EAGLES DROP SHORTHANDED EXPRESS

The Surrey Eagles dropped the Express 5-2 in a mid-week affair from the South Surrey Arena.

The Express played without defencemen Zach Hodder, JD Cotroneo and John Saunders who served either a 1 or 2 game ban for their indiscretions last weekend in Prince George.

The line of Jonah and Nathan Renouf and Braeden Russell torched the Express for 8 points with 3 goals and 5 assists. Russell led the way with 2 goals and an assist. Jonah had 1 goal and 2 helpers. And Nathan had 2 assists.

Goaltender Devon Fordyce turned aside 37 of 39 shots to post the win.

The Express deserved better than the scoreboard showed after 20 minutes where they outshot Surrey 15-12. Surrey got goals from Darius Davidson, Braeden Russell and Kale Bennett.

The latter two were goals that i'm sure goaltender Pierce Dushenko would like to have back. Russell scored from a wrist shot from the boards. And Bennett's was a shot that snuck between the rookie net minders legs.

Canon Pieper set up brother Bo to pull the Express within two midway through the second period.

But the Renouf brothers teamed up to set up Russsell for his second of the night before the second period was done.

Again the Express pulled within two as Jace Hennig banged home the rebound of a Canon Pieper shot off the end glass midway through the second period.

Surrey put the game away for good when Jonah Renouf cut to the net from the right wing and roofed a shot over the glove of Dushenko.

The game had some rough stuff towards the end of the contest. Joey Santucci was assessed a 5 minute major penalty and given a game misconduct for a hit on Michael McEachern with under 3 minutes remaining in the third period.

The final score doesn't reflect who well the shorthand Express played in this game. They deserved a better fate with the effort level they put forth Wednesday night.

The Express are right back on the road heading back up to Prince George for another double header starting Friday night. 

ROCKWOOD COMMITS TO WISCONSIN

Coquitlam Express forward Adam Rockwood has committed to the University of Wisconsin for the 2014-15 season.

The second year forward leads the Express in scoring with 11 goals and 49 assists for 60 points in 46 games which put him 4th in BCHL scoring. He has led the BCHL in assists pretty much from the start of the season.

In his first season with the Express in 2012-13 he tallied 6 goals and 20 assists for 26 points in 46 games. He's played 96 career games in an Express uniform compiling 17 goals and 69 assists for 86 points.

The Express now have 8 players on their roster with college commitments.

Congratulations Adam.

Excited to announce my commitment to the University of Wisconsin. Thankful to all my teammates, friends & family for the support. #badgers
— Adam Rockwood (@adamrockwood) January 29, 2014

EXPRESS EDGE CENTS

Adam Rockwood scored a pair of goals, and Gordie Defiel turned aside 33 shots in a 2-1 win for the Express over the Merritt Centennials.

The win extended the Express' season high winning streak to 5 games.

It's been defense and goaltending which has been the foundation for the Express during this current run which has seen them allow just 11 goals in the last 5 outings.

The game had the makings of a tight contest when looking how they stacked up against one another. It definitely turned out to be true.

Each team had to fight for each inch of ice when there wasn't much ice to be gained.

Merritt put the clamp down on the Express early jumping to an early 10-1 advantage in shots but Gordie Defiel proved early he was going to be a steadying presence for the Express in their crease.

Jackson Cressey and Adam Rockwood had some of the Express best chances in the final 8 minutes but nothing found the back of the net in the opening 20 minutes.

It took until the 15 minute mark of the second period for the deadlock to finally be broken when Adam Rockwood led a 3 on 1 rush and decided to keep the puck and he wired a shot over the glove of Devin Kero for his 9th of the season.

Rockwood gave the Express much needed insurance when he found the puck alone in the Cents zone while shorthanded. He couldn't score on the initial chance. But his persistence on the puck kept the play alive as he walked out from behind the net and scored on the wrap around for his 2nd of the night and 17th shorthanded goal for the Express this season.

The two goal performance was a much welcomed contribution for the Express to get a pair of goals from a player who's primarily known for his assists. And when you consider they played without Captain Ryan Rosenthal for a fourth straight game and with out Brendan Lamont for a third straight outing.

Former Express Jason Bird made things interesting as his slap shot on the power play was tipped home by Shane Poulsen with just less than 12 minutes remaining.

Going forward the Express put the clamp on Merritt and shut them down the rest of the night in what felt like a playoff game between the two clubs.

It makes heading on the bus with a long ride up to Prince George for a pair of games much more enjoyable coming off a win. 

EXPRESS COMPLETE SECOND SWEEP OF HOME AND HOME WITH CHIEFS THIS SEASON

Two home and home series with the Chilliwack Chiefs this season, and a pair of sweeps for the Express in those home and home series.

