JONES SUFFERS ANOTHER INJURY

Bad news about former Express David Jones...

(Story courtesy of Adrian Dater & Denver Post)

The Avalanche has suffered another big blow to its lineup, with news today that right wing David Jones will be out indefinitely with a shoulder injury.

Jones, whose career has been hampered by other injuries including a previous shoulder surgery, suffered the latest ailment in the Avs" final game before the all-star break.

Jones had 16 goals and 12 assists in 47 games for the Avs, who will practice today in St. Louis in preparation for Tuesday's game with the Blues.

Jones, 26, missed most of last season with a knee injury. The Avs have yet to call anybody up from minor-league affiliate Lake Erie.

CHIEFS @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Here's the highlights of the Express' 4-3 win over the Chiefs Friday night.

Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen.

EXPRESS HOLD COURT AT HOME

24 hours earlier the home town Langley Chiefs used home ice to pick up a 4-3 win over the Express. Friday, the Express protected their home ice and came up with a 4-3 win of their own to split a home and home with the Chiefs.

For the second straight night the Express got off to a good start and scored the games first goal when Mike Krgovich re-directed a Matt Hutchinson point shot.

Josh Meyers pulled Langley even in the opening minute of the second period when he snapped a quick shot past Khaleed Devji.

Three minutes later the Express re-stored their lead when Alex Petan banged home a rebound of a Riley Mcintosh shot to finish off a 3 on 2 rush. The goal for Petan was his first goal in 8 games.

Then the game slowed down to almost a snails pace. Josh Hansen tied it for the Chiefs off a cycle play and Hansen poked it by Khaleed Devji.

That goal didn't give the game much of a boost. The malaise continued and perhaps it played a role allowing the Express to go back into the lead. Destry Straight's shot from the wing was stopped, then it bounced off the end boards and handcuffed Chiefs goaltender Cole Huggins who appeared to be caught off guard as the puck bounced off him and in.

In the final moments of the second period Massimo Lamacchia was given a double whammy when he was called for both a slashing and a roughing penalty giving Langley a double minor powerplay to work with for a second straight night.

The penalty trouble for the Express continued into the third when Riley Mcintosh was called for a hook to give the Chiefs a 5 on 3 for a full two minutes.

With the Express protecting a one goal lead, they dug in as the Chiefs pressed looking for the equalizer. This is when Khaleed Devji stepped to the forefront and made a name for himself on this night. He made a number of fine saves to keep the Express in the lead.

Much thanks to Devji's efforts, the Express killed off all the penalties. Then they got an opportunity of their own on the powerplay to turn the momentum in their favour when Josh Hansen was called for interference.

Then came a scare for the Express when Josh Meyers collided knee on knee with Massimo Lamacchia. The Express top scorer was down for awhile, but fortunately returned minutes later. Meyers meanwhile was given a 5 minute major for kneeing and a game misconduct.

That gave the Express a 5 on 3 of their own. Mark Begert extended the Express lead when his screen shot got past Huggins for Begert's third of the season and second powerplay goal this season vs. the Chiefs.

Mike Krgovich thought he added his second of the night seconds later when he tipped home a Riley Mcintosh point shot. But after some discussion, the goal was waved off as it was ruled he contacted the puck with a high stick.

Tim Daly made for a nail biting finish when he blasted home a powerplay goal with 1:25 remaining the pull the Chiefs back within a goal.

Langley pressed looking for the tying goal, but the Express made sure to protect the puck along the boards as much as possible to kill as much time as they could and eventually held on for the win.

The Express did get some help on the out of town scoreboard when Powell River erased a 6-4 deficit to score twice in the final 2 minutes to pull the Kings even with Cowichan Valley. The Kings then completed the comeback to win in overtime 7-6. The Express are now 2 points clear of Cowichan Valley for the 7th and final playoff spot.

The 5 game home stand for the Express resumes Wednesday vs. Surrey.

THE POINT THAT GOT AWAY...

42 seconds... That's how far the Express were from picking up a vital point in the race for the playoffs.

