EXPRESS DOUBLE WILD

Connor Gregga had a three point night as the Express defeated the Wenatchee Wild 4-2 to extend their home winning streak to 20 and overall winning streak to 9 games Sunday night. Click here for boxscore

Gregga got his night going snapping home his first of two goals on the night from the slot past Daniel Chenard assisted by Ethan O'Rourke and Drew Cooper just past the 7 minute mark.

Wenatchee was ravaged with injuries which forced them to only dress 10 forwards. But it didn't deter their group. They pulled even on a goal off the rush when Ethan Wolthers got a half step on the defence and sped in then dished a feed over to Sam Morton who converted the 2 on 1 with a shot past Jack Watson.

A Wild two man advantage allowed them to take their lone lead of the night when Drew Bavaro blasted a rocket of a one timer over the shoulder of Watson for a 2-1 Wild lead.

Sunday's game forced the Express to raise their pace to a high level to match the energy of the Wild. The Express speed paid dividends for the Express all night. They had a strong finish to the period but weren't unable to come out of the first tied.

The Express kept their up tempo play into the second period. It quickly resulted in a good chance for Gregga in the opening seconds of the second period.

Then the teams began to trade chances up and down the ice. Will Margel found himself on a two on one rush. Margel's shot went high over the net as he tried to beat Chenard over the glove. Seconds later Margel found himself at the side of the net tapping in a Greg Lapointe pass to tie the game at two.

For Margel he has a 8 game point streak with 3 goals and 6 assists.

Ethan O'Rourke has taken on the role of entering the line with Margel and Gregga while Massimo Rizzo is at the World Junior A Challenge. And he's making the most of the opportunity right now.

O'Rourke took a Gregga pass in the neutral zone and powered in from the left wing and holding off a Wild defenceman who had no chance after getting the puck off O'Rourke who tucked it in to give the Express a 3-2 lead. O'Rourke has 3 goals and 2 assists in the last 3 games.

Gregga picked up his third point of the night for some Express insurance early in the third period. He took a great cross ice pass from Brad Ong and was poised roofing a shot over the shoulder of Chenard for a 4-2 Express lead.

From there the Express locked it down as Jack Watson finished with 23 saves for the win.

The win caps off a perfect 8 game home stand for the BCHL's top team.

They will head to Prince George for a pair of games next weekend. The Express can match a franchise record for regular season consecutive wins at 10 set in 06-07 with a win on Friday. The all time Express record for consecutive wins is 13 that was split between the end of the 2005-06 season regular season and into the playoffs. 

EXPRESS VICTORIOUS IN HEAVY WEIGHT TILT VS. VEES

Top spot in the BCHL standings was on the line between the Express and the Penticton Vees. When it was said and done, the Express were victorious on the ice and in the alley coming away with a 7-2 result. Click here for boxscore

The win kept the Express perfect at home 13-0. And it was their 14th straight win on home ice dating back to the game 4 victory last season vs. Prince George in the playoffs. The 14 straight home ice wins matches the 14 in a row which is a team record set back in the 06-07 season.

Clay Stevenson won his 9th straight decision with 25 saves. He had to weather a early Penticton powerplay and made a nice stop on a deflection with his right leg early on to keep the game scoreless.

Christian MacDougall was in the box for the penalty after what appeared to be a good honest hit on the forecheck in the Penticton zone. That hit helped get MacDougall going to who was definitely involved all night.

Greg Lapointe opened the scoring by finding a loose puck in front of the net and burying the rebound of a Drew Cooper point shot. It was the 23rd time in 27 games this season that the Express have scored first.

Then before the second period got started the sparks began to fly. As the teams awaited for the start of the period the teams were lining up at centre ice. Connor Gregga was bumped by Conner Hutchison and the two had a few words. More on that later.

Lapointe struck again early in the second period from the side of the Vees net bouncing in a puck off Penticton goaltender Yaniv Perets. Lapointe leads the Express with 15 goals on the season.

Just shy of the 4 minute mark Penticton defenceman Conner Hutchison was whistled for a double minor for high sticking. And before the first penalty expired the Vees were fishing the puck out of their net after former Penticton captain Massimo Rizzo's shot was stopped but Connor Gregga on the other side buried the rebound for a 3-0 Express lead. Wednesday's game also marked the first meeting between the teams since their marquee off season trade that saw Rizzo come to Coquitlam and Alex DiPaolo head to the South Okanagan.

Midway through the second period Noah De La Durantaye was tabbed for a double minor high sticking penalty. This time around the league's top penalty killing in the Express stood tall to preserve the Express 3 goal lead. That was the highlight of the 18th perfect night on the penalty kill for the Express. The Vees finished 0 for 4 on the powerplay.