They completed their second sweep of the season with a 6-3 win in Chilliwack Saturday night.

Canon and Bo Pieper each scored a pair of goals. Canon also added a pair of assists for a four point night.

The Pieper brothers got their night started with Canon finding a trailing Zach Hodder whose shot bounced to Bo who scored on the rebound to open the scoring at 6:56.

Pierce Dushenko got the start between the pipes for the Express while Josh Halpenny got the call for a second straight night.

Both goaltenders had moments to shine in the first period. He finished with 36 saves for his 6th victory of the season. Halpenny had key stops on Bo Pieper, Cody Boyd and Joey Santucci in the first period.

Dushenko's best save of the first period came off a Mason Boh breakaway.

That save turned out to be a key turning point as a minute later the Express struck again as Cameron Marks' screen shot got past Halpenny for a 2-0 Express lead on the 3rd goal of the season for Marks.

Chilliwack caught a break to get on the board in the second period. The puck was thrown to the crease area from behind the net. It hit the stick of Dushenko and Kyle Westerlingh poked it home to cut the Express lead to one.

The lead was quickly back to two as Jace Hennig scored for a 4th straight game and 5th time in his last 6 on the power play on a set up by Canon Pieper.

The game was cruising along in the third period when suddenly Ben Butcher snapped a shot over the glove of Dushenko to cut the lead to 3-2 at 5:47.

Butcher's goal gave his team some life in a game that appeared to be in auto pilot up until that point of the third period.

Bo Pieper momentarily halted the momentum Chilliwack was generating when he scored his second of the night midway through the third to give the Express their third two goal lead of the night at 4-2.

The plucky Chiefs wouldn't go down without a fight as Mathieu Tibbet scored for a second straight night on the power play setting up a tense finish with less than 4 minutes remaining.

Then Adam Rockwood was called for hooking with 2:17 remaining giving the Chiefs an opportunity on the power play to complete the come back.

But those plans were extinguished when Canon Pieper broke away from the Chilliwack defense and scored the 15th shorthanded goal for the Express. Canon then added his 6th shorthanded goal of the season into an empty net and the 16th for the Express this season. Canon is now one shorthanded goal away from tying Kyle Turris' franchise record for most shorthanded goals in a season that he set in 2005-06.

The Express will look to extended their winning streak to four when they host Trail Sunday afternoon.

RASOVIC PLAYS HERO FOR EXPRESS VS. CHIEFS

Rookie Nic Rasovic's late third period goal broke a 2-2 tie en route to a 4-2 win over the Chilliwack Chiefs in the first of a home and home.

The goal was just the 3rd goal of the season for the Express rookie and his first goal since opening the season with goals in back to back games at the season opening showcase in Chilliwack.

Chilliwack showed early that despite their record, they were going to make the Express earn everything they got on this night.

And they proved that point by opening the scoring less than 3 minutes in as Carter Cochrane cut to the goal and slid it past Gordie Defiel at 2:52.

Canon Pieper pulled the Express even as he snapped a shot through the legs of Josh Halpenny at 7:39.

The goal was Canon's 25th of the season pulling him into a tie in that department with Ryan Rosenthal who didn't dress for the Express.

Josh Halpenny and Gordie Defiel had their moments to shine in the first period with some fine saves.

Defiel denying Andrew Silard on a 2 on 1 with a pad save coming to his right. Then Halpenny kicked out bids by Joey Santucci and Corey Mackin in quick succession.

Jace Hennig opened the second period by scoring for a third straight game and fourth time in the last five games finishing off a set up from Marc Biega behind the net.

The intensity level of this game picked up a few notches in the middle period.

Canon Pieper and Cameron Marks were on the receiving ends of big hits in the middle frame.

The biggest hit of the period was on Brendan Lamont who collided knee on knee with Cody Bardock. The Chiefs defenceman was assessed a 5 minute major and a game misconduct for the hit. Lamont didn't return to the game.

Matthieu Tibbet drew Chilliwack even as he stole the puck off Zach Hodder at the blue line and walked in alone on a breakaway and slid home his 17th of the season.

Plenty of penalties consumed the second period tonight. That included a 5 on 3 for the Chiefs for 45 seconds. But neither team was able to break through on the power play. Both squads finished 0 or 5 on the power play. Now the Express penalty killing has killed off 21 of 22 shorthanded situations in 2014.

Due to the amount of penalties, it limited some of the ice time for some members of the Express.

