Limping Home

October Skid Gives Kamloops Storm Severe Road Rash

It's been 7 games (6 road games) and just over 2 weeks since the Kamloops Storm tasted victory and with a game at home against local rivals, the Chase Chiefs (8-5-3), a win couldn't come at a better time.

It has been a disasterous month with the Storm firmly entrenched in last place (did I say that?) in the Eddie Mountain Conference. Coach Ed Patterson must be shaking his head wondering what he can do to bring out the perceived talent that this team brings to the rink. Over the last 7 games they have scored all but 15 goals, just over 2 goals a game while allowing almost 4 goals/game against. But they have come so close. Of the 7 straight losses, 4 have been one goal games while last night's tilt against Castlegar was a 2 goal loss with an empty netter.

The loss of Jassi Sangha to the Merritt Centennials (temporary or permanent... I guess we will find out) is obviously a blow however this is the time that the rest of the team needs to step it up a notch. Much like last year at this time, the coach has got to be wondering who his leaders are going to be and those players must learn to lead. They need to take them over the threshold to win those one goal games rather than lose them.

Today would be a good time to change the direction of this team.

Without pointing fingers, the 19 and 20 year olds must be held accountable and the young guys need to show that they want more. There were a lot of guys hanging around for a few weeks and when the rosters were trimmed it seems that the competitive spirit has waned with the satisfaction of having made the team. Not exactly what the coach had in mind.

So rather than go out there and show reckless aggression that will keep them shorthanded, a little discipline and an unparalleled desire to win will eventually pay dividends. Let's hope that the worthy coach and owner won't have to make some drastic moves to shake out the dead wood.

Without having seen the team play since Oct 13, I will reserve further comment for a post-game analysis.

Kamloops Storm Grounds Golden Rockets

Jake Young Scores Hatrick in Lopsided Win!

After a sloppy and boring first period where both teams and the crowd needed a wake-up call, the Kamloops Storm scored 5 goals in the 2nd period of last night's game to bury the Golden Rockets.

The first period may have been the sloppiest period of hockey we have seen all season with both teams showing very little in continuity, crispness and accuracy. One of the people in the crowd observed that Kamloops completed two passes in a row only twice in the opening frame. Never the less, the game was tied 2-2 going into the 2nd.
Cody Cringan scored both Golden goals in the first period, the first goal coming at only 0:55 sec of the period. The puck was shot in along the glass when the puck caremed off a glass support to the crease where Kamloops goaltender, Tory Caldwell attempted to cover up the puck. Apparently, the puck was still visible and a sharp and persistent Cringan poked at it until it slipped quietly into the net.
A few minutes later, with Scott Kirkam in the the box for hooking, Lundy Treneman worked his penalty killing magic by stripping the puck from a Rocket defender and went in on a 2-on-0 breakaway with... the hottest sniper in the league right now, Jassi Sangha... fed him the puck and Sangha had no problem burying the biscuit to tie the scored at one.
At 16:53 with Golden on the power play, Cringan scored his second of the period with a quick blast from the left side circle, beating Caldwell cleanly.
Golden forward Luke Rasmussen took a penalty for tripping with only 5 seconds left with the faceoff in the Golden end. This ended up being the "TSN turning point" of the evening as Sangha stepped into the circle, won the faceoff back to Cody Lockwood who fed Jamie Galbraith who let the quick shot go. Sangha, drifting back toward the net took Galbraith's shot in his body or off his stick and the puck went into the net with literally no time left on the clock to tie the score at 2.
From then on, it was all Kamloops, particularly in the 2nd period.
Jake Young started his assault on the evening on a nice feed from Jose Reyes with a laser beam over the shoulder of Rockets goaltender Edwin Weightman. A minute later, Todd Stephenson, the Australian National Team junior benefited from some hard work by David Gore and a sweet pass from Sangha to quickly put Kamloops up 4-2.
The buzz was starting.
Then it was Young getting his second of the evening at 6:28 of the 2nd period on the power play, assisted by Treneman and Lockwood.
Josh Caron scored his first goal of the season when he took advantage of some sloppy play by Golden in their own zone by driving the net and finishing off another sweet feed by Sangha at 14:35. David Gore completed the 2nd period assault by the Storm on the power play with assists from Treneman and Mike Hanes.