A crucial turnover just inside the Express blue line resulted in the game winning goal for Mike Tebbutt as he scored his second of the night moments later blasting a shot over the glove of Khaleed Devji to give the Chiefs a 4-3 win over the Express.

The game started well for the road team. Mike Krgovich's first goal of the night at 7:30 capped a start that saw the Express open a 8-0 advantage in shots on goal.

From there Langley took over. A too many men penalty to the Express followed shortly there after by a double minor for high sticking to Tyler Griffith allowed Langley to rattle off the next 11 shots in the game. Mike Tebbutt tied the game with his first of the night jamming in a puck past Khaleed Devji in the second of the two penalties assessed to Griffith.

Langley continued their dominance in shots into the second period. Trevor Gerling finished off a give and go with Brandon Thompson to give Langley their first lead of the night.

At one point in the second period, Langley had a 23-3 advantage in shots on goal after the Express opened the game outshooting Langley 8-0 in the first 7:30 of the game.

The low shot total wasn't due to a lack of chances for the Express. At times it was a case of one pass too many. The chances were there for the Express, but there were a number of good shots that were passed up in favour of one more pass that more often than not was blocked or intercepted.

Josh Meyers showed the Express how it was done when you shoot the puck as he took a feed from Ryan Bakken and wired a wrist shot over the glove of Devji to give the Chiefs a 3-1 lead.

When the second period was done, the Chiefs outshot the Express 20-8 in the second period, and in the 32:30 of game play following Mike Krgovich's goal that opened the scoring, the Chiefs outshot the Express 31-9.

The play was a little more even in the third period. Moments after only the second Express powerplay expired, Jason Grecica banged home a loose puck to pull the Express within one. Then just 1:53 later the Express pulled even when Krgovich scored his second of the night blasting a one timer off the rush past Wyatt Galley.

Now that the Express had battled the game back to even. Decisions made with the puck became that much more important for the Express as they looked to at least get one point out of the game.

In the final minute a poor decision with the puck resulted in a turnover just inside the Express blueline and the puck wound up in the Express net off a blast from Mike Tebbutt for his second of the night to hand the Express a gut wrenching loss to stomach.

The Express do remain one point clear of Cowichan Valley for the 7th and final playoff spot. But every single point for both teams in the race means so much in the battle to get in.

With the loss the Express finished 2-5-0-1 in their 8 road games that had only 1 home game sandwiched between a pair of 4 consecutive road games.

There isn't much time for the Express to dwell on Thursdays set back as the Express and Chiefs get right back at it vs. each other Friday night in Coquitlam to open up a 5 game home stand for the Express.

EXPRESS TOP 10 - MOMENT 3

Today we look back at the dramatic comeback that saw Kyle Turris score the game tying goal in the 2006 Royal Bank Cup semi final vs. the Fort William First Nation North Stars.

Click to here to listen to moment 3.

EXPRESS DROP VEES

It was back on the road again for the Express Friday night in Penticton. And it was back in the win column for the Express for the third straight game with a 5-3 decision over the Vees.

The win was a huge confidence booster for the Express as they knocked off one of the top teams in the BCHL.

Destry Straight continues to pile up the points as he helped get the Express off to a good start scoring his 18th and 19th goals of the season in the first period less than 2 minutes apart. The fast start for the Express quickly chased Penticton goaltender Billy Faust in favour of Joel Rumpel after Faust allowed 2 goals on just 4 shots.

Click to here to listen to Straight's first period goals.

The goals extended Straight's point streak to 7 games with 5 goals and 8 assists for 13 points. He also has 7 goals and 12 assists for 19 points in 12 games since returning from the CJHL Top Prospects game in early December.

Brown University committee Massimo Lamacchia extended the Express lead in the opening minute of the second period poking home a loose puck. Lamacchia now has a 5 game point streak of his own going with 5 goals and 7 assists. And he's put up 9 goals and 11 assists for 20 points in his last 13 games.

