This Storm is Beginning To Howl

As the Pieces Start Falling into Place

So, let's see. At this time last year Kamloops was mired in last place in their division. The talent was there but the cohesion hadn't quite started.

Fast forward to late October. The Storm are in first place and starting to dominate their division. The way that they have played lately they could be really scary by Christmas. All the pieces are starting to come together.

Consider the following:

1) This team has speed to burn, probably as much as any team that I have seen over the last 3 seasons of watching the KIJHL. Players like Reyes, Mann, Menton, Cech, Kirkham, Jackson and Hanes could be the fastest guy on any other team.

2) The addition of Josh Caron and Shea Naka to an already solid defensive crew gets my vote as the most talented in the league. Their transition game (D to D - out of the zone) is the best it has been in the last 3 years. A little more care in their quiet-zones give-aways will ultimately lead to more offensive breakouts where the team has speed to burn (see #1).

3) Goaltending is solid. Until Manfredi showed up in either of the previous years, the team struggled for a #1 goaltender. No problem this year. He's been here since the beginning of the season. And back-up Christian Pedersen has proven to be a solid in his appearances, especially at home.

4) Head coach Ed Paterson and Co-Coach Steve Passmore are back for a 2nd year. They gained the confidence of the boys last year and with continuity the team has developed much faster than than previous years.

5) The team hasn't even fielded a full healthy line-up yet.

6) The penalty killing efforts of Kirkham, Mann, Hanes, Menton, Long, and Jackson make Kamloops a scoring threat on almost every short-handed effort.

7) Team leadership is solid. Captain David Gore along with group of solid vets like Reyes, Ludvig, Mann, Goode, Kirkham and Galbraith are leading by example. The younger guys have fine examples to rise up to.

The current version of the Kamloops Storm could be the best so far... but not yet. There's a little thing called consistency. And another called focus. With a tournament called the playoffs. Only time will tell if this group of hockey brothers can keep on improving to take the final step in a league and provincial championship.

The Storm host the Nelson Maple Leafs (1st Place in the Neil Murdoch Division) for an epic battle of division leaders. Let's hope that the game is as good on the ice as it is on paper.

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ps... good to see Tory Caldwell doing so well with Fernie. He deserved his shot as a starter and he is making the most of it.

Controversy Rears its Ugly Head

Last season the Chase Chiefs lost out on a playoff spot due to a league ruling that cost them 2 points which was enough for Summerland to sneak into the final spot. This year it is Beaver Valley Nitehawks who come to town this Saturday October 25 to play the Kamloops Storm, 7pm at McArthur Island. Beaver Valley has been accused, and the league has not yet ruled, that they played an inelegible player in 4 games. 4 games in which they did not lose a game. It appears that the Nitehawks could lose 7 points which would drop them from second place to last in their division. 4 of the points would be awarded to Grand Forks and they would move up to a tie with Beaver Valley for the last playoff spot. Look for some angry Nitehawks in Kamloops if this ruling comes down as expected.

Kamloops Storm Split Weekend Points

Grab 3 of a Possible 6 Points.

A win, a loss and an overtime loss is what the Kamloops Storm bring back from this past weekend road trip to the East Kootenay's.

This was the first extensive road trip for the team and although they didn't dominate the competition, they survived. This October road trip has always proved tough on the team as they have to learn to get their road legs, find out more about each others bad habits and most of all, find the guy real leaders on the team.



Obviously, the line of Reyes, Gore and Ludvig have started showing their leadership on the ice. This line contributed a total of 15pts over the weekend and at least one of them was involved in 7 of the 11 goals that the Storm managed to muster up. This is good news for the Storm as this line started the year slow but are now gaining momentum.

Nice to see Josh Caron back in the lineup. He will be a welcome addition to the blueline.

Ryan Hanes requires minor surgery on his ankle that will keep him on the sidelines for about a month.

No word on Brandon Long (we miss his penalty killing). He's out with a banged up shoulder and was still not skating when the boys left for the road trip.