With the score under control Kamloops coach Ed Patterson started giving more ice time to his 3rd and 4th lines who matched up well with whatever Golden through at them and Tory Caldwell stood tall in the nets to stop some pretty good opportunities by the Rockets as they tried to make a game of it.
Young capped off his evening with his hat-trick goal at 7:55 on a 2 on 1 pass from Reyes, again a wristed laser beam over the shoulder of Weightman to make the score an unsurmountable 6 goal advantage.

Young ended up being 1st star with 3 goals and one assist.
Sangha had a 4 point game with 2 goals and 2 assists to garner 2nd star honours.
And Cody Cringan, with his 2 goals in the 1st period, captured the 3rd star position.

With the win, Kamloops ties Princeton for bottom spot in the competitive Eddy Mountain - West Division with 12 points on a 6-6 record, but only 4 points behind division leading Summerland who lost a squeaker to Revelostoke last night.

Be sure to tune in for tonight's game or make your way to the MacPark Sports Centre here in Kamloops for a showdown of last years Division finalists, the Revelstoke Grizzlies. Game time is 7pm and we will be broadcasting the game with play-by-play video streaming for your enjoyment.

Chase Chiefs take Kamloops by Storm

Lack of Intensity may cost more than 2 points for some Players

With an overflowing roster, some veterans temporarily on the sidelines and the possibility of more players being returned from Junior A, there has got to be some questions as to who gets to stay and who gets golden handshake.

The Storm, coming off a stellar opening night victory against the Kimberly Dynamiters of Friday, showed little after the middle of the first period against new South Thompson rivals, the Chase Chiefs.

Jassi Sanga scored early in the game, his 4th in 2 games and the team looked like they expected to cruise through this one too. Not so.

Although Kamloops looked great offensively (well, the Sangha, Trenaman, Gore combination in particular) on Friday night, their defensive play was sloppy and Kimberly just couldn't muster up the offense and take advantage. Sunday was a different story. Sloppy passing, poor pick-ups, and weak clearing attempts all but exposed some team weaknesses and unfortunately some player personell weaknesses. Not to mention the lack of ability to win key faceoffs or take advantage of one's that were won. And it really wasn't the defense as much as it was the forwards giving up odd man opportunities with errant passes and slow decision making.

Personally, I believe that the Storm is further ahead in terms of personell at this particular stage in the season but with the glut of players still in camp and the potential for the team to pick up some Jr A cuts, one has to wonder who's gotta go.

Veteran utility player, Jamie Galbraith is still on the sidelines. He hurt his ankle over the summer and has started skating. He is a good bet to grab a spot before long. Jose Reyes, another league vet, injured his ankle in game one and will likely be back between 2-4 weeks.
Australian National Junior standout, Todd Stephenson, who played some exhibition games here last season against the Storm is waiting for clearance from Hockey Canada. He is likely to crack the top 6 forwards.

So, who's likely to stay? Here's our guess on how the chips will fall over the next few weeks. Coach Patterson is heading out on a 2 week road trip where he will be able to find who can and will step up to the plate.

Keep in mind, this review is our own opinion without inside information.

Who Stays?

There are a lot of guys who haven't played yet. If the team is going to carry 4 lines, we see only 3-4 spots available after the dust settles.

Forwards:

Sangha, Trenaman, Gore, Stephenson, Kirkham, Nowick, Reyes, Long

Sangha and Trenaman are a lock. Stephenson, barring some unforeseen challenge should also be a lock because of his long distance commitment.
Scott Kirkam has grown and is looking much better that last year.
Reyes is a league vet and brings an honest effort and high intensity.
Gore can obviously put the puck in the net.
Nowick and Long had solid efforts and were able to create opportunities.

Defense:
This is a good nucleus. Big, strong and mobile the Storm is blessed with quality vets and talented youngsters.

Lockwood, Wongstedt, Naka, Henderson, Caron.

On the Bubble?

Forwards:

Mike Hanes - Defenseman gone to forward, Hanes has the ability to play either position in this league. His aggressiveness (although very crowd pleasing) puts him in the penalty box much too often. With special teams playing a big part of the game these days, Mike needs to decide whether he is going to help the team or hinder it. It is unfortunate that the rules of the game cramp his style but that is the reality. If he stays out of the box Hanes is talented enough to contribute in a big way.