The Express did all this with not too many shots on goal.

Penticton finally got on the board winning a faceoff in the Express zone to begin a powerplay and Brendan O'Donnell wired a wrist shot through the legs of Khaleed Devji.

Just over a minute later the Express got a key break to restore their three goal lead when Riley Mcintosh dumped the puck into the Vees zone, Rumpel went out to play it but it hit a stanchion on the glass and bounced in front of the open net and Jason Grecica poked it in.

At one point in the second period the Express had managed to score 4 goals on just 8 shots in the game.

It was far from a well officiated hockey game. There were plenty of penalties throughout the course of the game. That included a sequence of 4 straight penalties called that saw the teams play over a minute of 3 on 3 hockey in the first period.

In the latter half of the second period the Express had to weather back to back Vee powerplays when Cody Castro was called for a questionable cross checking penalty. Then Garrick Perry was somehow called for checking to the head when he went shoulder to shoulder with a Vees player.

Perry's penalty came late in the 2nd period and accompanied with an automatic 10 minute misconduct. The Express survived the Vees powerplays and took their lead into the third period. But they had to do it without their captain for the first half of the period. Perry was having another strong game. He was at his best on the penalty killing unit.

Midway through the third period the Express still had their three goal lead, Penticton needing to do something to spark a comeback pulled goaltender Rumpel while on the powerplay for an extra attacker to give the Vees a 6 on 4. Garrett Milan was the Vees 6th man and as he stormed off the bench and got into the play the puck came to him and he wired home a wrist shot to pull the Vees within two with 9 minutes to go.

That goal woke the Vees up and they came with their best push of the hockey game looking to complete the comeback. The Vees came at the Express in waves, but the Express kept on playing strong as the clock counted down.

Joey Laleggia pulled the Vees within one with just under 4 minutes to go as he scored his 21st of the season from his point position as his screen shot snuck past Devji.

One last surge for Penticton looking for the equalizer came up with nothing as the Express held on. Garrick Perry got some poetic justice for his questionable penalty in the second period as he iced the game with an empty net goal.

Click to here to listen to Perry's empty net goal.

The Express win combined with Alberni Valley's 4-3 overtime win over Cowichan Valley now gives the Express sole possession of the 7th and final playoff spot with a one point lead on the Caps. The Express do remain 3 points back of Alberni Valley for 6th. And the Express have 2 games in hand on both Cowichan Valley and Alberni.

Next stop on the road trip is Vernon Saturday night at 7pm.

CLIPPERS @ EXPRESS HI-LITES

Here's the highlights of the Express 6-3 win over Nanaimo on Wednesday.



Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen.

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR MASSIMO?

It can provide him with a fine Ivy League education. Express top scorer Massimo Lamacchia has committed to Brown University for next season.

The 19 year old Vaughan Ontario native leads the Express in scoring this season with 23 goals and 50 points.

Lamacchia is the 4th player the Express organization has committed to a NCAA school for next season. Garrick Perry (Alaska-Fairbanks), Destry Straight (Boston College) and Brad Reid (RIT).

Congratulations Massimo.

BCHL GRAD EMERGENCY CALL UP FOR SHARKS

Goaltender Jordan White who played in the BCHL with Penticton and Prince George from 2004-09 and is now playing at UBC, got the call of a life time today to backup Anti Niemi when the Sharks play the Canucks.

Antero Nittymaki got hurt at the morning skate today leaving the Sharks without a backup goaltender for tonights game. So the call went out to UBC Head Coach Milan Dragicevic who then called White off the ice from practice. The paper work to allow White to be eligible to play was then signed before the NHL's 2pm deadline.

White made a name for himself when he stood on his head with the Prince George Spruce Kings stopping 91 of 93 shots in a 3-2 Prince George 5 overtime win over the Camrose Kodiaks in the 2007 RBC Cup Semi final. Jason Yuel scored the game winning goal in the longest game on Royal Bank Cup history.

