SPRUCE KINGS SWEEP PAIR OF GAMES WITH EXPRESS

It couldn't have been a better weekend for the Prince George Spruce Kings, they swept a 3 game road swing through the Lower Mainland and picked up all 6 points including a pair of wins over the Coquitlam Express.

The second win over the Express coming on a 4-3 2OT win Sunday afternoon.

Prince George opened the scoring 14 minutes into the first period as Skylar Pacheco's screen shot got past Gordy Defiel for his 4th of the season.

It didn't take long for the Express to reply less than 90 seconds later on one of the prettiest goals of the season to date on a 3 way passing play with Corey Mackin, Adam Rockwood and Canon Pieper resulting in Pieper finishing off the play and tie the game at 1 with his 2nd goal of the season.

2:14 later the Express struck again on a delayed penalty for Prince George in effect, Ryan Rosenthal's shot from the slot tipped to Mackin who swatted it home at the side of the net to give the Express their lone lead of the game.

The Poirier Sports and Leisure centre might be quickly becoming the favorite rink in the league for Spruce Kings defenceman Karan Toor. He didn't have a goal in 69 career BCHL games before this weekend. He scored the game winner Friday, then he scored a shorthanded goal Sunday with 4 minutes remaining in the second period to tie the game at 2.

Christian Weidauer two minutes into the third period pinched in on the right side and snapped a quick shot past Defiel to put Prince George in the lead for the second time in the game.

Captain Ryan Rosenthal back in the lineup after missing Friday's game continues to show his ability for big goals at big times. He took a flip pass from Corey Mackin and snapped home his third of the season to even the game at 3. All 3 of his goals have come in the third period have either tied the game or gave the Express some key insurance so far this season.

Each team had their chances to win the game on the powerplay either late in the third or early in overtime. The Express killed off a key penalty to John Saunders late in the third and into overtime. They finished 5 for 5 while a man down on the afternoon. And they continue to be the best team in the BCHL when it comes to penalty killing having killed off 26 of 28 shorthanded situations sitting at 92.86%.

The powerplay on the other hand is another story. It had a chance to win the game in overtime for the Express and couldn't get the job done. It went 0 for 6 Sunday and sits 15th out of 16 BCHL teams overall at 4 for 37 10.81%.

The game ended quickly in the second overtime as Bryant Christian returning from a one game suspension chopped the puck over Defiel to give the Spruce Kings the 4-3 win at the 29 second mark.

Next weekend the Express have 3 more crucial divisional games starting with a home and home with the Chilliwack Chiefs that starts Friday in Coqutilam. Then a Sunday afternoon game in Surrey.

SPRUCE KINGS RALLY PAST EXPRESS

The Prince George Spruce Kings scored 3 unanswered goals to erase a two goal deficit en route to knocking off the Express 3-2 Friday night.

A fairly even first period up between the two teams. The best chance for either team came midway through the period when the Express turned the puck over at the Spruce Kings blue line leading to a Bryant Christian breakaway which was turned aside by a glove save by Express netminder Gordy Defiel.

The Express opened the scoring in the final minute of the first period as Adam Rockwood picked off a pass in the neutral zone and found a streaking Joey Santucci who walked in and snapped home his 5th of the season at 19:18.

The lead was extended to two when Bo Pieper coming down the left wing wired a shot past the glove of Jesse Jenks for his 6th of the season. The shot had so much velocity it got stuck wedged in the twine of the net.

Just 1:18 later the visitors got on the board as Bryant Christian's backhand was stopped but his rebound bounced off the Spruce Kings forward and into the net.

The Express carried their lead into the third period. But they weren't able to hold it. Former Express property Brent Lashuk found a loose puck in front of the net and roofed a backhand over the glove of Defiel at 5:20.

Then with 4 minutes to go Prince George took their only lead of the game as a shot from the wing by Mitch Eden got past Defiel and Karan Toor found the loose puck in the crease and poked it home for his first BCHL goal in his 70th career game.

Spruce Kings goaltender Jesse Jenks turned aside 28 Express shots for the win, and was key in shutting the door in the final 35 minutes after the Express opened up their 2-0 lead.

Adam Rockwood had a pair of assists in the losing cause extending his point streak to 5 games with 2 goals and 9 assists for 11 points in that time. Jake Lebrun for Prince George picked up his first two assists of the season to go with his 7 goals on the season.