Jamie Galbraith - although likely to grap a spot, he will be pushed by some of the younger players to keep his spot.

Dominc Alec - showed well in the game against Chase, this kid is young and wants a spot. Needs to improve on his skating but he hits like a Mac Truck.

Devon Gannon - didn't make much happen this past weekend, needs to pick it up and be a force

Mick Ludvig - lots of intensity but is small in stature and hasn't played much the last couple of years. Similar to last years' Darren Mann but not as quick or as solid on his feet. Perhaps a couple more weeks will allow him to return to a level that is indicitive of what is required.

Riley Marsh - Played ok this weekend but with limited spots available he also has to pick it up a bit to stay on this roster.

Keelan Edwards - Made the team last year, had a serious eye injury and has returned. Keelan hasn't shown that he has improved much, particularly his skating and didn't show a lot of intensity. Possible trade bait but in tough to stay on this roster.

Stefan Jensen, Randy Hanes, Keagan Hunter, Brock Mott and a few others still in camp haven't played and may or may not get their chance on the road trip.

Defense:

This is a pretty solid group. We listed our top 5 which leaves only one or two spots open. With both Galbraith and Hanes able to play defense also, the competition gets tighter.

Mike McCance - played ok this past weekend but had difficulty with the puck when pressured and struggled on the power play when given the chance. He may be in tough here but has the ability to play in the league.

Patrick Pinder - did not play this weekend. no report.

Goaltenders:

The Storm did not have the same goaltenders at the end of last season that they started with. Unfortunately this position can be a revolving door situation. Brennan Jones is capable of playing Junior A and Tory Caldwell is yet to be game tested. The Merrit Centennials have an extra goaltender in camp and will likely be sending one this way.

Jones is #1 for now and it appears that someone either has to take it from him or he goes elsewhere and opens up a spot. I'm sure that Caldwell will get his opportunity to shine while on the road.

We expect that a few cuts will be made in the next 24-48 hrs as the team gets ready to hit the road for the first time this season. We will try to keep you updated as things progress.

Next Home Game - Oct 5 - Summerland / Oct 6 - Princeton

Got a Comment? Please submit below. We do reserve the right to edit any vulgar or inappropriate material so keep it civilized. We look forward to hearing from you.

The Storm Report - by Barry Dewar

Game One of the 2007/08 season is in the books.

The Storm had a convincing 7-3 win over the Kimberley Dynamiters. The Storm scored all seven goals on special teams with 6 power play goals and one shorthanded goal.
Jassi Sangha lead the way with 6 points (3 goals and 3 assists) in another Domino Pizza give away for all the fans. Jassi playing on a line with Lundy Trenaman and David Gore on the power play were pretty much unstoppable. Jassi also scored one shorthanded goal and almost had more as he enjoyed the return to the Storm. Trenaman and Gore also had great nights with Gore getting one goal and 3 assists while Trenaman set up 4 goals for 4 assists.

Some other highlites of the night included our first video webcast. While we still have some technical glitches to fix overall it seems to be well received and word is the games will be archived for review should the need arise.

Other goal scorers for the Storm were Payden Wongstedt of Fort St. John who played a stellar game on defense, Jose Reyes from Kamloops and Dominic Alec also from Kamloops got the other goals. Wongstedt took a great pass from Scott Kirkham on a goal mouth pass while Alec and his line of Riley Marsh and Brandon Long were strong all night long. Reyes who came to the Storm after playing last season fit in nicely in his Storm debut but left the game late in the third period after a cheap shot by one of the Dynamiters injured him. Derek Henderson of Langley answered the bell for his teammate by pummeling the offender in his first fight of the season. Henderson also had a strong game on the blue line as did Cody Lockwood who will be one of the leaders on the defense.

Brennon Jones got the win in net making 33 of 36 saves. Jones was tested early and made a couple of big saves and played a strong game in net.

The win is the first for the coaching tandem of Ed Patterson, Gille Leberre and Chad Ferris who ran an excellent bench.

Storm Blasts Dynamiters at 2007 Home Opener

Vets Sangha and Trenaman Light it Up to Start the Season

It's been a long summer for Jassi Sangha and Lundy Trenaman. After falling 4 straight to eventual KIJHL winners, Fernie Ghostbusters last spring, the Kamloops Storm is setting their sites on a championship this season with Sangha and Trenaman expected to lead the way. This opening night they didn't disappoint.