BIG LINE, BIG NIGHT, BIG WIN

Mike Krgovich, Garrick Perry and Jason Grecica carry a lot of responsibility for the Express at both ends of the rink. Wednesday night they shouldered the Express attack all by themselves in a 6-3 Express win over Nanaimo.

That trio scored all 6 Express goals and combined for 14 points in the win. Mike Krgovich led all skaters with his first BCHL hat-trick and added a pair of assists. Captain Garrick Perry also had a 5 point night with 2 goals and 3 assists. Jason Grecica had one goal and added 3 helpers.

The big night for Grecica, Perry and Krgovich started early in the first period with Mike Krgovich tapping the puck into the gaping Clipper net less than 3 minutes into the game.

Nanaimo tied the game in the second period when Ryan Stanimir finished off a 2 on 1 wiring a shot past Khaleed Devji.

Just under 4 minutes after Stanimir's tally, the Express re-stored their lead when Grecica poked the puck in just 10 seconds into the first Express powerplay.

Then came a key turning point. Zach Martin had a fantastic chance to tie the game, he got the puck in the high slot and he fired a quick shot, but Devji robbed him with a spectacular glove save to keep the Express in the lead.

Off the ensuing faceoff Perry and Krgovich broke out on a 2 on 1 and Perry made no mistake deking past Charles Alexey Premont. So instead of being in a 2-2 tie, the Express built a 3-1 lead.

In the final minute Perry added his second of the night off a faceoff in the Clippers zone. Perry quickly slid the puck past Premont to extened the Express lead to 3 with their second powerplay goal.

Nanaimo pressed in the third looking to get back into the game. Mike Domsodi pulled the Clippers back within 2 at 8:15 when he banged home the rebound of a Andrew Gladiuk shot.

Less than a minute later Cody Castro was called for kneeing, but Nanaimo couldn't score on the powerplay as the Express went a perfect 3 for 3 on the penalty kill. That capped off a perfect night for the Express on special teams as they went 2 for 2 on the powerplay.

Krgovich put the game away with less than 4 minutes to go as he tapped in his second of the night to re-store the Express 3 goal lead.

Nanaimo showed some desperation in the final 90 seconds as they pulled Premont for the extra attacker. The Clippers did score once with the 6th skater as Zach Martin scored on a wrap around at 18:49.

Then in the final minute with an empty cage facing Perry and Krgovich looking for a hat-trick, Perry played the puck up to Krgovich who hit the empty 6x4 from his own zone to put icing on the cake of the Express victory.

The win moved the Express even with Cowichan Valley for the 7th and final playoff spot with the Express still having two games in hand.

It is now back on the bus for the Express as they will head to the Interior this weekend starting Friday in Penticton. The trip will then take them to Vernon Saturday, Trail Sunday and the first of a home and home with Langley Thursday at the Langley Events Centre.

TAKING A LOOK AT THE PLAYOFF RACE

Entering Sunday the Express sit 2 points back of Cowichan Valley for the 7th and final playoff spot.

Today Cowichan Valley will play host to the Surrey Eagles, so when the Express return to action Wednesday vs. Nanaimo, the Express will have 3 games in hand on Cowichan Valley thanks to this weekend off.

Here's a quick glance of what the clubs have left entering Sunday's schedule.

The Express schedule is an even split of 8 home games and 8 road games remaining. Cowichan Valley also has a even split of home and road games at 7 apiece.

After Wednesdays home game vs. Nanaimo, the Express will head back on the road for four more road games in Penticton, Vernon, Trail and Langley.

Once this stretch of 8 of 9 road games is done, the Express finish the season playing 7 of their final 11 games on home ice. The 4 road games will be sandwhiched between a 5 game home stand at the end of January into early February. Then the Express will finish the season with a pair of home games.

Today Cowichan Valley opens up a 4 game homestand vs. the Surrey Eagles. Then they will hit the road for 5 in a row that includes a date in Powell River then visits to Surrey and Langley, then head to the Interior for one last time to play Merritt and Salmon Arm.

