We have been on a bit of a role lately, beating Vernon (3-1) and Victoria (2-1) for our sixth and seventh wins in a row.
Vernon is always a tough place to play and the rivalry between us and them is always a big one, especially after they knocked us out of playoffs last year in overtime.
We had a tough week of practice then had to prepare for the difficult challenge ahead of us.
It’s always exciting to play your rivals and limit them to only one goal in their own rink. We had a rough start and seemed very sluggish and tired, but as the game went on we began to win more one-on-one battles and started to get some of the momentum back.
Goalie Hunter Miska was huge for us on the weekend and gave us a really good chance to win both games.
Even though we are an offensively-talented team we managed to hold Victoria to one goal, which is encouraging since we have been focusing on our work ethic and our battles in practice.
This week is going to be another challenge for our team. We head to Prince George on Wednesday for our game against the Spruce Kings on Thursday. We have had a bit of a rough go in PG in the past few years but we are looking to end that streak this week.
Their rink is hard to play in and is very similar to Merritt’s rink with the smaller size and hard glass and boards. After Prince George we have another tough weekend with two divisional opponents on our plate.
Vernon comes to the South Okanagan Events Centre on Saturday for the first time this year and they will be looking for some revenge. We need to be more aggressive and willing to go to the dirty areas if we want success against Vernon.
We head out to Salmon Arm on Sunday for an afternoon game against the Silverbacks. They are always a tough team to play against at home and always have lots of energy. We need to be able to match their energy and be willing to sacrifice.