After 2 very commendable appearances between the pipes in Kamloops, Christian Pedersen faced his first adversity as he got pummeled by Golden on Friday night. He was pulled mid-way through the 2nd period and replaced by Anthony Manfredi. It happens. Christian is going to be a good goaltender for the Storm. Hang in there kid.

game summaries

Thanks to Jeremy Salamandyk for sending the game summaries.
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The new Team Profile page should be ready by the end of the month... some guys just have to be prodded to submit their information. Look for a high profile sponsor. In addition, you, the fans, will be invited to contribute to the pages and give us all a laugh... stay tuned
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Posse Gunned Down in Storm

Complete Team Effort by Storm Pays Dividends

It was a good old fashion shellacking, one we're sure the Princeton Posse will keep in the back of their minds for the next meeting. The Kamloops Storm unleashed their offense and used sound defense to control the game from start to finish. The Posse looked like they were standing still.

Two 20 year-old veterans, Jamie Galbraith and Mick Ludvig stepped up their efforts on Friday night to score 2 goals apiece in a 9-2 drubbing of the Posse. And there were significant contributions from almost every one on the team. In fact, everyone on the team got on the score sheet except James Friedel (who was tossed for fighting the middle of the second period) and AP Chris Clark. Clark saw limited ice time until late in the 3rd period.

Sheldon McDonald (0-3) and Austin Goode (1-2) led the point parade with 3 apiece while 7 others had 2 points.

For added entertainment there were a couple of good tilts. James Friedel took on Brody Brewster with Brewster taking a narrow decision and Jose Reyes duked it out with Kevin Darcy with Reyes on top of the heap after the smoking fists cleared.

A couple of unfortunate hitting-from-behind penalties also took a couple of players out of the game. Nick Cecconi got nailed for the Posse. I did not see the hit as my vision was obstructed so I can't comment on the hit. I will however say that Cecconi was issuing cheap hits earlier in the period and got away with it so it didn't break any of the Kamloops fans hearts to see him tossed. Darren Mann, in his speedy, aggressive style of play took out a Princeton player in front of the penalty box with a hit from behind and also got tossed. I did see that one and although I don't think it was intentional, it was a good call by the ref, who struggled with the concept of hitting and getting hit throughout the game.

Kamloops was firing on all cylinders. It was too bad that Manfredi lost his bid for a shutout. The goals were a perfect example of team overconfidence that led to breakdown. One fan mentioned to me after the game that it was a good thing the Posse scored earlier in the 3rd period because the Posse's 2nd goal was a coaches nightmare. Taylor Stuart, who played a pretty good game for the most part, committed the ultimate sin of being the last guy back with the puck, trying to stickhandle out of his own zone. With three Posse players on top of him, he coughed it up resulting in a goal by Bill Marshall. With head buried between his legs coming to the bench, the coaches didn't need to say too much.

For full game results, go the the KIJHL site here.

All said and done, the Storm seem to be coming together much earlier than the last two seasons.
With five really good players out of the lineup (Ryan Hanes-ankle, Travis Cech-suspension, Tyler Jackson - flu, Brandon Long - shoulder and Josh Caron- ankle) one wonders how good this team can really be. The impending 5 game road trip should solidify the character of the team and do nothing but grow their confidence.

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Keep your eyes open for the new player profile pages. We are solidifying a sponsor and intend to hold a season long contest for all fans.

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Ghostriders Steal Back Game in Shoot Out!

Heartbreak Kids Steal Show in this Game

After holding a 1-0 lead (David McIvor) going into the last 2 minutes it was heartbreak for the Fernie Ghostriders goaltender Jason Greenwell when Kamloops forward Devin Gannon scored a short-handed goal with 1:58 left in the 3rd period to tie the score at 1-1.

It was heartbreak again, this time for Kamloops Storm goaltender, Christian Pedersen when, on the same power-play, Chad Olsen was left alone in the slot to fire the go-ahead goal with 1:37 remaining, putting Fernie up 2-1.

