in that, was a 5 on 3 for the Capitals for 1:20.
The game remained scoreless until the 2nd period when Nick Anderson set up Jackson Garrett on the powerplay for a tap in at the lip of the Express crease.
Buranby had a reply with a powerplay marker of their own, Jimmy Geerin fired a pass up to Kolby Kulhanek who set up Brad Reid who re-directed it home to tie the game at 1.
The goal for Reid was his 3rd in his last 2 games. And he now has 5 goals and 1 assist in his last 5. Jimmy Geerin meanwhile now has 3 goals and 5 assists for 8 points in his last 9 outings.
Cowichan Valley re-stored their lead in the final minute of the 2nd period. Nick Anderson converted a Mike Hammond feed at 19:33.
When these two teams met 3 weeks ago in Cowichan, Laurent Brossoit put on a show in the third period stopping all 20 Express shots to seal a 35 save shutout a 3-0 Caps win.
A similar performance wasn't required Sunday. The 16 year old made the saves when called upon. Not too many of the 25 shots he faced were overly difficult. Brossoit has stopped 59 of 60 Express shots sent his way the last two games.
Cowichan Valley put the game away with goals by Nick Amies and Jackson Garrett's second of the game.
The Caps top line of Jackson Garrett, Mike Hammond and Nick Anderson all finished with 3 points. Garrett (2G, 1A), Anderson (1G, 2A) and Hammond (3A).
The Express and Caps are now even in the Coastal Conference standings with 21 points apiece. But Cowichan has the tie-breaker with 10 wins to 9 for Burnaby.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
DEKANICH SENT TO ECHL
Former Express and Nashville Predators draft pick Mark Dekanich has been sent from the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals to the ECHL's Cincinatti Cyclones.
Dekanich had a fine first season of pro hockey last year in Milwaukee posting a 15-10-2 record with a 2.09 GAA and a .923 save percentage. But it's been a much different story this season, his numbers are some of the worst he's posted since his BCHL days with the Coquitlam Express. His record is just 5-5-2 with a 2.99 GAA and a save percentage uncharacterisctally below .900 at .891.
Since the demotion, Dekanich has posted a 2-0 record. He stopped 24 shots in a 2-1 win over the Flordia Everblades Friday night. Then in the rematch Saturday, Dekanich did one better stopping all 27 shots to post the shutout in a 3-0 win.
In other Express alumni news from the AHL, Brandon Yip scored his first professional goal in his first professional game with the Lake Erie Monsters this past week. Yip missed the first 22 games of the season with a hand injury suffered in training camp.
Yip is teammates with one of his former mates with the Express, Brock Bradford is 3rd in Lake Erie scoring with 12 points in 23 games. Bradford played with the Express from 02-04. Then went to the USHL to finish his junior career.
From there, Bradford was off to Boston College for 4 seasons. He won a National championship in his 3rd season at BC, and was the team captain last season. Bradford who was drafted by Boston in 2005 never signed with the Bruins after his college career.
Kyle Turris had a pair of assists but it wasn't enough as his San Antonio Rampage fell to the Houston Aeros 3-2 Friday night. He has 5 goals and 11 assists for 16 points in 22 games.
Keith Seabrook scored 1 goal for the Abbotsford Heat as they took care of the Rochester Americans 6-2 Saturday night in the Fraser Valley. This season Seabrook has 6 goals and 6 assists in 28 games.
Paul Crowder has 6 goals and 5 assists in 25 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack. Saturday the Wolf Pack went down 4-1 to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
CHIEFS @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS
Here's the highlights from Burnaby's 5-4 win over the Langley Chiefs Friday night.
Now, normally I don't do this, but I hope there's some disciplinary action handed down on Brandon Thompson for his headshot on Malcom Mckinney. The puck is off his stick for at last 3/4's of a second before he is layed out. Don't believe me, see the hit at 2:45 mark of the video.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
Now, normally I don't do this, but I hope there's some disciplinary action handed down on Brandon Thompson for his headshot on Malcom Mckinney. The puck is off his stick for at last 3/4's of a second before he is layed out. Don't believe me, see the hit at 2:45 mark of the video.
Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen of Purple Penguin Productions.
EXPRESS KNOCK OFF CHIEFS AGAIN
The Express only have 2 wins since the start of November, Both of those "W's" however have come vs. their long time rivals the Langley Chiefs. And both of those wins have come by identical 5-4 scores.
Last night two teams heading in similar directions met up at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre. Both teams riding 5 game losing streaks heading in.
Some of Langley's reasons for their struggles was getting off to bad starts. And the opposition lighting up the Chiefs penalty killing. Heading into Friday's game, the oppostion was 14 for 51 on the powerplay in Langley's last 8 games 27.45%.
The problems would manifest itself for the Chiefs again on this night at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.