Entering the month of February, the Express will have 3 games in hand on Cowichan Valley with 10 games left compared to just 7 for the Caps.

Here's a brief breakdown of what each team has left on their schedule.

The Express have 6 games combined remaining vs. Surrey and Langley, 3 apiece, 2 home and 1 road game vs. both teams. They also have a pair of games left vs. the league leading Powell River Kings (1 home, 1 road). The Express have singles vs. Nanaimo(H), Penticton(A), Vernon(A), Trail(A), Victoria(A), Alberni Valley(A) and Salmon Arm(H).

Cowichan Valley has 3 games remaining vs. both Powell River and Nanaimo. 1 road, 2 home vs. the Kings and 2 home and 1 road game vs. the Clippers. They have a pair remaining vs. Surrey 1 home and 1 road. The rest of their schedule has singles vs. Alberni Valley(A), Penticton (H), Langley(A), Salmon Arm (A), Merritt(A) and Victoria(A).

Both teams play 3 games in 3 nights twice. Entering the final weekend of the season the Express will have one game in hand on Cowichan Valley. The Caps wrap up their schedule at home to Powell River on Friday February 18th. The Express will finish the season on the final day of the season Sunday February 20th at home vs. Salmon Arm.

*(H) - Home game

*(A) - Away game

1 IS THE LONELIEST NUMBER...

That one is the Express' first overtime win this season 11 tries, a 4-3 win over the Langley Chiefs.

Riley Mcintosh played the hero for the Express wiring a slap shot past Wyatt Galley late in a 1st overtime powerplay for the Express.

It was a true chess match of a game that saw Jon Calvano and Harvey Smyl go head to head all night matching lines.

The Express were disciplined all night long making smart changes to get Perry, Krgovich and Grecica on the ice against Josh Meyers, Trevor Gerling and Brandon Thompson. It was fun to watch both teams make the changes on the faceoff or on the fly to get the right personnel on the ice all game.

Massimo Lamacchia opened the scoring for the Express diving into the goal crease and poke the puck in after Destry Straight centered it into the blue paint.

Langley quickly tied it just under 2 minutes later when Kit Sitterly took a pass in the high slot and ripped a wrist shot over the shoulder of Khaleed Devji.

Then came a key turning sequence for the Express when they were called for back to back penalties, and the penalty killers came up large killing off both penalties to keep the game tied.

The two penalties to Cameron Lawson and Matt Mazzarolo were the only two penalties the Express took in a very disciplined game.

In the dying seconds of the first period with the Express on the powerplay, they re-stored their lead with Mark Begert took a pass pinching in back door and snapped home his second goal of the season.

Dillon Scholten tied the game in the second period moments after an Express powerplay ended when his slap shot got past a screened Khaleed Devji.

Late in the period, Wyatt Galley coughed up the puck when he tried to clear it and seconds later the puck was in his net. Destry Straight's shot hit the post but Jason Grecica was there to clean up the greasy rebound to put the Express back in front.

The goal for Grecica was his first in 7 games. He had just 1 assist in his last 6 outings.

So the Express entered the third period with a one goal lead. The final frame was going much like the first two for the Express limiting the quality scoring chances for the Chiefs.

Langley got a lucky break with under 5 minutes left when Trevor Gerling cut in on the left wing and put it on net and it bounced off the skate of Josh Meyers going to the net and slowly slid in before Matt Hutchinson could sweep the puck out of danger.

Before regulation was done Meyers had a chance to put the game away for the Chiefs when he split the Express defence but Devji kept the puck out to keep the game tied at 3.

And that's the way it stood through 60 minutes. Then came the dreaded overtime for the Express who entered the extra session with a overtime record of 0-9-1 this season.

It was a conservative start to overtime for both teams for the first two minutes. The Express got their chance to end it when Trace Strahle tripped up Destry Straight giving the Express an overtime powerplay.

In the dying seconds the Express finally got that elusive first overtime win when Straight capped off a big night by playing the puck back to Riley Mcintosh who wired a shot past Galley.