The teams will do it all over again Sunday afternoon in Coquitlam. Before Sunday's rematch Prince George will pay a visit to the Chilliwack Chiefs Saturday night. 

EXPRESS ACQUIRE SAUNDERS

The Coquitlam Express have acquired defenceman John Saunders (94) from the Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL) in exchange for future considerations.

Saunders a Calgary native started the season with the Merritt Centennials playing a pair of games. Then was traded to Whitecourt. He has 39 career BCHL games primarily with the Centennials scoring 2 goals and 3 assists for 5 points.

He gives the Express some size on the blueline at 6'2 and weighs in at 205 lbs.

RIVERMEN @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights produced by Eddie Gregory.

RIVERMEN SPOIL EXPRESS HOME OPENER IN OVERTIME

Kevan Kilistoff's slick goal midway through the second overtime gave the Langley Rivermen a 5-4 overtime win over the Express spoiling their home opener 24 hours after the Express did the same to Langley.

In the opening seconds of the game Jace Henning would ring a shot off the goal post. That would be a rare highlight for the Express in the first period for awhile.

The Rivermen then started to take control of the first period. They opened the scoring less than three minutes in as Matt Ustaski in front of the Express net re-directed a Tony Bretzman point shot past Pierce Dushenko.

Midway through the period Langley struck again while shorthanded as Mitch McLain broke out of his own zone then rushed up the ice and slid the puck through the legs of Dushenko for a 2-0 Rivermen lead.

Then former Express Will Cook on the powerplay powered his way into the slot and snapped it home for a 3-0 Rivermen lead.

By this point the game had already had it's fair share of penalties it what would turn out to be a very emotional game all night between the two teams who are already developing quite a dislike for one another.

The home team finally responded as Adam Smith deflected a Cal Hofford point shot past James Barr to get the Express on the board.

That goal gave the Express the spark they needed to try and get back into the game.

Then on the powerplay Canon Pieper was set up at the side of the Rivermen net and roofed it on Barr and the Express had cut the lead back down to one.

1:12 later the Rivermen re-stored their two goal lead as Jakob Reichert squeezed the puck between the post and pad of Dushenko on a wrap around and Langley went to the dressing room with a 4-2 lead.

As I said, this game was very chippy all game long. And two games into the season series these divisional rivals have already established a dislike for one another,

Midway through the period Matthew Barry-Lamontagna didn't like the treatment he was getting and went after a Langley player. When the dust settled Barry was ejected with a 5 minute major for fighting, and minor penalties for instigating and slashing. Langley's Brendan Gulka was given a game misconduct for leaving the bench.

As a result the teams played 4 on 4 for two minutes then Langley had a 3 minute powerplay. Just seconds after the Rivermen powerplay started the Express cut the lead to one as Jace Henning scored his first goal of the season.

Another Express penalty to Hofford resulted on a 5 on 3 for Langley, but the Express killed off the penalties and went to the the third period only down a goal.

The third period finally saw the Express raise their game and take it to the Rivermen.

Midway through the period captain Ryan Rosenthal scored his second straight clutch powerplay goal in the third period as his one timer from the left circle broke his stick and created an off-speed shot that hand-cuffed Barr and found the back of the net and the game was tied. The Express had rallied all the way back from 3-0 and 4-2 deficits.

Nothing was decided after 60 minutes and the Express went to overtime for the first time this season.

In the first extra session Bo Pieper had the best chance to end the game. After Barr fought off a Canon Pieper shot, the puck laid in the crease and Bo tried to poke it home but Barr reached back to keep the puck out.

Off to a second overtime where the Pieper brothers again had great chances. Seconds part both Canon and Bo were able to get low hard shots away from the same spot on the left wing and just missed by inches low to the glove side.

The Rivermen got the next great scoring chance and made it count as Kevan Killistoff danced around an Expresss defender and roofed a backhand over the glove of Dushenko to give the Rivermen the 5-4 overtime win.

Despite the setback, the Express can be proud how hard they battled Langley in this game. It wasn't their best outing. But they fought through it and found a way to get a point out of it and erase a three goal deficit. It would have been better if the Express didn't find themselves in that position, but the way they responded to it and kept battling was encouraging.