That includes the fourth line of Jackson Cressy, Daniel Lange and Nic Rasovic. But they got their ice in the third period and did what they do best is provide solid energy for the Express. They spent a good chunk of ice time in the offensive zone. And their play gives the coaches confidence to throw them on the ice on a regular basis no matter the situation of the game.

The youngsters were rewarded with their hard work when the puck bounced off a leg at the Chilliwack blue line allowing Nic Rasovic walk in and score on a breakaway sliding the puck through the legs of Halpenny with just 2:24 remaining.

Cody Boyd then sealed the game by scoring his third of the season into an empty net with 1:05 left.

The shots finished even at 29 apiece.

These teams will meet again Saturday night in Chilliwack at 7:00.

EAGLES @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Here's the highlights of the 7-3 win for the Express Wednesday night over Surrey.



Highlights courtesy of Jorge Parra and Underdog Productions.

EXPRESS PICK UP 1ST WIN OF 2014

Canon Pieper, Corey Mackin and Ryan Rosenthal each scored a pair of goals part of a 7-3 win for the Express over the Surrey Eagles Wednesday night.

It was the first win of 2014 for the Express who were winless in their last 3 games (0-2-1) entering Wednesday's contest.

It was a solid team effort from top to bottom for the Express.

All 4 lines had a role in the win as did the 6 defense. Goaltender Gordie Defeil was steady in the Express crease with 32 saves and added an assist for good measure.

The Express power play was firing early to put the home team into an early lead.

Corey Mackin banged home the rebound of a Zach Hodder shot to open the scoring. That was followed by another power play goal 5 minutes later from Canon Pieper to put the Express up 2-0 before the game was 9 minutes old.

Surrey pulled even before the period was done as Danton Heinen scored on a 2 on 1 snapping it through the legs of Gordie Defiel. That was followed by Nathan Renouf walking out from behind the Express net and scoring on a backhand past Defiel in the final minute of the first period.

In the second period the Express started to pull away from a young Eagles squad that traded Nic Pieriog, Luke Sandler and captain Brett Mulcahy leading up to the January 10th trade deadline to get younger and acquire assets that will be helpful in the years ahead.

Jace Hennig and Canon Pieper with his second of the night on scrambles added to the Express lead. Canon's goal was his 24th of the season which briefly put him in the team lead for goals.

Corey Mackin then added his second of the night snapping the puck through the legs of Bo Didur for his 20th goal of the season to become the 3rd member of the Express this season to hit the 20 goal mark.

Captain Ryan Rosenthal was on the receiving end of a pair of nice set ups by Adam Rockwood which led to of Express goals in the third.

Rockwood who had 4 assists, first cut across the blue line then hooked the puck behind him to find a streaking Rosenthal who walked in and roofed it over the glove of Didur. That was followed minutes later by some serious sauce dished out by Rockwood to lay the puck up high then have it land flat for Rosenthal who in tight deked past Didur for his second of the night and 25th of the season to re-claim the Express lead in the goal department.

Braeden Russell rounded out the scoring with a late power play goal for Surrey. It was the first power play goal allowed by the Express of 2014 snapping a run of 16 consecutive successful kills.

The win opened up a 6 point lead for the Express over Surrey for 3rd place in the Mainland division.

Up next is a home and home with the Chilliwack Chiefs starting Friday in Coquitlam. 

EXPRESS ADD PAIR OF 20 YEAR OLD DEFENCEMEN

The Express have added a pair of 20 year old defenceman in advance of the January 10th roster deadline.

They have acquired experienced BCHL blueliner Mark Whiteley and signed JD Cotroneo.

Whiteley comes to the Express from the Salmon Arm Silverbacks in exchange for future considerations. The 6'0 Surrey native has dressed for 27 games with the Silverbacks this season. But has spent the majority of his 92 career BCHL career with the Langley Rivermen/Chiefs franchise.

This season he has 1 goal and 8 assists for 9 points in 35 games split between Langley and Salmon Arm. He has 8 goals and 32 assists for 40 points in his BCHL career.

Cotroneo was with St. Thomas University (NCAA DIV. III) where he didn't dress for a game. He spent the majority of his junior career in the NAHL split between Traverse City, Topeka, Aberdeen and the Soo Eagles where he played 49 games over the previous two seasons scoring 2 goals and 7 asssists for 9 points.

The 5'11 180lb Woodbury Minnesota native also played 14 games with Des Moines of the USHL and didn't register a point during the 2011-12 season.

EXPRESS AND CAPS BATTLE TO ENTERTAINING TIE

You can't say a tie is like kissing your sister after watching the Express and Cowichan Valley Capitals finish to a pretty exciting 4-4 draw Saturday night.

The Express are now unbeaten in 3 games (2-0-1) following their Christmas break.