David Silye got the visitors on the board before the second period was done jamming in a loose puck at the side of the Express net for a 3-1 score through two periods.

Entering the third period the game featuring the top two teams in the BCHL had lived up to the hype with not much separating either team. This is when the sparks would really start to fly.

Connor Gregga was hit along the boards in the Penticton zone that resulted in a check to the head penalty for Colton Kalezic and a two man advantage for the Express. During the stoppage Hutchison and Gregga came together again and this time Gregga the gritty Markham Ontario, native dropped the gloves after having enough of the chirping and the Express forward ended up on top of the pile when it was said and done.

Then with Gregga in the room he would hear Brad Ong scoring on the two man advantage tipping home a set up from Will Margel for a 4-1 Express lead.

18 seconds later Ethan O'Rourke scored on the 5 on 4 burying the rebound of a Greg Lapointe shot to open a 5-1 Express lead. That goal chased Yanniv Perets after 5 goals on 23 shots.

Off the ensuing face-off at centre ice more fireworks saw Cooper Connell drop the gloves with Danny Weight and the Express forward left Weight down on the ice in the centre ice circle all the while getting the Express bench fired up as Connell was sent off.

Brad Ong capped off three Express goals in a 1:58 span tipping home his second of the night past Carl Stankowski and a 6-1 Express lead.

The chippiness didn't settle down in the final minutes of the third period. Noah De La Durantaye was on the receiving end of a hit by Jack Barnes that saw the Vees forward ejected with a 5 minute major for checking from behind. Thankfully for the Express De La Durantaye stayed in the game.

An Ethan O'Rourke penalty interrupted the 5 minute major powerplay for the Express. Just as O'Rourke's penalty expired Tyler Ho scored off the rush for a shorthanded goal to cut the lead to 6-2.

Christian MacDougall never let up his gritty style after his first period penalty. He got rewarded late in the game sliding home his first BCHL goal with just over a minute to play in the third period to put the Express up 7-2.

The win improves the Express to 22-5 on the season with 44 points and moving one point up on Penticton for top spot in the BCHL overall standings.

The 8 game homestand for the Express continues Friday night for the first of two visits this weekend from the Surrey Eagles.

EXPRESS AT EAGLES HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights of the Express 2-1 win in Surrey Friday.



Highlights produced by Eddie Gregory. 

EXPRESS GRIT OUT WIN OVER EAGLES

In a chippy affair the Express prevailed for a 9th time in 11 games this season with a 2-1 win over the Surrey Eagles. Click here for boxscore

The Express came out flying in the first period and it didn't take long to get on the board. Connor Gregga intercepted a pass in the neutral zone then attacked the Eagles defence on his own and found some ice in the slot and snapped his 3rd goal in as many games to open the scoring. That goal would be the start of a prominent night for the Express forward.

The visitors responded by opening a 12-1 first period advantage in shots by the 13 minute mark of the period. And were a little unfortunate they weren't able to extend their lead with some the quality chances they created.

Surrey tested Clay Stevenson in the latter half of the period thanks in part to a 42 second two man advantage, but Stevenson was perfect in the opening frame with 7 first period saves.

The emotions began to flare in the second period. It started when Christian MacDougall was hit from behind into the end boards by Cody Schiavon. The Express rookie didn't return to the game. The hit went unpenalized which didn't sit well with the Express.

More on that later. Meanwhile Connor Gregga picked up a loose puck after a Massimo Rizzo chance and Gregga then set up Rizzo who buried his second Express goal for a 2-0 lead at 14:17.

With Addison Macey in the box for the Express, Surrey got on the board on the powerplay when Sean Ramsay took a cross ice pass and slid his second of the season past Clay Stevenson to cut the Express lead to 2-1.

As the second period wound down the tempers drew short and it resulted in the Express coming out of it shorthanded. But the penalty killers rose to the occasion each time to help preserve the lead heading into the third period.

The third period saw the Express pick up their pace looking to extend their lead. But were unable to get the insurance marker past Tommy Scarfone who finished with 30 saves.

During the second period Connor Gregga was assessed a 10 minute misconduct. Unfortunately while sitting in the box serving his penalty he had to endure with some fans who were throwing trash at him  during the third period.

Then when he came out of the box, he came to the defence of Christian MacDougall who was hit earlier in the game by dropping the gloves with Cody Schiavon. The fight and automatic ejection for Gregga did come with the Express on the powerplay. But the main thing was Gregga showing that he wasn't going to let Schiavon not be held accountable for the hit.

Surrey's best opportunity for the equalizer in the third came with Clay Stevenson getting whistled for a tripping penalty after a Eagles player went through the goaltender's crease. Stevenson got help from his best friend while shorthanded as a Holden Katzalay shot rang off the crossbar to keep the Express in the lead. Stevenson would finish with 22 saves to improve to 7-1 on the season.