Goaltender Pierce Dushenko can be proud of how he shut the door for 47 plus minutes after a rough first period allowing his team to battle back and get a point out of the game.

Next weekend the Express are in action with a pair of games vs. the Prince George Spruce Kings at home Friday night and Sunday afternoon. 

EXPRESS SPOIL RIVERMEN HOME OPENER

Bo Pieper scored his first BCHL hat-trick as part of 5 unanswered Express goals in a 6-2 win over the Langley Rivermen spoiling their home opener.

The win was their third in a row and improved their record to 3-1 on the young season.

Corey Mackin scored for the third straight game opening the scoring as he re-directed a pass at the lip of the crease into an open net.

It was an ideal start for the Express who opened up a 6-0 advantage in shots by the 12 minute mark of the first period. Langley didn't register their first shot of the game until the 14:21 mark with a long shot by Marcus Vela.

Gordy Defiel turned aside 35 Rivermen shots to post the win between the pipes. He came up with a key save late in the first period to deny Mitch Mclain on a rebound chance. Defiel also stopped Austin Azurdia on the door step in the opening minute of the second period.

The Rivermen came out with plenty of jump to open the second period. They clearly had the Express on their heals with their speed and cycle game.

Langley broke through on the powerplay as former Express Will Cook set up McLain on a give and go play and a quick one timer went through the legs of Defiel. It was the first powerplay goal allowed by the Express this season. They were the last team in the BCHL to allow a goal while a man down.

1:43 after the McLain's marker the Rivermen struck again as Jakob Reichert showed some slick hands before snapping a shot through the legs of Defiel to give the Rivermen their lone lead of the game.

The Express caught a break to pull even. While shorthanded, Bo Pieper broke out and had a teammate going to the net, his pass hit a Langley defenceman hustling back on the play and went through the legs of James Barr. It was the second straight game that the Express have scored a shorthanded goal.

56 seconds later the Express struck again as Adam Rockwood on a breakaway went to the backhand and roofed it over the glove of Barr to re-store the Express lead.

With 6 minutes left in the third period the Express powerplay which has yet to hit it's stride clutched up as Cody Boyd and Corey Mackin teamed up to set up captain Ryan Rosenthal for his first of the year as he snapped it home at the side of the net. It was just the second powerplay goal for the Express this season.

That was followed 55 seconds later by Bo Pieper's second of the game to put the Express up 5-2. Bo finished off his hat-trick in the final minute of the third period snapping home a pass from his brother Canon.

The final shots saw Langley out-shoot the Express 37-26.

The two teams will do it all over again Saturday night in the home opener for the Express. 

EXPRESS ALUMS HIT SCORE SHEET IN PRE-SEASON VS. CANUCKS

Two former members of the Express from the days when the franchise was located in Burnaby had good showings in pre-season games this week in their home town of Vancouver vs. the Canucks.

Brodie Reid for the San Jose Sharks and Brad Hunt for the Edmonton Oilers each hit the score sheet as their respective clubs were able to come into Vancouver and walk away victorious.

Reid played part of two seasons for the Express from 2007-08 and scored 52 goals in the 07-08 season which is the second most goals in a season in franchise history. Monday he set up John McCarthy's goal in the second period that gave the Sharks a 2-1 second period lead en route to a 3-2 win. He played just under 13 minutes and had 1 shot on goal. The Delta native signed a 1 year contract with the Sharks back in June.

Reid's teammate with the Express and the captain during the 07-08 season Brad Hunt dressed for the Oilers in their 4-1 win over Vancouver Wednesday. The Maple Ridge native had a pair of helpers in the win and had 15:30 of ice time. Hunt played with the Express from 2006-08 and was a member of the 2006 RBC Cup championship squad. In his final season with the Express in 07-08 he set an Express franchise record for goals in a season by a defenceman with 16. He also had 55 points that season which at the time set a record for most points in a season by a defenceman. A mark that has since by eclipsed by Clinton Atkinson during the 2011-12 season.

EXPRESS DROP EAGLES

The Coquitlam Express posted their second consecutive victory with a 5-2 win over the defending BCHL champion Surrey Eagles Sunday afternoon at the South Surrey Arena.

The Eagles got the upper hand on the Express in the opening 20 minutes as midway through the period Nicolas Pierog tipped a blast from Colton Mackie from the high slot and it fluttered over the shoulder of Gordy Defiel to open the scoring at 9:30.