Click to here to listen to Mcintosh's OT winner.

The Express finished 3 for 6 on the powerplay.

The assist for Straight capped off a 4 assist night for the Express rookie. He now has 5 goals and 11 assists for 16 points in his last 10 games.

Massimo Lamacchia had 1 goal and 2 assists. He has piled up 4 goals and 5 assists for 9 points in his last 3 games. And 8 goals and 9 assists for 17 points in his last 11 games.

The Express now have a week off and will return home for one game next Wednesday vs. Nanaimo. Then they will head back on the road for games in Penticton, Vernon, Trail and Langley.

Cowichan Valley knocked off Victoria 7-3 and remain 2 points up on the Express for the 7th and final playoff spot with 16 games remaining.

MID-TERM NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING RANKINGS

NHL Central Scouting released it's mid term rankings today leading up to the NHL draft in June.

Express forward Destry Straight is ranked 82nd among North American forwards. Injured forward Mitchell Deacon wasn't listed.

Other BCHL players on the list include Westside's Micheal King 133rd, Trail's Joey Baker 134th and Sam Mellor 147, Victoria's Pearce Eviston and Madison Dias 153rd and 165th and Ryan Renz who spent time this season in Alberni Valley was ranked 208th.

THE CHANCES THAT GOT AWAY...

The Express come home after a 6-5 loss in Nanaimo Sunday and they can't help but think of the chances that they couldn't bury.

It was a great start for the Express jumping out to a 3-0 lead on their first four shots on goals by Malcom Mckninney, Massimo Lamacchia and Mitch Pacey. The fast start chased Clippers goaltender Charles-Andre Pelletier by the 5:34 mark after Mitch Pacey's shot went right through the Clippers goaltender.

In came Charles-Alexy Premont and he was welcomed to the game by a Jake Charles partial breakaway and he put his backhand wide. That was the first of a number great chances the Express had in this game.

It wasn't a great bounce back start for Nanaimo after being blanked 7-0 by Victoria the night before.

Finally Nanaimo woke up and began the comeback. Zach Martin and Mike Domsodi scored less than two minutes apart to quickly pull Nanaimo back within one. Then on the powerplay Jesse Ursic's screened point shot got past Khaleed Devji and another Express lead had slipped away.

It was the 4th time in the last 5 games that the Express had allowed a lead of some form to slip through their hands.

Khaleed Devji was replaced by Billy McGadrey for the start of the second period.

In the opening minutes of the second period came another great Express chance that wasn't converted. Massimo Lamachia was set up in front of the Clipper goal and had gaping net for what appeared to be an easy tap in. Easier said than done I guess because the shot was put into the feet of Premont to keep the game tied.

Nanaimo then took their first lead when Brayden Jaw converted Colton Cyr's feed on a 2 on 1 break.

Former Express Ryan Stanimir extended Nanaimo's lead in the third period when he scored from behind the Express net banking the puck off McGadrey and in.

For a second straight game the Express rallied to pull even. Malcom Mckinney's second of the game at 7:17 was followed 1:35 later by Destry Straight's powerplay goal firing a wrist shot top shelf to tie the game at 5.

Just 36 seconds later the Clippers took re-stored their lead when Myles Fitzgerald went to the front of the Express net and found a loose puck for a tap in seconds after Fitzgerald was hit hard into the end boards behind the Express net.

The Fitzgerald triplets of Myles, Leo and Gerry playing on the same line had a solid game. They had some great energy shifts and were buzzing most of the game.

As the Express pressed for the equalizer they were left shaking their heads at more great chances they couldn't finish.

First, Massimo Lamacchia was robbed when he was set up by Alex Petan on a 2 on 1 and Premont came to his left to dive and rob the Express' top scorer.

That was followed by a solid chance for Destry Straight on a quick shot from the left circle and Premont turned it aside.

Then in the dying seconds Alex Petan had his sights set on scoring the game tying goal in the final minute for the second straight game. He had the puck on his stick at the lip of the crease but lifted the puck too high and Nanaimo held on for the victory.