Burnaby found themselves shorthanded in the games opening minute with Jimmy Geerin being sent off for interference just 21 seconds into the game. But it was the Express finding the back of the net.
Rich Manley aggressively forechecking forced a turnover in the Langley zone and stole the puck and fed Brad Reid in the slot who deked and slid the puck past Mark Friesen to open the scoring 90 seconds into the game. The goal was Reid's third shorthanded marker of the season and the 6th shorty of the season for the Express.
Hear Reid's shorthanded goal here.
The Express showed plenty of energy in the games opening 10 minutes buzzing in the Langley zone and opening up an early 9-2 advantage in shots on goal.
Luke Challier nearly extended the Express lead to two as he got behind the Chief defence but was stopped by Friesen on the partial breakaway.
A bad bounce allowed the Chiefs to pull even late in the first period. Josh Meyers cut in the Express zone on the right wing while the Chiefs were on a powerplay and he put the puck towards the net and it went off the skate of Simon Denis handcuffing Harrison May and slid in the net to tie the game.
Langley started the 2nd period on a powerplay with James Bettauer being called for roughing at the 20:00 mark of the first period.
It didn't take long for the Chiefs to take advantage of the powerplay as Colton Beck slid the puck across to Meyers who scored on the 2 on 1 just 7 seconds into the second period to give the Chiefs their first lead of the game.
The Express had a reply on a powerplay of their own just over 4 minutes later as Jimmy Geerin's point shot found its way past Friesen to tie the game with his 2nd of the season.
Hear Geerin's first goal of the game here.
The seasaw battle continued in the second period as a shot from the left wing was kicked out by Harrison May but Mac Roy buried the juicy rebound to restore Langley's lead at 3-2.
The officials played a hand in Langley's 4th goal as a Burnaby clearing attempt hit the linesman who failed to get out of the way. That allowed Colton Beck to turn the play the other way and set up Tim Daly to give Langley a 4-2 lead at 10:19.
A 2 goal disadvantage didn't discourage the Express on this night. Just 2:21 after Daly's tally, Brad Reid cut to the net and jammed home his second of the game on the powerplay to cut the Chiefs lead to one.
Hear Reid's second goal of the game here.
Langley had a great chance to re-store their two goal advantage as Colton Beck was set up at the lip of the crease and somehow couldn't re-direct the pass into the gaping cage instead putting the puck out of play.
The blown opportunity would be just the break that the Express would need.
Moments after Beck's miss, Burnaby tied the game on another powerplay as Jimmy Geerin scored his second of the game firing a shot off the post and in to pull the Express even at 4.
Hear Geerin's 4-4 goal here.
Late in the second, what the officials giveth away, they can also taketh away. The clearing attempt that allowed the Chiefs to score their 4th goal was follwed by a break the other way for the Express, Langley appeared to have a tap into an empty net for what could have been Langley's 5th goal but didn't happen as referee Kam Poirier got in the way of a shot and that was heading in keeping the game even at 4.
After a 6 goal second period, the offence cooled off in the third. Burnaby had their chances to break the deadlock. Garrick Perry was stopped on a 2 on 1 with Brad Reid. Luke Challier rang a shot off the crossbar and it stayed out.
Finally in the final minute the Express broke the deadlock. James Bettauer wired a shot that powered its way through Friesen to give the Express a 5-4 lead with just 19 seconds left.
Burnaby killed the remaning seconds on the clock and held on for the victory. The loss extended Langley's losing streak to 6 games.
The Express got top performances from their best players. Brad Reid (2G, 1A) and Rich Manley (3A) each had 3 points. Jimmy Geerin chipped in with a pair of powerplay goals from the blueline. And James Bettauer also had 1 goal and 1 assist from the Express backend.
Special teams was prominent in the Express attack with 3 powerplay goals and a shorthanded marker to open the scoring.
The win combined with Cowichan Valley's 7-3 loss in Powell River, propelled the Express into the 7th and final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference. Burnaby is now 2 points up on the Caps and the two teams will go head to head in a crucial matchup Sunday afternoon at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.
Last night two teams heading in similar directions met up at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre. Both teams riding 5 game losing streaks heading in.
Some of Langley's reasons for their struggles was getting off to bad starts. And the opposition lighting up the Chiefs penalty killing. Heading into Friday's game, the oppostion was 14 for 51 on the powerplay in Langley's last 8 games 27.45%.
The problems would manifest itself for the Chiefs again on this night at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.
Burnaby found themselves shorthanded in the games opening minute with Jimmy Geerin being sent off for interference just 21 seconds into the game. But it was the Express finding the back of the net.
Rich Manley aggressively forechecking forced a turnover in the Langley zone and stole the puck and fed Brad Reid in the slot who deked and slid the puck past Mark Friesen to open the scoring 90 seconds into the game. The goal was Reid's third shorthanded marker of the season and the 6th shorty of the season for the Express.