In what seemed like mid-season form, Sangha had 3G - 3A and Treneman had 4 assists in 7-3 shellacking of Kimberly Dynamiters. Newcomer David Gore also had a great night as he was credited a goal and 4 assists.

Special teams played a big part in the win as the Storm scored 6 of the 7 goals on the power play and one spectacular short handed effort intiated by Trenaman and completed by Sangha. 2 of the 4 goals by Kimberly were also on the power play.

With a good mixture of vets, newcomers and rookies, Kamloops looked reasonably organized on the ice compared to Kimberly who couldn't seem to get it together or get a break until the 2nd period when they were already down 4-0. The Storm saw commendable efforts from league veterans Cody Lockwood (D), Jose Reyes(F), Mike Hanes(F), Devon Gannon(F), Scott Kirkam(F) and Brendan Jones(F). Newcomers Payden Wongstedt(D) and Shea Naka (D) showed poised and impressed on the back end, both getting lots of PP and PK time.

For Kimberly, vets Mike Whitequilles and Tommy Latouche-Gauvin were solid up front but couldn't seem to pull the trigger when they needed it most. Kimberly's biggest downfall was their lack of discipline that saw them parade to the penalty box time after time and Kamloops just seem to eat them up on the PP. Goaltender Mike Marino faced a number of quality opportunities and played pretty well despite the 7 goals.

There was one fight in the game. Jose Reyes had a knee taken out on a cheap shot late in the game by Matt Wilkins. Newcomer Derek Henderson would have nothing of that and proceeded to punish Wilkens for his dastardly deed. Both players were ejected from the game with the KIJHL's new one fight rule (more on this on another post).

All in all the 650 fans went home happy with a home team win and a Domino's pizza coupon for a free 10" pizza for the team scoring over 5 goals in a game. Thanks again Domino's!

The Storm's next game is this Sunday, 5pm, when they suit up against the new Chase Chiefs at the Mac Park Sports Centre here in Kamloops. Hope to see you there.

Ghostriders Weather the Storm

Fernie wins Game 1 in Double OT

Trevor Hertz scored his 2nd goal of the game at 4:47 of the 2nd overtime period to give the Fernie Ghostriders the opening win in KIJHL semi-final action last night at the Fernie Memorial Arena.

It was a great game with each team running through cycles of momentum, trading periods of dominance throughout. The nearly 900 fans were into it as they packed the old palace and their home team didn't disappoint.

Kamloops executed their game plan well most of the time and showed a lot of grit and determination to come back twice from a goal down after setting the tone early in the first period with a power play goal by Ryan Bullock.

The Storm did a very good job early in the game keeping high-scoring Fernie forward Martin Croteau under wraps but it was his supporting cast that also came to play and ultimately put the game away.

Kamloops wasn't without it's chances. In the overtime, Ryan Bullock had an opportunity when he forced a turnover and went in on a breakaway only to be thwarted by Fernie goaltender Evan Smith.

Both goaltenders, Smith and Storm backstopper Anthony Manfredi had solid games keeping their teams in the hunt when called upon. Manfredi made a Dominic Hasek type save in the second period to keep the score at 2-1 that kept the Storm within reach.

It was give-aways in the defensive end that ultimately cost Kamloops the game as Fernie displayed great puck possesion when they kept the puck in the Storms zone.

Other goal scorers for Kamloops were Lundy Trenaman and Anthony Collins, both capitalizing in the goalmouth area. Trenaman's was a nice tip in from a Paul Riddell point shot and Collins was johnny-on-the-spot picking up a rebound and tucking it under goatender Evan Smith.

Fernie had 2 goals from Hertz and 2 from David McIvor.

Game 2 goes tonight at 7:30 mountain time (6:30 Kamloops time) at the Fernie Memorial Arena. Game 3 will be in Kamloops on Sunday night, 7:30 at the Mac Park Sports Centre.

BOXSCORE

Storm Sweeps Series Against Grizzlies

Kamloops on the Road for Next Series Opener

In a well played and officiated game, the Kamloops Storm stayed one step ahead of the Revelstoke Grizzlies to take the Okanagan-Shuswap Division Championship 4 games to none.
Unlike the fiasco the night before which saw an unparalleled parade to the penalty box, this was a good game.

