Vipers Weekly Update
January 30, 2006 - International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Roanoke Valley Vipers News Release
LAST WEEK'S GAMES: The Roanoke Valley Vipers were well represented at the UHL All Star Classic in St. Charles, Missouri on Wednesday, sending three players (David Beauregard, L.P. Martin, and Alex Jerofejevs), each of whom scored at least one point in the game. Beauregard, selected by UHL fans as a starter in the game, scored four goals and was named the MVP of Team Aquafina. The Vipers made a two-game weekend trip to Michigan following the break, facing the Flint Generals on Friday and the Muskegon Fury on Saturday. Flint took a 6-3 win over the Vipers on Friday. Although the Vipers looked impressive on Saturday in Muskegon, the Fury came out on top with a 5-4 shootout victory.
Wednesday, January 25th - UHL All Star Classic
Team Aquafina 9, Team Gatorade 7
The Vipers sent three players to the 2006 UHL All Star Classic, which was hosted by the Missouri River Otters at the Family Arena in St. Charles, Missouri. David Beauregard, L.P. Martin, and Alex Jerofejevs played on Team Aquafina, which faced Team Gatorade in this year's Classic. Beauregard scored four goals in the game, Martin scored one, and Jerofejevs had an assist. The Vipers captain was named MVP of Team Aquafina following the game for his outstanding efforts. Team Aquafina won the game with the help of the five Vipers goals by a final score of 9-7.
Friday, January 27th at Flint
Flint Generals 6, Roanoke Valley Vipers 3
The Generals grabbed an early lead on Roanoke Valley in Friday's game, scoring two first period goals at 6:57 and 9:31. Rico Fatticci scored at the 12:14 mark to get the Vipers on the board, and David Beauregard followed Fatticci's goal with one of his own at the nine-minute mark of the second period. Flint, however, proceeded with three consecutive goals before the end of the second, giving themselves a three-goal lead and wiping away the Vipers' attempt at a rally. Mike Wiggins extended his point-streak to seven games, scoring at the 10:53 mark of the third period, but the Generals' Matt Elich scored an empty-netter at 19:53 to extend the Gens lead back to three, and Flint came away with a 6-3 win.
Saturday, January 28th at Muskegon
Muskegon Fury 5, Roanoke Valley Vipers 4
The Vipers kept steady pace with the UHL's top team Saturday night, battling back and forth with the Fury for the lead in the game. David Beauregard scored two consecutive goals, the first at the 18:03 mark of the first period, and the second at the 12:58 mark of the second period to give the Vipers a 2-1 lead. David Wrigley and Robin Bouchard added two in a row for the Fury as they swapped the lead, but Matt Miller answered with one for the Vipers, and Beauregard followed with his third to score a hat trick, as the Vipers took back the goal advantage. Muskegon pulled goaltender Kevin LaPointe in favor of sending an extra attacker, and Joe Pomaranski snuck one past Trevor Cunning at 19:21 to tie the game and send it into a shootout. All five Vipers shooters came up unsuccessful in the extra rounds, and Bouchard's first-round goal was enough to win it for the Fury, as they took the two points from the Vipers with a final score of 5-4.
THIS WEEK'S GAMES: The Vipers will continue their current eight-game road trip with games in Richmond and Glens Falls, New York this week, beginning Wednesday, February 1st in Richmond. Following the game, the Vipers will head to Glens Falls to face the Adirondack Frostbite on Friday, February 3rd, and will then make the trip back to Richmond for a Saturday night matchup against the RiverDogs. Roanoke Valley's next home game will be Wednesday, February 15th as they host the Richmond RiverDogs at 7:05p.m.
VIPERS TEAM LEADERS
Goals: David Beauregard (26)
Assists: L.P. Martin (25)
Points: David Beauregard (50)
+/-: Mike Krelove (-3)
PIM: Rico Fatticci (85)
Shots: L.P. Martin (134)
VIPER BITES
-Vipers goaltender Trevor Cunning was nominated for the Southern Sports Supply UHL Goaltender of the Week for the week ending 1/29/06. Cunning took the loss on Friday in Flint, but played an outstanding game Saturday, losing a heartbreaker in a shootout, during which he only allowed one goal to the UHL's leading scorer, Robin Bouchard.