Probably the cruelest heartbreak occurred with less than 1 second remaining when Greenwell was beaten by a shot from Storm rookie, Shawn Menton. There was a little controversy about no time being left on the clock however the red light went on before the blue light (which signals the end of the period) went on so the goal stood.

Both goaltenders had to make good saves in the overtime which settled nothing. In the shootout, the veteran Jason Greenwell showed his poise and stopped 4 consecutive Kamloops shots while Pedersen was scored on by Mike Oldfied and Chad Olsen to steal it back for the Ghostriders.

It was a very entertaining game between two of the best teams in the league. Don't be surprised if you see these perennial rivals meet again in the KIJHL final this spring.
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Veteran Kamloops Storm goaltender Anthony Manfredi was the back-up goaltender in this game. Word is that he has been battling an ear infection.

Mann to Man

Ouch! Sting Get Stung - Storm Wins 8-2

It took all of 12 minutes for Darren Mann to show his coaches and his fans that he is all growed up now. Mann, on a lightening fast line with Kamloops Blazer product Ryan Hanes and Californian speedster, Shawn Menton left the opposition Summerland Sting swarmed and stung early.

Mann was everywhere, scoring 3 goals in 3 distinct manners. First, he took advantage of a juicy rebound on a howitzer by Hanes. His second goal was a converted opportunity on a loose puck. And his third goal was the result of constant pressure and a pretty passing play between the speedy linemates.

If it weren't for poor positioning by the referee, it could have been 4 goals in the first period, but the goal was disallowed as the official had lost site of the puck.

Mann played for the Storm 2 years ago when he stuck with the team as a 17 year old tenacious, hard checking speedster. He has returned with all the qualities he possessed back then but with a little more size and lot more smarts. The Storm, who haven't shown a lot of offensive savvy so far this season have now found an important piece of the puzzle.

Last night's game was played without the benefit of 2 other speedsters, short-handed specialist Brandon Long (separated shoulder) and Travis Cech (suspension-3 games). With those 2 guys in the lineup Kamloops could be the team to beat this year.

And this was only the first half of the game.

The second period saw much of the same pressure as the first when Jose Reyes, David Gore and Mick Ludvig caught fire. Having Mann, Menton and Hanes attracting a lot of the attention, tihis was the perfect catalyst for a wake up call for this line as they struck for 2 more quick goals in the first half of the 2nd period.

In the middle of the second period, up 6-0, the Storm relaxed a little and found themselves in the penalty box. Summerland, needing to dig deep, turned up the pressure and fired 2 goals of their own, only 1 min-9 seconds apart and carried the play for the rest of the period.

Then Kamloops put it away in the 3rd, again, 2 goals by the Reyes line. David Gore had 2 goals (one in the second period and one in the 3rd, Ludvig one goals and Reyes finished with 1 goal and 3 assists, the line's biggest offensive output of the year.

Daniel Medland Marchen also scored in the first period. Marchen has a very solid game, stepping up into the offensive play, driving the net and hustling back to defend. He is looking more comfortable each time out and will be a steadying force on the blueline.

With the great performances on the evening it's almost a tragedy that we haven't mentioned the Kamloops starting goaltender last night, Christian Pedersen. The 18 year old native from Calgary got his first start of the season and did not disappoint. He moved well and was able to see most of the pucks coming his way. We look forward to seeing him more although the 3 goaltender situation in Kamloops is likely to get broken up shortly with someone being traded. Count on Tory Caldwell finding another home in the future as he is ready to step up into a "starters role".

The love extends to David McIvor and the Fernie Ghostriders tonight at the Mac Island Sports Centre. Fernie took it on the chin, losing 3-2 to a solid Chase Chiefs team in Chase last night. Fernie, still a force in the league will face a team as talented as they were the last 2 years when they won the league championship, disposing of the Storm both times in the final.

Game time tonight - 7pm

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