Revelstoke started strong and played well but it was Kamloops who notched the first goal and stayed ahead or tied all game. Jassi Sangha kept his hot hand going with a goal and 2assists and league playoff goal scorer, Ryan Bullock had 2 goals and one assist including the game winning goal. Lundy Trenaman had the other Kamloops goal.

boxscore


Manfredi was Magnificent!

The difference in the series was goaltending. Although Grizzlies goaltenders Colin Stebner and Jordan Barry played well (except perhaps game 3), Anthony Manfredi stole the show, especially in game 4. In the second and 3rd period when Kamloops got themselves into some defensive trouble Manfredi was simply spectacular making Dominic Hasek type saves to keep his team in the game. You could see the focus in his posture and demeanor, challenging Revelstoke to test him. Revelstoke still managed to beat him for 3 power play goals, something they struggled with earlier in the series but when the game was on the line, Manfredi showed why he was chosen the division MVP.

On the Road

The next series, a 3 of 5 game affair will take place in either Fernie or Beaver Valley depending on the outcome of the Nelson - Beaver Valley series. If Nelson wins, they get the bye into the final and Kamloops is off to Fernie to play the Ghostriders in the semi-final. If Beaver Valley wins, they will host the Storm and Fernie would get the bye.
Currently Nelson leads the series 3-2 and Game 6 goes tonight in Beaver Valley.

Expect the semi-final series to start this Wed or Thurs.

Kamloops Storm takes 3-0 Series Lead in Penalty Marred Game

Officiating Crew Outshines Teams for Headlines

It took less than one minute for the officiating crew of the game 3 showdown between Kamloops and Revelstoke to steal the headlines of the game. I don't know about you but I have yet to attend a hockey game where the crowd has come to see the referees. Only their mommas. And with their performance last night in the Revelstoke arena, their daddies would hide in shame.

From the opening buzzer to the end of the game the officials made more calls than commodity broker and much like a broker, half of their calls were duds. And to make matters worse, the bad calls made against one team seemed to be alternated soon afterwards to balance the injustices. It was a fiasco at best and resembled the recent television commercial where the referee makes an announcement that he blew the call and that he would for "no good reason" penalize the other team to even things out. Only the crowd never got the courtesy of the announcement.

The Grizzlies got into penalty trouble less than one minute into the game and from there on the officials made it clear that it was their game, not the teams. Poor judgement, missed calls, phantom calls and even changed calls sucked the life out of the crowd, players, coaches and even the announcers of the game. Everyone went home shaking their heads wondering what the heck happened.

Oh yes, Kamloops won 6-1 and now has a stranglehold on the series which could end tonight if Revelstoke can't battle their demons in dealing with the refereeing situation. You could see the Grizzlies frustration building between the questionable calls against them and their inability to crack the Kamloops defensive wall and put the puck in the net when they had the chance. Kamloops on the other hand, although also frustrated, made good on a few of their chances and pulled away steadily, scoring 2 goals in each period to win the game.

As of this writing (10:15 AM - Friday), the boxscores have not been posted so the amount of penaties and the goal scoring summary is not available. Probably overloaded the KIJHL boxscore program. We can tell you that Kamloops got a natural hat trick from Ryan Bullock and singles from Anthony Collins, Darren Mann and supposedly Lundy Trenaman. It was Justin Giroux who fired the shot that seemed to go off of goaltender Colin Stebner's glove. That call was all part and parcel of one of the most poorly managed games we have seen.

Revelstoke had the parade to the box in the first period while Kamloops seem to take the brunt of the calls in the second. When Kamloops went up 3-0 in the 2nd, Grizzlies coach Brad Fox changed up his goaltenders, substituting Jordan Barry in for Stebner. The Grizzlies seemed to regroup for awhile, scoring one goal on the power play but reverted back to their black hole of frustration when Bullock scored his first goal late in the second period to put Kamloops up 4-1.

With the game seemingly out of reach, the Grizzlies frustration seemed to overflow in the 3rd period and again the boxes were full. At one time Revelstoke had 4 men in the penalty box and Kamloops had 2 resulting in a Storm 5 on 3 power play. One could only feel that the referee was just looking to penalize the players. He blew a number of other calls too like when the puck clearly hit an overhead beam and rebounded back to the ice. Instead of calling the play dead, he let it go, giving Revelstoke a 2 on 1 break when Cody Kightley took a penalty for hauling down the Grizzlie puck carrier. The ensuing power play resulted in Revelstoke's only goal by Brent Madlung. If the right call had been made, the power play doesn't happen and Manfredi keeps his shutout.

