WHL Kamloops Blazers

Blazers Week in Review

Published on January 25, 2011 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Kamloops Blazers News Release


Week in Review:

Tuesday, January 18th, 2010 at Seattle Thunderbirds - 4-3 Win

The Blazers persevered in this one as they gave up a 3-0 lead but still won the game 4-3 in Seattle. The Blazers had a terrific first period outshooting the Thunderbirds 26-5 but only coming out with a 1-0 lead. Brady Gaudet fired a puck past goaltender Calvin Pickard, who was terrific stopping 55 of 58 shots on the night. The short-staffed Blazers continued to play a solid defensive game as they clogged up the neutral zone and waited for their opportunities in the second period. Ryan Hanes intercepted a puck and blasted a shot at Pickard that squeaked through and Chase Souto cleaned it up for his 2nd goal of the year. The Blazers maintained a 2-0 lead going into the final frame. A good start in the third period led to Dylan Willick breaking in and getting his 13th of the season as the Blazers were in control with a 3-0 lead. The Thunderbirds though got themselves back in the game with a powerplay marker to make it 3-1. They would make it 3-2 scoring only 19 seconds after their first goal with still half the period to go. They would then tie the game with just over a minute left as Travis Toomey tipped in a puck past Jeff Bosch to send the game to overtime. Bronson Maschmeyer hit the post in overtime as the Blazers outshot the Thunderbirds 9-3 but it solved nothing. In the shootout, Bosch stopped both shooters, while Brendan Ranford and Colin Smith both beat Pickard for a 4-3 win. Jeff Bosch earned the win making 34 saves as the Blazers were 1-for-6 on the powerplay and 7-for-8 on the penalty kill.

Wednesday, January 19th, 2010 at Tri-City Americans - 5-0 Loss

It was a tough night in Kennewick, WA as the Blazers kept it close for most of the game but penalty trouble in the third period made it a 5-0 win for the Tri-City Americans. The Americans opened the scoring as a point shot found its way along the ice and passed goaltender Cam Lanigan for a 1-0 Americans lead. The Blazers had chances early in the second period to tie the game when they had a 5-on-3 powerplay for a full minute but failed to convert and the score remained 1-0. Carter Ashton made it 2-0 for the Americans redirecting a puck past Lanigan. Miscommunication led to the third goal as Conner Rankin picked up a puck in front of Lanigan and buried it for a 3-0 lead through the first two periods. A majority of the third period was spent on the penalty kill and the Americans converted on a 5-on-3 and 5-on-4 man advantage to make it a 5-0 victory. The Americans finished 2-for-10 on the powerplay while the Blazers were 0-for-6 on the powerplay. Cam Lanigan made 30 saves on the night as the Americans outshot the Blazers 35-21.

Friday, January 21st, 2010 vs. Chilliwack Bruins - 4-3 Overtime Loss

A close game resulted in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Chilliwack Bruins. After the Blazers started well with a flurry of chances, the Bruins opened the scoring when Brandon Manning intercepted a pass and Ryan Howse scored on a 2-on-1 to make it 1-0 for the Bruins. The Blazers had more jump in the second period and Brendan Ranford set up 15-year-old Matthew Needham for his 3rd goal on the season and it was a 1-1 tie. Chase Souto had a glorious chance after Needham's goal, but goaltender Lucas Gore was on his game and made a terrific save. In the third period, the Blazers broke the ice as a great two man cycle by JC Lipon and Colin Smith led to JT Barnett being set up for his 9th on the season and the Blazers led 2-1. The Bruins would tie it when a pass was deflected high in the air and Curt Gogol found it first and buried it to make it 2-2 with less than 5 minutes left in the game. The Bruins were given a gift as they were awarded a late powerplay and ended up scoring the game winning goal on a 4-on-3 overtime powerplay as Brandon Manning blasted the puck by goaltender Jeff Bosch for a 3-2 overtime win. Bosch finished with 26 saves and Gore made 28 saves for the Bruins.