A 5 on 3 for 94 seconds was a great chance for the Express to tie the game at one, but they couldn't capitalize on the opportunity.

Moments later came a key turning point in the game. With the Eagles on the powerplay Jonah Renouf showed his great vision made made a great back door cross ice pass to a pinching Michael Roberts, he quickly snapped off a one timer, but Gordy Defiel came up with his best of his 23 saves and turned aside the one timer to keep the Express only down a goal.

That's where things stood entering the second period.

On another Eagles powerplay it was the Express who found the back of the net as Joey Santucci scored his 4th goal in his last 2 games as he powered the puck through the legs of Victor Adamo for a shorthanded goal to tie the game at 1.

Just 1:10 later the Express took their first lead of the game. Adam Rockwood showing his great vision for the game carried the puck into the Eagles zone, he read his options going to the net, he didn't have anything available and was able to find a trailing Matthew Berry-Lamontagna who wired a shot in just under the cross bar for his first Express goal to give the visitors a 2-1 lead.

Bo Pieper extended the Express lead to 3-1 as he came out from behind the Eagles net, turned and snapped home a quick shot past Adamo for his second goal in as many games.

The Express had a strong second period firing a total of 18 shots.

There was some controversy early in the third period. Zane Schartz fired the puck at the Express net and it was tipped home by Eagles captain Brett Mulcahy. The puck had clearly left the zone by the time the puck was shot and the play should have been blown dead on the offside, but the officials let the goal stand. The Eagles had a goal waved off back in the first period when the puck was knocked into the net by a high stick.

The controversial goal didn't rattle the Express. They just kept on playing strong. Working the puck in the Eagles zone and not allowing them to come on with a push looking for the equalizer. They were finally rewarded for their hard work with some insurance as Corey Mackin made a great play at the Eagle blue line to keep the puck in the zone, then dangle past a Eagles defender to get himself a breakaway where he made no mistake beating Adamo to the stick side with just 2 minutes to play giving the Express a 4-2 lead.

Adam Rockwood rounded out the scoring with his first goal of the season into an empty net.

The Express outshot Surrey 40-25 and 31-17 in the final 40 minutes of play.

Their next game is Friday in Langley. Then a return game with the Rivermen 24 hours later for the home opener.

The Express debuted their new black road jerseys in the game. They look very sharp with the word Express positioned diagonally across the front with silver numbers with a subtle red trim. 

LAURENT TRADED BACK TO CHIEFS

The Coquitlam Express have traded defenceman Shay Laurent (93) back to the Chilliwack Chiefs in exchange for future considerations.

The 20 year old Fort Mackay native dressed for only 2 games for the Express this past weekend at the BCHL Showcase. In those two games he registered one assist.

Laurent's rights were originally acquired by the Express as future considerations along with the rights to Garrett Forster and defenceman Ben Israel in a trade with the Chilliwack Chiefs for forward Phil Zielonka on January 10th.

EXPRESS TAKE THE BITE OF THE BULLDOGS

The Coquitlam Express bounced back with  a vengeance from their season opening loss to Merritt with a 9-4 win over the Alberni Valley Bulldogs in their second game at the Bauer BCHL showcase.

Joey Santucci paced the Express attack with 3 goals and an assist for 4 points. Corey Mackin scored a pair of goals and added an assist for a 3 point game.

The goals came fast and furious in the first period.

Mackin scored his first of the game on a nice cross crease pass from Adam Rockwood and snapped it home.

The Bulldogs got that one back off the stick of Mak Barden who tipped a Jared Wilson shot from the left boards past Gordy Defiel who got his first Express start between the pipes.

Defiel an experienced 20 year old, made a number of key stops for the Express in the first period. One of his best came just 25 seconds into the game when he took a sure goal away with a great glove save with a puck lying in the goal crease.

The Express offence really exploded in the second half of the opening frame.

Mackin scored his second of the period cutting into the slot and wiring a shot top corner. That was followed 43 seconds later by Santucci's first of the game on a breakaway moments after a good scoring chance for the Bulldogs at the other end. 1:40 later Bo Pieper added his first BCHL goal with a nice toe drag move then sliding the puck low along the ice to the back of the net. That goal spelled the end of the day for Bulldog starter Brad Rebagliati who allowed 4 goals on 10 shots.