The shutout is a mute point. Both coaches were frustrated. In the end Kamloops ended up taking a late time out and replaced goaltender Anthony Manfredi with back-up Brennan Jones with about 3 minutes to go as Revelstoke looked prepared to take their frustrations out on the Storm players. Good move by coach Bryant Perrier.

There was only one fight in the game with Brent Meissinger duking it out with Justin Giroux (I think... gosh I need those box scores). Without knowing the final count, there must have been at least 40 penalty calls during the game. There was very little flow and very little even strength play.

Your guess is as good as mine as to what game 4 will bring tonight. Revelstoke will be fighting for their playoff lives and had better bring their work ethic and a huge dose of discipline. If Kamloops manages to start pulling away in this one it may end up as this weeks version of Friday Night Fights as revenge and a reminder for next season is all that the Grizzlies will have left to compete for.

Having the opportunity to see this series played in both rinks, I would have to say that I was impressed as much with Kamloops ability to adjust their game on the smaller ice surface as I was with Revelstoke and how they played at the Mac Island Sports Centre on an olympic-sized surface. Kamloops was able to block dozens of shots and showed poise and skill in making successful defensive zone transitions, getting themselve out of trouble time after time.

Our 3 stars of the game were:

1) Ryan Bullock - 3 goals
2) Darren Mann - speed, persistence and a goal made him a solid choice
3) Derik Yuskiw - Revelstoke's brightest light- blocked shots, punishing body checks and solid forechecking

In other action:

Fernie takes a 3-0 lead in their series defeating Creston 7-2 in Creston.

In Beaver Valley it was the NiteHawks taking a 2-1 series lead over favoured Nelson with a 4-3 win.

All series resume tonight so get out and cheer your favorite team.

Kamloops Storm Goes Up 2 -0 in Series

Big Hit By Hanes on Revelstoke Goaltender Sets Tone for Games 3 & 4

For the 2nd night in a row the Revelstoke Grizzlies employed the defensive minded neutral zone trap and again the Kamloops Storm fought through it and came away with a 1 goal win. Now with a 2-0 lead in the series they move to the smaller surface of the Revelstoke arena.

It will be interesting to see if the trap works better on the smaller surface. It should as there is less room for error when coming out of your own zone and a lot more opportunity for the defenders to lay the body on the attackers. Keeping this in mind, the series could get a lot more physical. This will put a lot more emphasis on both team's discipline factor.

Things started to heat up in the physical department when Revelstoke goaltender Jordan Barry rushed to the side boards near the top end of the faceoff circle to play the puck and was hammered by the Storm's Mike Hanes who was also pursuing the puck. When Hanes figured that Barry was going to beat him there he took it upon himself to make Barry fair game and leveled him with a big hit. This got the blood pressure rising on both teams. Barry was down for a minute and continued the game while Hanes got a 5 minute major for charging and a game misconduct.

Which brings up a whole different issue about goaltenders playing the puck away from their net area that we may revisit at a later time. The feeling with some of the people in the crowd was that if a goaltender roams that far, he should be prepared to mix it up. That being said, Hanes made no attempt to play the puck and should have been penalized for interferance. It was a harsh penalty that luckily, the Storm survived.

It was a strange game in the goal scoring department too. Of the 3 goals scored, all were started by turnovers at or near the defensive blueline and a total of only one assist was credited, that being to Lundy Trenaman on the first goal scored by Jassi Sangha.

Brandon Colonna's goal for Revelstoke as off a Kamloops turn over in the 2nd period and Trenaman capitalized in the 3rd period again by picking up a loose puck on a giveaway at the Revelstoke blueline.

The series resumes tonight at 7:30 and game 4 will go tomorrow night at the same time.

In other KIJHL playoff action Fernie went up 2-0 in their series against Creston 2-0 with a 5-3 effort in Fernie on Tuesday night. Also, in a shocker (at least to the rest of the league) Beaver Valley tuned the favored Nelson Maple Leaf's in their own barn with an impressive 3-0 shutout. That series is tied 1-1 and moves to Beaver Valley tonight.