Saturday night will see the Express face a surging Langley Rivermen team that has rattled off four straight wins. 

CHIEFS RALLY IN 3RD TO SNAP EXPRESS STREAK

The Coquitlam Express winning streak was snapped at five games thanks to a third period rally by the Chilliwack Chiefs to defeat the Express by a 4-1 score. The Chiefs scored all their goals in the 3rd period for the come from behind win. Click here for boxscore

The Express stormed Chilliwack in the opening minutes peppering Mathieu Caron with the first five shots of the game. Christian MacDougall had the best chance early on taking a pass and finding himself alone in front of the net only to lift his shot too high and out of play.

Tyler Schleppe then was set up in the slot only to be denied by a quick glove save from Caron. Then Caron made his best save of the night coming to his left to rob Brad Ong on a two on one break with a pad save.

At the other end Tyler Schleppe made a great play defensively diving to get a stick on a cross ice pass to break up a Chiefs two on one break.

Thursday's game saw the return to the lineup of forward Josh Wildauer and Massimo Rizzo made his Express debut. They joined Connor Gregga on a line. And the addition of Rizzo down the middle moved Connor Gregga to the wing.

Rizzo's impact was immediately felt on the first goal of the night. He took a pass with speed on the powerplay from Steven Bellini. Rizzo then slid the puck into Connor Gregga's wheelhouse where he ripped home his first of the season to open the scoring. That goal capped off a strong opening 20 minutes that saw the Express outshoot Chilliwack 13-5.

Chilliwack was determined in the second period to send more rubber the way of Clay Stevenson. That was highlighted by Stevenson quickly shutting the five hole on a chance for Brett Willits.

As the second period wound down the Express created more top notch chances. Connor Gregga came close to adding his second of the night but had his stick checked at the last minute as he tired to tuck it in past Caron. Then Massimo Rizzo dished a cross ice pass to Ryan Tattle who had to adjust his angle to receive the pass but still got a decent shot away and put it wide of the net.

Brett Willits got Chilliwack on the board in the 3rd period finishing a give and go with Peter Reynolds to tie the game at 1 at 4:25.

8 minutes into the third Cooper Connell was whistled for a tripping penalty on Cooper Moore deep in the offensive zone. The Express penalty killers did a good job on the penalty kill by disrupting the Chiefs break out with strong up ice pressure most notably by Ryan Tattle.

But just as the penalty came to an end and before Connell could get back in the play the puck was snapped to the side of the Express net where Joey Larson scored to give Chilliwack a 2-1 lead.

Then in a blink of an eye Chilliwack scored again as Kyle Penny snapped a shot through the pads of Clay Stevenson for a 3-1 Chiefs lead with the goal coming just 16 seconds after the goal by Larson.

Caron shut the door in the third period finishing with 9 saves in the final frame. That capped off a 27 save performance.

Ethan Bowen capped the game off for Chilliwack by hitting the empty net with 5 seconds to play to round out the scoring.

The Express saw their record fall to 7-2 on the season. Chilliwack's win was their 4th straight and they pulled within two points of the Express for first place in the Mainland division.

Saturday will see the Express in Penticton for their second game of the showcase bright and early at 10 in the morning vs. the Salmon Arm Silverbacks. 

EXPRESS 2019-20 SCHEDULE RELEASED

2019-20 captain Drew Cooper (Graphic by Jacob Lazare)

The BCHL released the schedule for the upcoming 2019-20 season. 56 of the 58 games have been announced so far. The two showcase games will be revealed Wednesday. Click here for full schedule

The season will start for the Express on Saturday September 7th in Langley. That's all part of the first three games the Express will play on the road, with a visit in Surrey on Friday the 13th and one week later back in Langley on September 20th.

The next night the Express will have their home opener on Saturday September 21st vs. Chilliwack. The home opener kicks off a 5 game home stand for the Express which includes the first meeting between the Express and Spruce Kings since last season's playoffs on Sunday September 22nd at 3:00.

The Express will travel to Langley four times this season. And they will be done with the George Preston Recreation centre before October is done after visits on back to back weekends October 12th and 18th. All told, the two teams will face each other 6 times in the first two months of the season. Considering the competitive nature that comes out of Express and Langley meetings, the two teams will certainly be sick of seeing each other by the time those six games are done. The final two meetings with Langley will be in Coquitlam in January.

All told the Express will play 8 games each vs. Mainland division rivals Surrey, Chilliwack, Langley and Prince George. The Express will have one home and one road game vs. the teams in the Island and Interior divisions.

