The Bulldogs conclude a five game home stand with three games at the Pound this week. Tuesday night the Victoria Grizzlies are in town, Friday night the Nanaimo Clippers make the trip over the hump and the Prince George Spruce Kings make their only visit of the season Saturday night.
The Bulldogs enter this week with a record of 37-11-1 and 2 which is good for 77 points and first in the Coastal Conference. The Dogs lead the 2nd place Powell River Kings by 14 points.
The Grizzlies enter this week with a record of 27-14-2 and 5, good for 61 points and 3rd place tie in the Coastal Conference standings with the Langley Chiefs. The Grizzlies have two games in hand on the Chiefs. The Grizz will most likely be looking forward, and not in their rear-view mirror as they are just two points behind Powell River for second place in the Conference.
The Grizzlies were last in action Saturday night where they won their eighth straight, 1-0 over the Capitals in Duncan in overtime. The first 60 minutes of hockey saw no scoring until the Grizzlies got the winner in overtime just over a minute into the extra session from Joel Lowry.
The Grizzlies outshot the Caps 41-28 with Colin Fernandes picking up the win and second star honours in net. The Grizzlies were 0 for 5 on the power play while the Capitals were 0 for 3.
These teams last met December 8th at the Dog Pound, where the Grizzlies took two points home with a 2-1 win. The Grizzlies scored just 20 seconds into the game before the Dogs tied it up in the second for a 1-1 tie heading into the third. The Grizzlies broke a deadlock with the game winning goal with less than five minutes to play for the 2-1 final. The win was the first for the Grizzlies on Bulldog ice this season. The Dogs rebounded from that loss and then won their next 14 games. Of course everyone knows what happened in game 15 vs. Vernon. The Dogs hold a lead in the season series, with a record of four wins, two losses, and a tie in seven games.
With this being the last regular season meeting between the two teams this one might carry some playoff intensity as you can beat each team will want some extra confidence should these teams meet again.
Catch the pregame show from the Dog Pound on 93.3 The Peak FM at 6:45 with the puck dropping at 7:00pm. Listen live on 93.3 The Peak or www.933thepeak.com
It?s the final meeting of the season at the Dog Pound Friday night when the struggling Clippers are in town. The Clippers enter play this week with a record of 16-22-1 and 9, good for 42 points and sixth spot in the Coastal Conference standings, five points up on the 7th seeded Cowichan Valley Capitals. The Clippers have yet to win in the New Year and they are winless in their last 10 games with 9 losses and an overtime loss.
The Clippers will be a busy team this week before they roll into town Friday as they will be down in Duncan to face the Capitals on Tuesday, before returning home Wednesday night to host the Prince George Spruce Kings.
The Bulldogs have won the last two head to head match ups with the Clippers, both at the Frank Crane Arena. The last time these teams met was January 10th, where the Dogs fought back from an early 2-0 hole on the end of a three-in-three road trip with a come-from-behind 5-2 win. The Bulldogs lead the season series with a record of 4 wins, no losses, no ties, and two overtime losses. The two overtime losses were the last two games in Alberni as the Clippers picked up big overtime wins.
With this being the last meeting between the teams at the Dog Pound this season, you can bet the Bulldogs will be motivated to continue their winning ways against the Clippers while making them forget their previous triumphs at the Pound. At the same time, the Clippers are no doubt hoping a return to a building where they have had some success might turn their fortunes around.
Catch the pregame at 6:45 and the puck drop at 7:00pm on 93.3 The Peak FM. Watch the Pay-Per-View video broadcast through the BCHL website
It?s the second and final meeting of the season between the teams Saturday night when the Prince George Spruce Kings make their sole visit to the Valley.
The Spruce Kings enter this week with a record of 14-30-1 and 3, good for 32 points and 8th place in the Interior Conference. They are five points back of the Trail Smoke Eaters and the final Interior Conference Playoff spot, with a game in hand.
These teams last met December 11th in Prince George, where the Bulldogs won 6-5 in a thrilling finish in what was a back and forth affair that resembled good old fashioned ?fire wagon? hockey. The Dogs were down 5-4 with less than five minutes to play before they engineered a thrilling comeback right after a timeout by Head Coach Nolan Graham. The Dogs came out of the timeout and thought they had scored the equalizer off the faceoff, only to have the goal disallowed. When play resumed the Dogs just did it all over again, as Trent Dorais found the net to tie it at 5-5. Two minutes later Sam Mitchell was sent in alone by Tye Lewis where scored the go ahead marker that the Dogs made stand through the frantic dying seconds.
The Spruce Kings will be a busy team this week just like the Dogs they will open their four game road trip Wednesday in Nanaimo before enjoying a day off on Thursday and then heading down to Duncan Friday. After visiting the Dogs Saturday they finish up Sunday afternoon in Victoria. With the Spruce Kings being five points back of the final playoff spot in the Interior, these eight points up for grabs could be a make or break week in their chances to secure a playoff spot this season.
Catch the pregame show Saturday night from the Pound at 6:45 with the puck drop at 7:00pm on 93.3 The Peak FM and BCHL.ca
It?s a big week for the Dogs with three games ? all at home, and six more big points up for grabs. Throw in the fact that there?s several possible ?playoff preview? games and the games seem even bigger.