Saturday, January 22nd, 2010 vs. Vancouver Giants - 6-1 Loss

It was a tough night for the Blazers as four third period goals against led to a 6-1 Giants victory. The Giants opened the scoring when Spencer Bennett got his stick on a shot and redirected it off the post as the Giants took an early 1-0 lead. The Blazers would tie it on a 4-on-3 powerplay as Thomas Frazee centered the puck to Colin Smith who drove hard to the net and buried his 13th goal of the season for a 1-1 game after the first period. The Giants carried the play in the second period as they outshot the Blazers 22-7 in the period. Andrej Stastny scored after he passed a puck in front of the net and it made its way past Jeff Bosch to make it 2-1. Bosch stood on his head for most of the period making many sensational saves to keep the Blazers in it. The third period led to the Giants opening the game up. The Blazers had a great chance on the powerplay to tie the game, but instead Brendan Gallagher scored a shorthanded marker to gut the Blazers chances in this one. From there, the Giants scored three more goals and cruised to a 6-1 win. Jeff Bosch made 39 saves playing a solid game in the loss. The Giants were 0-for-5 on the powerplay and the Blazers finished 1-for-4.

Cole Ully Third Star at Albert Midget AAA All-Star Game

The Kamloops Blazers had their 2nd round pick from 2010 in the Southern Alberta Midget All-Star game. Cole Ully had a terrific game and scored the game winning goal with 56 seconds left as Team South won 5-4 over Team North. The 15-year-old was a first team all-star for Team South and was named the third star of the all-star game. Ully has 27 points in 26 games this season for the Midget AAA Calgary Flames.

Junior Reporters

The month of January was Kids' Month at all Kamloops Blazers home games. For every regular priced adult ticket purchased, a FREE youth ticket (age 4-12) was received. The Kamloops Blazers would like to thank all the junior public address announcers, anthem singers, and reporters for doing a terrific job throughout the month. To check out NEW videos of the junior reporters interviewing Kamloops Blazers players please go to blazerhockey.com/video.

Prospect Update: Scott Lapp

The Blazers listed goaltender Scott Lapp following the Blazers training camp this past September. The 5'11" 150lb goaltender is playing for Semiahmoo of the Pacific Coast Midget AAA League. Lapp has put up good stats this season going 9-2-2 with a 1.62 goals against average and a .935 save percentage. He is one of seven goalies currently on the Kamloops Blazers list.

Tight Playoff Race

The Kamloops Blazers find themselves in a tight playoff race at the moment as five teams are separated by 6 points and fighting for only three playoff spots. The Blazers currently find themselves in a tie for 8th place with Seattle at 45 points. The Blazers have 10 home games and 12 away games remaining this season.

Team Leaders:

Goals - Brendan Ranford (30)

Assists -Brendan Ranford (39)

Points - Brendan Ranford (69)

+/- - Chase Schaber (+7)

Rookies - Corey Fienhage (11)

PIM - Ryan Hanes (121)

GAA - Jeff Bosch (3.43)

SV % - Jeff Bosch (.896)

Injury Report

Josh Caron, Shoulder, day-to-day

Chase Schaber, Leg, 1 week

Dalibor Bortnak, Concussion, week-to-week

Jordan DePape, Leg, 1 week

Community Service

Monday, January 31st

* EDGE School visit 10am-12pm

* Stuart Wood Elementary School Visit 10am-12pm

Schedule:

Monday, January 24th, Practice 2-4pm, ISC

Tuesday, January 25th, Practice 10-11am, ISC - Depart for Prince George

Wednesday, January 26th, Blazers at PG Cougars, 7pm CN Centre

Thursday, January 27th, Practice 2-4pm, TBA

Friday, January 28th, Blazers at Vancouver Giants, 7:30pm Pacific Coliseum

Saturday, January 29th, Blazers at Chilliwack Bruins, 7pm Prospera Centre

Sunday, January 30th, Day of Rest

Monday, January 31st, Practice 2-4pm, ISC

Check out the Kamloops Blazers Statistics

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Western Hockey League Stories from January 25, 2011


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