Kamloops Storm Pulls one out of the Bag

Grizzlies Frustrated with OT Penalties

The Revelstoke Grizzlies outplayed the Kamloops Storm for most of the game but in the end they did themselves in. Lack of discipline resulted in 2 consecutive penalties in the first OT period and Ryan Bullock notched his 3rd goal of the playoffs to sneak the Storm to a Game 1 win.

The Grizzlies gave the Storm a whole different look on the ice as compared to the Sicamous Eagles who employed an aggressive 2 man forecheck which forced the Kamloops defensemen to hurry their play. Revelstoke for the most part played a neutral zone trap, allowing the Kamloops d-men to carry the puck but also taking the outlet pass away. This resulted in a game with alot of turnovers but very little sustained action in the offensive zones.

When there was pressure, it was the Grizzlies that excelled and Kamloops goaltender Anthony Manfredi was forced to make big saves to keep his team in it.

As much as the 2 consecutive penalties led to their demise, it was a couple of other questionable calls earlier that stirred the Grizzlies frustration.

In the 3rd period, Paul Riddell was sent to the box for hauling down Riley Weatherhead and sent him crashing into the net. A minor melee occurred and referee Cory Halford called coincidental minors on Jacob Young (Kam) and Kurt Torbolm (Rev). Instead of having the faceoff in the Kamloops zone, the faceoff was outside the blueline. Revelstoke gained possesion of the puck and tried a D to D pass that went bad. Darren Mann picked up the loose puck, swooped in on goaltender Colin Stebner and stuffed it in for short-handed goal and a 2-1 lead. The point of contention was why was the faceoff outside the Kamloops zone when it was clear that Riddell forced Weatherhead to dislodge the net? In the end, the ref said that he felt that the Revelstoke defensemen encroched during the melee causing the faceoff to move outside.

Kurt Torbolm, although he played well was victim of a poor judgement call (certainly our opinion) when he flatten Darren Mann at centre ice with what seemed to be a clean check in our opinion. It's a case of David vs Goliath. It doesn't take much for a hit like this to look dirty just because of the sheer size differential. The ref saw the hit as an elbow and threw him into the sin bin for 2 minutes. Kamloops didn't score on this power play but you could see the frustration level of the Grizzlies mounting.

Then, late in the OT period Calib Roy (Rev) led a great rush up the ice that nearly resulted in a score. Instead of getting back into position, Roy decided to get involved with a Kamloops player in front of Manfredi and ended up taking a minor penalty for interference. Then, 25 seconds later, Kurt Torbolm took his 3rd penalty of the game for holding a Kamloops player behind the net creating a 5-3 powerplay. The Storm set it up with Jassi Sangha drawing two defenders to him at the side of the net leaving Ryan Bullock alone in the slot. After missing the mark a couple of times earlier Bullock sent a laser beam to the top corner to finish it off.

It was a lesson in how to deal with frustration. Revelstoke was clearly the best team over the evening. They beat Manfredi an additional four other times only to hear the hollow clank of iron as the posts became Kamloops best friend throughout the contest.

Bullock had a goal and 2 assists. Paul Riddell scored Kamloops first goal and his first goal of the playoffs on a nice powerplay feed from Joel Leonard. The line of Leonard / Sangha / Bullock looked sluggish most of the evening, struggling to get any solid puck position and when they did, they took shots from far out, usually missing the mark.

Austin Goode picked it up substantially from his effort in the Sicamous series. He was a threat all night.

Darren Mann probably had the best effort of the evening, next to Manfredi, scoring his shorthanded goal and generally being a thorn in the sides of the Grizzlies defense as he forechecked relentlessly.

Brent Madlung, Chad Fenner, Scott Karwandy and Riley Weatherhead seemed to be the strength of the Revelstoke forwards with solid defensive performances coming from Calib Roy and big Mason Regier. Colin Stebner was solid in the net and was unlucky not to claim the win.

Game 2 goes Tuesday night back in Kamloops. Both teams need an injection of something. Obviously discipline has to be on the minds of Revelstoke and the Storm needs a serious dose of giddy-up as they appeared sluggish most of the evening.

The game starts at 7:30. If you are in town, come on out a watch the game or listen to us on the internet at www.kijhl.com .