Hear Reid's shorthanded goal here.
The Express showed plenty of energy in the games opening 10 minutes buzzing in the Langley zone and opening up an early 9-2 advantage in shots on goal.
Luke Challier nearly extended the Express lead to two as he got behind the Chief defence but was stopped by Friesen on the partial breakaway.
A bad bounce allowed the Chiefs to pull even late in the first period. Josh Meyers cut in the Express zone on the right wing while the Chiefs were on a powerplay and he put the puck towards the net and it went off the skate of Simon Denis handcuffing Harrison May and slid in the net to tie the game.
Langley started the 2nd period on a powerplay with James Bettauer being called for roughing at the 20:00 mark of the first period.
It didn't take long for the Chiefs to take advantage of the powerplay as Colton Beck slid the puck across to Meyers who scored on the 2 on 1 just 7 seconds into the second period to give the Chiefs their first lead of the game.
The Express had a reply on a powerplay of their own just over 4 minutes later as Jimmy Geerin's point shot found its way past Friesen to tie the game with his 2nd of the season.
Hear Geerin's first goal of the game here.
The seasaw battle continued in the second period as a shot from the left wing was kicked out by Harrison May but Mac Roy buried the juicy rebound to restore Langley's lead at 3-2.
The officials played a hand in Langley's 4th goal as a Burnaby clearing attempt hit the linesman who failed to get out of the way. That allowed Colton Beck to turn the play the other way and set up Tim Daly to give Langley a 4-2 lead at 10:19.
A 2 goal disadvantage didn't discourage the Express on this night. Just 2:21 after Daly's tally, Brad Reid cut to the net and jammed home his second of the game on the powerplay to cut the Chiefs lead to one.
Hear Reid's second goal of the game here.
Langley had a great chance to re-store their two goal advantage as Colton Beck was set up at the lip of the crease and somehow couldn't re-direct the pass into the gaping cage instead putting the puck out of play.
The blown opportunity would be just the break that the Express would need.
Moments after Beck's miss, Burnaby tied the game on another powerplay as Jimmy Geerin scored his second of the game firing a shot off the post and in to pull the Express even at 4.
Hear Geerin's 4-4 goal here.
Late in the second, what the officials giveth away, they can also taketh away. The clearing attempt that allowed the Chiefs to score their 4th goal was follwed by a break the other way for the Express, Langley appeared to have a tap into an empty net for what could have been Langley's 5th goal but didn't happen as referee Kam Poirier got in the way of a shot and that was heading in keeping the game even at 4.
After a 6 goal second period, the offence cooled off in the third. Burnaby had their chances to break the deadlock. Garrick Perry was stopped on a 2 on 1 with Brad Reid. Luke Challier rang a shot off the crossbar and it stayed out.
Finally in the final minute the Express broke the deadlock. James Bettauer wired a shot that powered its way through Friesen to give the Express a 5-4 lead with just 19 seconds left.
Burnaby killed the remaning seconds on the clock and held on for the victory. The loss extended Langley's losing streak to 6 games.
The Express got top performances from their best players. Brad Reid (2G, 1A) and Rich Manley (3A) each had 3 points. Jimmy Geerin chipped in with a pair of powerplay goals from the blueline. And James Bettauer also had 1 goal and 1 assist from the Express backend.
Special teams was prominent in the Express attack with 3 powerplay goals and a shorthanded marker to open the scoring.
The win combined with Cowichan Valley's 7-3 loss in Powell River, propelled the Express into the 7th and final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference. Burnaby is now 2 points up on the Caps and the two teams will go head to head in a crucial matchup Sunday afternoon at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
EXPRESS APPLY FOR RE-LOCATION
The Burnaby Express are one step closer to returning to their original home in Coquitlam.
They filed their application for re-location to the BCHL Tuesday. The application is for the franchise to return to their original home in Coquitlam for the 10-11 season where the Express called home from 2001-2005.
The application is now in the hands of the BCHL where it will be reviewed then forwarded to the BCHL's board of Governors for a vote during the annual meeting during the All Star Game festivities in Nanaimo in January.
Attendance has steadily declined from an average of 992 in the Express first season in Burnaby in 05-06 their Royal Bank Cup season, to 583 through 13 home games this season. The Express average attendance was 1091 in their final season in Coquitlam in 04-05.
The Coquitlam Sports Centre where the Express called home in Coquitlam is currently under massive renovations that will see the facility dramatically improved from when the Express left in 2005.
Click below to hear my interview with Express President and GM Darcy Rota and Head Coach Dave Mclellan on the application for re-location filed Tuesday.
For more on this story read Dan Olson's article from the Coquitlam Now Newspaper by clicking on the link below.
Click here to read the article
To check out the Coquitlam Sports Centre renovation project website click on the link below.
Click here to visit Coquitlam Sports Centre renovation project website
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