The loss leaves the Express on the wrong side of the score in all 5 games since they've returned from the Christmas break.

The Express remain 2 points back of Cowichan Valley for 7th place, 3 points back of Alberni Valley for 6th after they tied Quesnel at 2, and Nanaimo is now 7 points clear of the Express. There's 17 games remaining in the Express schedule.

They return to action Wednesday night in Langley.

EXPRESS TOP 10 - MOMENT 4

Today we look back at Tyler McNeely's OT goal in game 6 of the 2006 Fred Page Cup final to give the Express their first BCHL championship.

Click to here to listen to the feature.

THIRD PERIOD MELTDOWN PART 3

I could insert my story on the 6-4 loss to Cowichan Valley Sunday and only make a few tweaks this time around and it would be the same story Saturday as the Express fell 5-4 in overtime in Cowichan Valley.

Like last Sunday, the Express played a strong 40 minutes and had a lead this time 2-1 going into the third period.

Like last Sunday, the Express did a good job of shutting down Mike Hammond and Jordan Grant through 40 minutes. They were disciplined and focused to make sure they got the match up they wanted out on the ice getting Mike Krgovich, Jason Grecica and Jake Charles on the ice when the Caps sent out their big guns.

Like last Sunday, things fell apart in the third period. An Express turnover in the opening seconds of the third period resulted in Jordan Grant setting up Mike Hammond for the tying goal at the 14 second mark.

Like last Sunday, the Caps big guns continued their assault in the third period. 5 minutes later a turnover by Mike Krgovich at the Caps blueline allowed Mike Hammond to spring Jordan Grant on a breakaway and he made no mistake beating Khaleed Devji with a wrist shot high glove side.

Cowichan extended their lead to two when the Caps waited an extra shift to get Hammond and Grant on the ice after a shift for Grecica, Krgovich and Charles had ended and Grant and Hammond were on the ice when the puck came back to Troy Paterson who wired a slap shot past Khaleed Devji to give Cowichan Valley a 4-2 lead.

To the Express credit they didn't quit. Massimo Lamacchia who scored the Express first two goals, made a nice cross ice pass to Alex Petan who wired home a wrist shot to pull the Express within one with just under four minutes remaining.

That trio was on the ice again in the final minute and with 50 seconds left Alex Petan found a loose puck and scored his second of the game to tie the game at four. Petan has scored 3 goals in his last 2 games.

Massimo Lamacchia and Destry Straight each assisted on Petan's two goals. Lamacchia finished the game with 2 goals and 2 assists. His four point performance capped off a dominant season vs. Cowichan Valley this season in which he scored 7 goals and 5 assists for 12 points in 4 games.

The Express at least got the point as regulation ended tied at 4. Then came the dreaded overtime session. And it was the same old song and dance for the Express as Tyler Jones scored at 2:39 of the first overtime to give the Caps a 5-4 win and hand the Express their 9th overtime loss this season. This season the Express are now 0-9-1 in overtime this season. And all 9 losses have come in the 4 on 4 first overtime.

The 9 overtime losses sets a new Express franchise record for most overtime losses in a season. Eclipsing the mark of 8 set by the inaugural Express team in 01-02.

The win allowed Cowichan Valley to move 2 points clear of the Express for the 7th and final playoff spot.

The two teams split the 4 game season series at two wins apiece. But the Express finished with a slight edge with the overtime loss picking up 5 points in the head to head series compared to Cowichan's 4 points picked up vs. the Express this season.

The island road swing resumes today in Nanaimo. The season series is tied at 1 with the home team winning each time.

ANOTHER DAY AT THE OFFICE FOR THE KINGS

Teagan Waugh, Cohen Adiar and Andrew Pettit all had 1 goal and 1 assist as the BCHL leading Powell River Kings cruised to a 5-2 win over the Express to open this weekend road swing.

The Express played hard despite what the shots tell you 44-16 for the Kings.