The home team came out flying in the first period. Robin Gusse was the reason why the Express couldn't break through early despite opening up a 7-0 advantage in shots just over 4 minutes into the game.

It was the visitors who opened the scoring while a man down as Jarrett Brown wired a shot through the wickets of Gordie Defiel.

But the Express pulled even on the power play just 38 seconds later as Adam Rockwood set up Joey Santucci with a great cross ice feed for his 18th of the season. Rockwood, the Express scoring leader has 6 assists in his last 3 games.

56 seconds later the Express would take what would be their only lead of the night as Canon Pieper helped set up Ryan Rosenthal who scored his first of two on the night at the 16:00 mark.

The Express couldn't hold their lead going into the second period.

Mason Malkowich off the rush chopped the puck through the legs of Gordie Defiel with just 55 seconds remaining in the opening period. And despite a 19-8 advantage in shots the game was even at 2.

Cowichan Valley came out with more jump in the second period.

Mason Malkowich opened the period scoring his second of the night firing a shot top corner past the glove of Defiel.

That was followed 2:10 later by Matthew Berry-Lamontagna finding a loose puck and banging it home in the crease in his first game vs. his former mates following his trade to Penticton and eventually Cowichan Valley in late November.

Trailing by two the Express had their chances to try and rally back but didn't like how it sounded ringing three shots off the post.

Newcomer Brendan Lamont who was acquired earlier this week from Penticton made an impact in his first Express game helping set up Jace Henning to pull the Express within one.

In the dying seconds of the second period Gordie Defiel made his best save of the night kicking out the right pad to deny Matthew Berry's bid for his second of the night at 19:59. That would turn out to be a huge save in the final outcome as Defiel finished with 32 saves on 36 Caps shots.

Captain Ryan Rosenthal led the charge in the third as the Express looked for the equalizer. He was turned aside on a great chance and followed that up seconds later with another and made no mistake on the second try burying his second of the night to complete the comeback for the Express.

Gordie Defiel was called upon late in the third period to preserve the tie for the Express with a pair of saves off Kyle Horsman with less than 10 seconds in the third period.

Each team had their chances in overtime.

The best one to decide it came with controversy in the second overtime with the Caps being called for too many men nullifying a 2 on 1 break for the Express. But it did result in a penalty shot for Adam Rockwood who was denied by Robin Gusse as Rockwood tried to pull of the Pavel Datsyuk moved he scored on a penalty shot in overtime last year.

This was the only game for the Express this weekend who hit the road next weekend for games in West Kelowna and Vernon.

HUNT GETS THE CALL FROM THE OILERS

Former Express captain Brad Hunt has been called up by the Edmonton Oilers and will make his NHL debut tonight vs. the Anaheim Ducks.

Hunt played two full seasons for the Express when the franchise was based in Burnaby from 2006-08. He was a member of the 2006 RBC Cup National champion team.

In 123 career BCHL games he racked up 20 goals and 73 assists for 93 points. He was the captain of the Express during the 2007-08 season where he set team records for goals (16) and points in a season (55) by a defenseman. His goals record still stands, but his points record has since been eclipsed by Clinton Atkinson in 2011-12.

Following his time with the Express he played 4 seasons at Bemidji State University where he had 24 goals and 111 points.

At the conclusion of his time at Bemidji State in 2012 he signed a free agent contract with the AHL's Chicago Wolves where he played under Craig Mactavish who was the Head Coach and is now the Oilers General Manager.

He concluded the 2011-12 season in Chicago and played the entire 2012-13 season with the Wolves. In 79 games over the parts of 2 seasons he scored 5 goals and 33 assists for 38 points.

In the summer of 2013 he signed a two year deal with the Edmonton Oilers.

In 27 games with their AHL affiliate in Oklahoma City he scored 3 goals and 12 assists for 15 points and was a +1.

He will likely be paired with Nick Schultz tonight in Anahiem.

Here's his thoughts on his NHL debut tonight.

EXPRESS ACQUIRE LAMONT

The Coquitlam Express have acquired forward Brendan Lamont (94) from the Penticton Vees in exchange for the rights to forward Michael Rebry (93).

Lamont has split this season with the Vees and the Trail Smoke Eaters where he had 7 goals and 12 assists for 19 points in 41 games.

In 156 career BCHL games with Merritt, Trail and Penticton the Langley native has 19 goals and 37 assists for 56 points.

The Express acquired Rebry's rights from Penticton on January 10th, 2013 as part of the future considerations in the trade that saw John Siemer sent to Penticton. He was attending Western Michigan University this season where he dressed for only 8 games and didn't register a point.