Once again in a game that didn't mean anything the Vernon Vipers started quick but faded over the course of 60 minutes to lose their second straight game heading into the playoffs. Read into it as you like, but the jury is still out on whether its better to go into the post season riding a high or coming in needing to work on a few things. No matter the answer, we will find out just a few days from now.
It was a very nice start to the game for both teams as they traded chances and kept the whistles to a minimum. The best chance of the first ten minutes was a 2 on 1 rush for the Vipers that was thwarted by a spectacular sprawling pad save from Jarrod Schamerhorn who was outstanding all night especially early. The Vipers would draw first blood as Brett Mulcahy would put home his own rebound to make it 1-0. The Cents would tie the game late on a weird one as the puck found its way to the side of the Viper goal only to somehow squirt across the line. The back of the net had come up and some thought the puck had gone under but after a discussion from the officials it was deemed a good goal credited to Diego Cuglietta.
The momentum would sway in the favour of the Cents in the middle frame thanks again to a handful of nice saves from Schamerhorn. Sam Johnson would score at 7:42 to give the home team a 2-1 lead. Less than 5 minutes later a beautiful centering pass from Cuglietta found Payton Schaefer and he would increase the lead to 3-1. Things went from bad to worse for the Vipers as Jared Wilson would be penalized for a check to the head of Diego Cuglietta and ejected from the game. The Cents would score quickly on the major powerplay as Scotty Patterson would get his first of two on the night.
The third was a rather uneventful period, but early in it the Cents put the game away as Patterson would add another to make it 5-1. The game settled down, but no more goals would be scored and 5-1 would be the final.
My 3 Key Thoughts
1) - Playoff Primer - Depending on how you look at it, these last two games have been warmups for the playoffs, if thats the case then it was the opposite of how the Vipers wanted to prepare. They were outscored 11-6 and just seemed to lack focus and intensity, two very important factors in post season play. I am very confident however, that the Vipers team that finished the season will not be the same one that begins the post season on Tuesday. The team always brings their best effort against West Kelowna and I wouldn't expect any less.
2) - Goaltending Swap - It was a tough night for Danny Todosychuk who wasn't anticipating getting any action, but after the first period Austin Smith would come down with a sickness and be forced from the game. The NVMA isn't an easy place to play when you're warm and ready to go, let alone when cold and off the bench. I thought Danny played solid, but couldn't outperform Schamerhorn who was lights out. Once again goaltending will have play a big role in the playoffs and no matter who starts for the Vipers they will bring their A game.
3) - End Of a Solid Season - The Vernon Vipers came into the season knowing it was an important one. Being RBC Cup hosts puts an immense pressure on a team to perform at the highest of levels. It was a season that had ups and downs, although more the former than the latter. They finished the season with 30 wins which is 9 better than the season before and finished with 18 more points. They scored 36 more goals and gave up 5 more. That number is skewed a bit as this season had 2 more regular season games than last, but the improvements were there. The only blemish for this team is the powerplay and as I spoke with Riley Guenther last night, those statistics are wiped out for the second season and will be quickly forgotten if this team's PP gets off to a quick start.
The playoffs will start on Tuesday as the Vipers get set to square off with the West Kelowna Warriors. All the action starts at 6:45 with the pregame show and can be heard on 107.5 KissFM.
No comments:
Post a Comment