Powell River's top notch defence had another typical day at the office. They have now kept their opposition to two goals for less in 31 of their 42 games this season.

Alex Petan and Destry Straight scored the Express goals.

Leading up to the January 10th trading deadline the Express have made a number of moves. Luke Hernandez has been sent to Fresno of the NAHL. He wasn't going to get the opportunity he wanted for a scholarship with the Express due to the emergence of Khaleed Devji as the number 1 goaltender.

The fill his void, the Express brought up Bill McGadrey (93) from Osoyoos of the KIJHL. He was having a fine season for the top team in the league with a 9-3 record a 2.88 GAA, 90.18 save percentage and 1 shutout. McGadrey did see some action last night playing in the final 3 minutes of the game.

The Express also brought in another defenceman Cody Castro (92) 6'3, 215 lbs. He has 1 assist and 88 PIM's in 8GP this season with Fresno of the NAHL. He also has 68 career games in the WHL with Lethbridge and Tri City with 1 goal and 3 assists.

He is expected to make his Express debut tonight vs. Cowichan Valley.

BROKEN PUCK

Check out this cool video from the USHL of a puck breaking in two.

JONES PLAYS HERO FOR AVS

David Jones was the first start and scored the game winning goal in overtime as the Avalanche knocked off the Sabres 4-3 in overtime Tuesday night.

CAPS @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Here's the highlights from Cowichan Valley's 6-4 win over the Express Sunday afternoon.



Highlights courtesy of Cary Derksen.

CAPS USE COMEBACK TO VAULT INTO PLAYOFF SPOT

It was a 2nd straight third period meltdown for the Express as the Caps came away with a 6-4 win.

Cowichan Valley rallied with 5 third period goals to rip the rug out from the feet of the Express.

The win allowed Cowichan Valley to leap frog past the Express into the 7th and final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference.

The Express got off to a fast start jumping out to a 3-0 lead on first period goals by Destry Straight, Massimo Lamacchia and Malcom Mckinney.

Cowichan cut the lead down to one on Brendon Macdonald's goal on a partial breakway.

You would figure taking a 3-1 lead to the third period for the Express that it would be safe. And they couldn't blow a lead heading into the third period for a second straight game.

Well, the unthinkable happened.

Cowichan scored twice in a span of 1:24 on goals by Keyler Bruce and Jordan Grant to erase the Express lead.

With the reprecussions of the game for both teams in the standings, neither club would want the game to go to overtime.

Justin Georgeson re-stored the Express lead when the puck squirted to him and he swiped it in for the third Express powerplay goal of the game.

Again, that lead didn't last for the Express as 1:28 later Mike Hammond pulled Cowichan Valley even at 4.

Then with 2:30 to go, Garrick Perry was given a 5 minute major for a blow to the head and a game misconduct. That penalty would prove costly as Tyler Matheson scored twice on that powerplay in a span of 29 seconds to complete the comeback for Cowichan Valley.

Based on the Junior A suppliment, section 1.2 says major penalties result in an automatic 2 game suspension. So the captain will miss Friday's game in Powell River and Saturday in Cowichan Valley.

Enterting the game, the Express knew they had to shutdown the trio of Mike Hammond, Jordan Grant and Tyler Matheson. And for 40 mintues the line of Krgovich, Perry and Grecica who was matched up against the Caps top unit did a good job shutting them down. But in the third period the Caps big 3 combined for 4 goals and 3 assists 7 points.

Special teams remains hot and cold for the Express. The powerplay continues to be a bright spot for the after scoring 3 times Sunday. It's 14 for 42 33.33% in the last 7 games. The penalty killing however is something to be desired. Opponents have gone 10 for 23 43.47% in the last 5 games. And 13 for 37 in the last 7 games.

These third period meltdowns the last 2 games leave a sting to end what was a relatively successful home stand in which the Express went 3-2-0-1.

Now the Express begin a tough portion of their schedule that will see them play 8 of their next 9 games on the road. It starts Friday night in Powell River.