17 year old Blake Pearson entered the game and was given a rude welcome as Santucci added his second of the game 30 seconds later wiring a shot over Pearson's glove on the first shot he faced.

Alberni cut the Express lead back down to two before the first period was done on Mak Barden's second of the game and a goal by Mitch Makin.

28 seconds into the second period the Express re-stored their three goal lead. Santucci finished off the hat-trick as he took a bounce off the end boards and slid it through the legs of Pearson.

Cameron Marks put the Express up four with a powerplay goal through a screen at 7:25.

Zach Funk scored the 4th Bulldogs goal tipping home a pass at the lip of the Express crease.

The Express didn't let up in the third period. Firing 20 shots on goal and adding goals by Nicolas Rasovic and Daniell Lange. Jackson Cressy came close to hitting double digits for the Express but was turned aside on a breakaway in the final seconds.

Cameron Marks and Nicolas Rasovic each had 1 goal and 1 assist. And Cody Boyd had a pair of helpers in the lopsided Express win.

Just one game for the Express next weekend which will be Sunday afternoon in Surrey.

CENTS QUICK RALLY STEALS OPENER

3 goals in 54 seconds in the third period by the Merritt Centennials snagged victory away from the Coquitlam Express by a 5-2 score in the season opening game at the Bauer BCHL Showcase in Chilliwack.

The game started well for the Express.  They came close to opening the scoring just 25 seconds into game.  Newly named captain Ryan Rosenthal set up Joey Santucci on a 2 on 1. Santucci unfortunately fannned on his shot or the Express would have gotten the early lead in the contest.

The Express did break through 7 minutes into the game following some good work along the end boards and the puck eventually came out Nicolas Dasovic and he snapped it home to open the scoring.

Santucci and Rosenthal had another great chance but couldn't find a way to bury the puck at the lip of the Merritt crease past Russell Sanderson.

Merritt opened the second period with a powerplay. With the man advantage they would pull even. Scott Paterson in the slot made a quick turn and fired a shot over the shoulder of Pierce Dushenko just 52 seconds into the period.

In the third period the Express took the lead for the second time in the contest. 

Daniell Lange from the corner would fire the puck towards the net, it found a hole on Russell Sanderson and bounced in to restore the Express lead at 2-1. 

Moments later the Express had a chance to put the game away. They had a 5 on 3 powerplay for 52 seconds. They called their time out, but couldn't take advantage of the opportunity. The Express finished the game 0 for 5 on the powerplay. 

Then the game turned in a real quick hurry. 

Payton Schaefer who had two good scoring chances from the slot and couldn't score earlier in the period, found a loose puck at the side of the net and tapped it home after Sebastien Pare powered it to the net. 

That was followed 20 second later by a shot from the point by Tyler Martin that hit an Express defender, changed directions and found the back of the net. Then 34 seconds after that Daniel Nachbaur re-directed a Rhett Wilcox point shot to put the Cents up a pair at 4-2. When the dust settled Merritt had scored 3 goals in 54 seconds. 

Schaefer put the game away in the final minute scoring his second of the period into an empty net. 

Nicolas Rasovic and Daniel Lange each finished with a goal and an assist in the losing cause. 

The Express will look for their first win of the season in their second game at the Bauer BCHL Showcase Sunday morning at 11am vs. the Alberni Valley Bulldogs. 

EXPRESS BROADCASTS GO MOBILE

What a great age we live in when it comes to technology. With smart phone technology today many great things are available at our finger tips.

This season for the Express games I will be broadcasting can be accessed through a smart phone. So you can listen to their games anywhere you go. No more just being locked down to sitting at the computer to listen to games.

This season for the games I will be broadcasting, the games will be streamed using the Mixlr software.  Click here for Coquitlam Express Mixlr broadcast link

This program has been in use by a few BCHL broadcasters last year. And it's an upgrade over the system most guys used last year with Ustream. The biggest improvement is no more random interuptions for ads during the middle of a game.

A big advantage of using Mixlr is the ability to listen to games on a smart phone whether it's an Iphone or an Android phone.