Of those games that caught my attention, the Express will play 3 straight games vs. Prince George December 13th and 14th in Prince George. Then the Express will host the defending BCHL and Doyle Cup champions for their final game before the Christmas break on Wednesday the 18th at 12 noon. They will also play the Spruce Kings at noon on Wednesday January 22nd.

Then following a 10 day break, the Express get back in action with a home and home with Chilliwack on December 28th in Chilliwack and the next night in Coquitlam.

Surrey will make two visits to Coquitlam in one weekend Friday November 22nd and Sunday the 24th. That is all part of the longest home game of the season for the Express with 8 games from November 16th to December 8th.

They will start the new year with a 3 game in 3 night Interior division road trip with stops in West Kelowna, Vernon and Salmon Arm January 3-5. They will finish January with 6 of 7 games on home ice with a visit to Chilliwack sandwiched in between.

By February the Express will have played most of their home games with only two more games remaining on Poirier during the regular season. They will play 6 of their last 8 on the road. That includes Massimo Rizzo's return to Penticton on Valentines day. What better day for the Vees faithful to show love for their former captain?

The final regular season home game is Wednesday February 19th vs. Surrey before concluding the season with a pair of games in Prince George Friday the 21st and Saturday the 22nd.

Other dates of note include Wednesday November 20th when Alex DiPaolo returns to Coquitlam with the Penticton Vees. Sunday December 8th, Dallas Farrell returns to Coquitlam with the Wenatchee Wild at 7:15pm. Eight times this season the Express will have 7:15 starts for home games.

Last season after playing 3 games in 3 nights only once, in 2019-20 they will do it a total of four times.

The weather may be nice now, but soon it will turn and it will be time to head back into the rink.

BCHL FIRSTS SHOWCASE EXPRESS SKILL VS. KINGS

Alex DiPaolo, Connor Gregga and Cole Edgerton all scored their first BCHL goals, and the Express struck four times in the second period in a 6-3 win over the Powell River Kings at the Bauer BCHL showcase. Click here for boxscore

The victory was the second of the season for the Express.

Cooper Connell opened the scoring for the Express just under 4 minutes into the game taking a quick pass at the top of the left circle and snapping a shot over the glove of Mitch Adamyk.

Penalties were a theme for the Express in the first period. It started with a double minor high sticking penalty assessed to Josh Wildauer. Later in the period penalties were assessed to Hunter Alden who made his Express debut and Jonathan Sheardown and the penalty killing rose to the occasion each time keeping the Express in the lead. The Express entered the game with the second best penalty killing in the BCHL this young season.

The Express had chance to take a two goal lead into the second period with Dallas Farrell ripping a shot just high off the wing then on a breakaway. Cole Edgerton put a shot on a shorthanded breakaway just over top of the net.

The chances started to fill the net for the Express in the second period. Jonathan Sheardown walked down the wing and got the puck to the net where Alex DiPaolo found a loose puck in the goal crease and poked it home for his first BCHL goal.

1:02 later Chase Danol stole the puck behind the Kings net and set up Christian Sanda in front of the Kings net for a 3-0 Express lead.

Kolby Matthews got the start in goal for the Express. He was solid with 7 first period saves. And he finally got his first goals of support in front of him in his 3rd start of the season.

Powell River got their first goal past the Express netminder on a powerplay thanks to Neal Samanski scoring from the slot to cut the Express lead to 3-1.

Just 1:11 later the Express were back up by three thanks to Josh Wildauer scoring off the rush for his second off the season on a set up by Dallas Farrell.

Powell River momentarily cut the Express lead to two for a second time on the first BCHL goal for former Express AP Christian Buono deflecting a Matt Rickard shot.

Connor Gregga late in the middle frame was the second member of the Express to score his first BCHL goal Thursday. Goaltender Kolby Matthews raced up out of his net to move a Kings clearing attempt up ice as they changed to Regan Kimens. He then dropped it to Dallas Farrell whose shot was tipped home at the edge of the crease by Gregga.

The four goal second period was powered by 20 Express shots in that frame.

Ben Thomas early in the third period pulled the Kings within two for a third time jamming the puck past Kolby Matthews. But that would the final puck to get past the Express netminder who finished the game strong to kill the Kings come back hopes. Matthews finished with 24 saves for his first win in an Express uniform.

Cole Edgerton completed a hat-trick of first BCHL goal scorers for the Express scoring from the left circle to finish off the scoring. Jordan Schulting picked up his first point of the season on the goal.

Five players had multi point games for the Express, Wildauer, Sanda, Farrell, Gregga and Chase Danol.

The Express will play their second game at the showcase Saturday afternoon vs. Cowichan Valley. They will finally play their home opener the next day vs. the Salmon Arm Silverbacks.