By Graham Perkins /
Pacific International Junior Hockey League
The Richmond Sockeyes are officially the last team standing. After finishing first in the Tom Shaw conference with a league leading 39-8 record, the team carried its momentum into the playoffs and then some. They swept the Delta Ice Hawks and North Delta Devils to set up a finals matchup with the Abbotsford Pilots. Richmond won the final series 4-1.
“If we want to play an offensive game, we can. But if we want to shut it down, we can do that too,” boasted Richmond GM Richard Petrowsky.
The Sockeyes were just warming up. As the host team for the Cyclone Taylor Cup, they were guaranteed a berth, but quickly proved they were the club to beat. Riding the stellar play of netminder Sean Donnelly, they defeated the Oceanside Generals and Abbotsford Pilots to secure a spot in the championship game against KIJHL winners, Nelson.
Nelson beat Richmond the day before the big game, but both teams benched key players and used their backup goalies. In the gold medal game, Richmond proved to be too much for Nelson and went on to a 6-2 win despite being outshot 34-2727.
“I’ve been involved with the team for four years, and this is the strongest group I’ve ever seen,” Petrowsky said, heaping particular praise on his star goalie. “Sean was huge, absolutely huge. He was the key to our success. He really stepped it up from last year.”
Now the team is off to Thunder Bay to compete for the Keystone Cup, which pits the six best Junior B teams in the country against each other.
Kootenay International Junior Hockey League
The Nelson Leafs had a season to remember, proving to be the class of the KIJHL through the playoffs with wins over the Spokane Braves, Castlegar Rebels, and Fernie Ghostriders in the finals.
With the victory, the team traveled down to Richmond for the Cyclone Taylor Cup. With victories over PIJHL champs Abbotsford and VIJHL champs Oceanside, the club clearly had its sights set on gold in the final game against the hosts with a trip to the Keystone Cup on the line. But it wasn’t meant to be, as penalty trouble led to four Richmond goals. Nelson lost the game 6-2 and had to settle for silver.
“I think they’ll never forget a season like this,” said Nelson head coach and GM Simon Wheeldon.
“It’s hard; there were so many little bounces that could have gone the other way. It’s still pretty sore. But it was a great run, and I’m so proud of the kids. They really showed what Nelson was all about.”
The team had to suffer through a pair of torn ACL’s to top defenseman Tommy Rizzardo and leading scorer Miles Houston , which hampered its usually potent power play.
“In the final game, our power play wasn’t anywhere near where it should have been. But Richmond was total class. If it wasn’t us, I’m glad they’re going on.”
Nelson’s run to the Cup completely engulfed the community: there was even a parade around town when they won the league.
Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League
The Oceanside Generals might not have been favourites to win the league heading into the playoffs, but they quickly proved their doubters wrong one hard-fought victory after another.
The Generals finished third in the regular season behind the Victoria Cougars and Peninsula Panthers, but dispatched the Campbell River Storm, Kerry Park Islanders, and eventually the Cougars with a 4-1 series win to emerge as league champions.
Oceanside rode their momentum into the Cyclone Taylor Cup, but losses to Richmond and Nelson squashed the team’s hope of a gold medal finish. Nevertheless, the team came to play in the bronze medal game against the PIJHL-champion Abbotsford Pilots and defeated them 5-3.
“Obviously, it was disappointing in a certain context. We should have had the opportunity to be in the gold medal game,” said head coach Dave Johnson. “We didn’t play very well in those two games, but we bounced back against Abbotsford.”
Two big reasons why the club had such a successful playoff run was the play of goalie Steve Bolton and captain Matt Potter.
“Potter played the best hockey of his like throughout the playoffs. He was not going to be denied a chance to win the island championship,” Johnson said. “Bolton has been the kind of guy who you expect to be good every night and he is. He’s been the backbone of the team for the whole year. The whole organization and community is extremely proud of the players and what they accomplished this year.”
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