For an Iphone or iPad, just download the Mixlr app in the Itunes App store. Click here for Mixlr Itunes download information

ANDROID MIXLR SETUP

On an android device to get started there is some work to be done, but once you followed the steps it's as simple as finding the link on an internet browser. Click here for Android listening information

Here's what you need to do to download the Flash player for android devices then install it to be able to listen to games broadcast on Mixlr.

First look up what operating system your android device runs by going to settings, then opening up "about device" and there it should tell you which version of Andriod software your device is running. Whether it's 2.x or 3.x or 4.0 or greater.

Then on your internet browser google "Archived flash player versions" or  Click here for a list of Flash player downloads there's a lengthy list of Flash player downloads for various platforms available. Scroll down to find Flash player for Android archives for 4.0 or greater or 2.x and 3.x. Download the most recent version that matches your most recent version of your android operating system.

Once you decide which plugin best suits your android, download it then install it.

You may have to enable plugin settings on your phone. That can be found in the above link for Android listening information.

Click here for a helpful video on installing flash on Android.

Now sit back and enjoy the wonders of technology. If you have any questions or are able to listen to games while in the go using your mobile device I would love to hear from you. This is a great technology and I hope people use it.

EXPRESS ACQUIRE GOALTENDER DEFIEL

Defiel in action at 2013 RBC Cup.

The Express continue making moves in an effort to get ready for the season opener at the BCHL Showcase on Friday vs. Merritt.

Wednesday they were part of a three way trade that sees the Express acquire 20 year old goaltender Gordy Defiel (93).

The Express acquired the rights to defenceman Pierce Eviston from the Vernon Vipers in exchange for future considerations. 

Eviston was then shipped along with forward Garrett Forster (95) and goaltender Daniel Urbani (95) to the defending RBC Cup National champion Brooks Bandits (AJHL) for 20 year old goaltender Gordy Defiel.

Last season Defiel led the SIJHL in all major goaltending categories with 25 wins, 1.39 GAA, .945 save percentage, and 8 shutouts. In the playoffs he helped lead the Wilderness SIJHL championship and an appearance at the RBC Cup. On the national stage the Defiel went 1-3 in the round robin, but the Wilderness were 18 seconds away from an upset of the Brooks Bandits in the RBC cup semi final before Brooks tied it then winning in overtime.  

Forster was originally acquired by the Express on January 10th as part of the deal with the Chilliwack Chiefs that saw the Express also acquire Ben Israel and Shay Laurent in exchange for Phil Zielonka. Forster had 1 goal and 6 assists for 7 points in 19 games with the Express last season.

EXPRESS ACQUIRE PIEPER BROTHERS

The Coquitlam Express have acquired brothers Canon and Bo Pieper from the Indiana Ice of the USHL.

Head Coach Barry Wolff expects the brothers to be key offensive contributors to the Express for this coming season.

The Roseville Minnesota natives have played the last two seasons in the USHL with Indiana in 2012-13 and Chicago in 2011-12.

Canon (93) had 6 goals and 12 assists for 18 points in 64 games last season. In 114 USHL games he has 11 goals and 19 assists for 3 points. Bo (94) had 2 goals and 10 assists for 12 points in 63 games. In 115 career USHL games he has 9 goals and 19 assists for 28 points.

Canon and Bo are both committed to attend Quinnipiac University in the fall of 2014. 

STEPHENS TRADED TO SMOKE EATERS

The Coquitlam Express have traded 20 year old forward Travis Stephens (93) to the Trail Smoke Eaters in exchange for future considerations.

The Victoria B.C. native played 28 games with the Express during the 2012-13 season scoring 4 goals and 12 points. He has 20 goals and 54 points in 107 career BCHL games with the Grizzlies, Capitals, Silverbacks, Clippers and Express.

The Express would like to thank Travis for his efforts with the Express and the best of luck in Trail.

FYFFE TRADED TO EAGLES

The Coquitlam Express have traded forward Mitchell Fyffe (94) to the Surrey Eagles in exchange for future considerations.

Fyffe is entering his 3rd BCHL season. The versatile forward was an honest and hard working player that didn't have his value to the club measured on the stats sheet. His work on the penalty kill and work defensively was always appreciated by the club. In 115 career BCHL games he put up 10 goals and 12 assists for 22 points.

The Express would like to thank Mitchell for his efforts to the club. And wish him all the best in his new home with the defending BCHL champions.