-Left wing David Beauregard received the team's nomination for the Sher-Wood UHL Player of the Week for the week ending 1/29/06. Beauregard scored four points (4G) over two games against Flint and Muskegon in addition to scoring four goals in the UHL All Star Classic on Wednesday in St. Charles.
-Mike Wiggins, who was acquired in a trade from the Fort Wayne Komets last month, is riding an eight-game point-streak going into this week's games, which originally began on January 7th. Wiggins has 18 points (13G, 5A) in 18 games as a member of the Vipers, ten of which have come in his last eight games.
IN THE COMMUNITY
The Vipers will visit Mrs. Rexrode's and Mrs. Suggs' first graders at Montery Elementary school on Tuesday, January 31st from 1:15-1:45p.m. to read books to the students. The students will have the opportunity to ask the players questions after they finish their books. The Vipers will continue over the next several weeks to visit these classes and share the importance of reading with the youngsters.
The Vipers will visit Bonsack Elementary school on Tuesday, January 31st from 2:30-3:30p.m. as they kick off their three-week "Basics of Hockey" after school program. The players will teach the students the basic skills and rules of hockey, and will break into teams to scrimmage after the instructional part of the session concludes. The second and third sessions will take place on Tuesday, February 7th and Thursday, February 16th at the same time and location.
Erick Lajoie and Petr Jelinek will visit the Valley Youth Hockey Association's "Learn to Play Ice Hockey" program at the Ice Station on Tuesday, January 31st from 5:30-6:30p.m. Erick and Petr will help the participants in the program get comfortable on their skates as well as learn basic skills such as shooting, passing, and puck handling.
Don't forget the Vipers ongoing Coat and Blanket Drive sponsored by Grand Home Furnishings. All season long you can bring a new or gently used coat or blanket out to the Vipers game to be placed in one of the drop boxes, which are located throughout the arena and concourse areas. All donations will go directly to the Roanoke Rescue Mission.
The Vipers and Grand Home Furnishings would like to thank all of the bidders and participants in the January 21st Martinsville Speedway Jersey Auction, which raised $6625! All of the proceeds will be presented to the Roanoke Rescue Mission and to the Valley Youth Hockey Association. Thank you for working together with the Vipers and their partners to better our community!
Contact Matt Rosen at (540) 345-PUCK (7825) or mrosen@valleyvipershockey.com to book a visit for your classroom or community group from Vipers players!
NEW LOWER TICKET PRICES!
The Vipers have just introduced new, lower ticket prices in the Goal and Center Ice Sections for the remainder of the 2005-06 season! Tickets in the Goal Section are now just $9.50 and tickets in the Center Ice Section are now just $12.50! Kids 12 and under can get in for $7.00 and kids six and under can get in for just $6.00! Call the Vipers office at (540) 345-PUCK (7825) to get yours today! Don't miss a minute of the action!
COME OUT AND SUPPORT YOUR VIPERS!
The Vipers are proud to offer families an affordable package for attending hockey games! Take advantage of the Pepsi Four Pack - for any Wednesday or Sunday Vipers home game, get four tickets, four hot dogs, four Pepsi soft drinks, and four Pepsi tee-shirts for just $40 in the Goal Section or $50 in the Center Ice Section! Call (540) 345-PUCK (7825) to purchase your Pepsi Four Pack today!!!
ASK COACH WILEY
Have you got a question for Vipers Head Coach Jim Wiley? Visit the Vipers website at www.valleyvipershockey.com and click on "Coach's Corner" under the "Fanzone" section to submit your question, then check back each week to see if yours was chosen!
VIPERS GAME BROADCASTS
The Voice of the Vipers, Matt Rosen, is your play-by-play guy for all 76 Vipers games throughout the season. Rosen will join you 15 minutes prior to the start of each game for the Vipers pre-game show on 3WR/Fox Sports Radio, which is 910AM in Roanoke and 990AM in the New River Valley. A link to listen to 3WR via the internet can be found at www.valleyvipershockey.com. Fans wishing to watch the game can also access the B2 Network broadcast link via the Vipers home page as well.
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