Game: Powell River Kings vs Nanaimo Clippers
Arena: Frank Crane Arena
Puck Drop: 7:15pm
Broadcast: Starts at 6:55pm
95.7 Coast FM in Powell River
Kings Broadcast Network
FastHockey PPV Video
Kings Record: 27-21-1-9 (3rd Island)
Opposition Record: 37-16-0-5 (1st Island)
Tonight is game 1 of the regular season for both clubs. Powell River went 1-1 in the pre-season with a win in Cowichan followed by a loss in Alberni. The Clippers went 2-3 in their 5 exhibition contests on the Island.
- Opening night is always special and one of my favourite games of the year. Everything is at square one, everything is even, everybody is on level terms and the hunt for the Fred Page Cup begins again. We’ll use terms like “change” and “turnover” a lot tonight as is typical with the start of a new Junior hockey season.
- This is a rematch of the Island Division Final from last year’s playoffs, an epic and highly entertaining 7-game series that came down to one goal. It was a series that was so close I said at the end of it that it’s hard to say the best team one. Not because Powell River was better, but because both teams were so evenly matched with one rarely outplaying the other and it came down to the little things like bounces and breaks. A majority of the time you earn those bounces and breaks and full credit to the Clippers on getting through to the Fred Page Cup final.
- 10 returnees for both clubs, but add on another 4 for the Kings when factoring in affiliates that played with the team last year. That’s a solid core for both clubs to build around and start the season with. Nanaimo will ride their returning forwards heavy, especially a player like Sheldon Rempel who always seems to perform well against Powell River. He was the big danger man last season during the season series and playoffs.
- For the Kings, it’s a complete 180 from last year at this time. Last year we were confident about the offence with Keats and Lukosevicius reuniting for another season, joined by Jacob Pritchard, and a solid core of guys like JJ Coleshaw, Stephen Hiff and Jarryd Leung all bringing experience. The question mark was on the defence where only Jeremy LeClerc, Jordan Burns and Cole Arcuri remained from a mass exodus at the end of 2014. This year, all but one of the 6 to dress tonight have played not only regular season, but playoff action for the Kings. In net, the same story with both Jeff Smith and Stefan Wornig seeing game action in green and gold.
- To continue that thought, up front will be an interesting evolution this season. There hasn’t been the same feeling around the club about a dominant line emerging like last year’s Pritchard-Keats-Lukosevicius…but rather a scoring by committee approach to get the offence. There will be players who will break free from the pack, and big things are expected out of returnees and recruits a like.
- The Kings roster is currently “officially” at 21, although as I said in the Meet Your Kings post earlier this week, it’ll be a couple of weeks before we get to a 22 as teams do have some flexibility in the carding of players during the first couple of weeks during the year.
- For the Clippers, aside from the aforementioned Rempel, watch for defenceman Yanni Kaldis who was excellent last year and should be the leader of the blue line this year. Also, newly minted Captain Devin Brosseau is a talented forward who maybe didn’t do as much last season against the Kings as I thought he would. In Net, Jonathan Reinhart is the elder of the two and will go for the start this evening. Both Rempel and Brosseau have secured NCAA Division 1 deals with Nanaimo, and the Clippers have bought in 3 players (Hoover, Finner and Petruzzelli) who have already earned scholarships to the next level.
- The Kings will counter with Jeff Smith between the pipes and face a difficult task of finding how to cram 21 into 20. There have been no major injuries with the team and as of last report all 21 were eligible to play game 1. Who sits? No word yet.
The broadcast goes live on 95.7 Coast FM in Powell River at 6:55. It will also be online on the Kings Broadcast Network. In our pre-game show we’ll talk with both Head Coaches about their teams this season. In the 1st intermission, chats with Nick Halagian, Kyle Betts and Nick Nonis. In the 2nd break, our player profile segment kicks off with Cartwright Manitoba’s Tristan Mullin. Brock Sawyer will join us through 40 for a quick chat, with a more detailed breakdown of the game after 60 in the post-game show.
