Hey Warriors fans!

Wednesday night January 25^th was an important night for Max French and his childhood friend Brittany. Brittany has recently been diagnosed with cancer, and Max dedicated the game to Brittany and her family. The Warriors organization raised a whopping $1,700! Wow! Way to go guys! This will help with their expenses while she has treatment in Vancouver.

I went on the fan bus Friday night to Vernon, and our fans were amazing! What a wild trip that was! Despite our hockeyville Warriors falling 4-1, Westside fans were loud and rowdy, cheering on their team to make it a night to remember.

Next game is this Friday night at 7pm.  The boys are fighting for a playoff spot so come on out to cheer on your Westside Warriors!

And if you haven’t heard by now, West Kelowna is vying to be Kraft hockeyville! Submit your hockey stories at http://www.westkelownahockeyville.com/ and let’s win this thing!

Hello hockey fans!

The Westside Warriors had a fantastic game Saturday night against the Vernon Vipers. It was hard-nosed play for the entire contest, and even though Westside got in to some penalty trouble late, they emerged with a 3-1 win.

West Kelowna is also going for Kraft hockeyville this year, and this is what Seb Lloyd had to say: “I think it’s great. It’s great because everyone from the community is helping and I came from P.G (Prince George) and I thought that was a hockey crazy community, but when I came here, I realized that West Kelowna IS hockeyville. Everyone loves it, they all come out and support the team, I mean we go out to the practices and the kids are just so excited to see us and it’s a great hockey atmosphere here.”

The local businesses are also helping the bid by holding a contest to see who can decorate their business the best!

The Westside Warriors have a game in Chilliwack, but are back to face the Chiefs on the 25^th!

So come on out and cheer on your Westside Warriors!

Hello hockey fans!  The Westside Warriors won back-to-back games Friday and Sunday against the Salmon Arm Silverbacks at Royal Lepage place!  On Friday night, it was a scrappy game, but goalie Dwayne Rodrigue came through with his first BCHL shutout, to win it 4-0. Sunday afternoon, the boys played Salmon Arm yet again, and you could tell the Silverbacks were looking for revenge. But Travis Blanleil plowed through the backs defense to get a hat-trick en-route to a 6-3 win! When I asked Coach Rylan Ferster what his team did so special tonight, he said:

  “I don’t think we did a whole lot special tonight, I think you have a group of guys that are really working hard for each other and I think that’s one of the most important things when you’re building a program that you want your guys to play hard and that’s what we`re doing, but we`re not doing anything special together as a staff.”

  The team also made a few trades at the deadline, dealing Captain Izakk Berglund and Micheal King to Lloydminster, And Klay Kachur to North Battleford. Max French was named the new captain the day after. The Westside Warriors are heading to Merritt to protect their 3 game win streak, but are back on the 21^st to play the Vernon Vipers! So come on out and cheer on your Westsiiiide Warriors!

Hello hockey fans! The Westside Warriors had an amazing game Sunday afternoon against the Victoria Grizzlies! Peter Macintosh scored two goals and his first goal of his BCHL career en-route to a 10-2 TROUNCING over the grizzlies!

When I asked Coach Ferster on what his team did so specially to achieve a blowout like this, he said: “Well we got a couple lucky bounces, and it’s nice to be on the other side of that once in a while.” I also talked to Reid Simmonds, and he said this on the boys effort: “ Every single night we try to pepper the goalie as much as possible, so when you get 47 shots obviously, we’ve done our job.”

It was a nice win for the boys after two back to back losses in Prince George Thursday and Friday.

That was the tribe’s first home game of 2012, and will be back on Friday the 13^th to take on the Salmon Arm Silverbacks. So come on out and cheer on your Westsiiiiide Warriors!!

Hello hockey fans! The Hockeyville Warriors had yet another well fought game Thursday night against the Nanaimo Clippers. It was a penalty filled game for both teams, but sadly Nanaimo capitalized on all those penalties and took the game 6-4. Coach Rylan Ferster was not happy on their play tonight and says the boys need to pick up their compete level to get back in the playoff picture. 

The Warriors are in Penticton tonight, but the boys will be back at Royal Lepage place Saturday night to take on the Merritt Centennials! Come on out and cheer on your Warriors!!

Hello Warriors fans!  The Hockeyville Warriors had a two well fought games Friday and Saturday night at Royal Lepage place. The first game started off with a bang, with the Warriors scoring 3 goals in three minutes en-route to a 5-2 win over the Vernon Vipers. And Saturday night's game was teddy bear toss night in Hockeyville! When newly acquired Basara scored first for the Warriors 7 minutes in, hundreds of teddy bears rained down on the ice and it took both players and volunteers to clean them all up! These huggable little bears were taken to the West Kelowna food bank for Christmas gifts. Sadly the Warriors left the game in a tie against the Spruce Kings 3-3 in double overtime. When I asked Max French what he wanted for Christmas, he said: “Well I think we’ve got three more games so I just want three more games for Christmas that’s it! Just to get back up there in the standings."

The Warriors next game is Thursday against the Nanaimo Clippers, so come on out and cheer on your Warriors! 
 
Christmas questions:

Q: Do you have any Christmas traditions? 

A: Max French:We usually go sledding together as a family and I’ve kind of kept that going my whole life so we`ll probably do that this year!

A:Coach Ferster: Not really, but I'm looking forward to spending some time with my daughters and I'm really excited to spend two weeks with them on a little holiday! 

Hello hockey fans! The Westside Warriors had a disappointing game Friday night taking on the Penticton Vees at Royal Lepage place! It was a hard fought game by both teams as the Warriors came out strong in the first, but sadly the league leading Vees crashed the party winning 7-2. A highlight was Warriors star Max French back after missing many games due to an arm injury.

Right after the loss, the Warriors hopped on the bus for games Saturday and Sunday in Prince George against the Spruce Kings. They split the two contests up north winning and losing 3-2. The Warriors are only 7 points out of a playoff spot, so wins are crucial at this time. Even though they are not even halfway through this bumpy season.  Coach Rylan has also shaken up the roster by dealing team scoring leader Tyler Krause to the AJHL in exchange for Marcus Basara of the Vernon Vipers.

The next home game is Tuesday December 6^th against the Vees, and the boys are looking for some revenge! So come on out and cheer on your Warriors!

Hello hockey fans! The Westside warriors played an amazing game Friday night taking on the Trail smoke eaters! It was an extremely hard fought battle by both teams, but Richard Vanderhoek came through scoring two goals, powering the Westside to a 4-1 win. When I asked our new goaltender Dwayne Rodrigue how he felt the team performed, he said that “We played pretty good defensive in the first two, but in the third period we scored a lot. Very offensive and a very good game.”
After winning their last two games at home, the Warriors lost on the road 3-1 to Trail Saturday night. Their next game is Friday December 2nd at Royal Lepage place. Come out and cheer on the Warriors! And that's your Westside Warriors game report.

Road trip questions:

Q: Who is your roommate on the road?

Vanderhoek: It changes, but usually I’m with Isaac Berglund.

Rodrigue: Max French, he’s a pretty good guy!

Q: Is there a video game you like to play on the road?

Vanderhoek: No not really, I usually like to sit and read or play cards with the guys.

Stay tuned for more fun info on your Westside Warriors!!

Hello hockey fans!  The Warriors carried a 9 game losing streak into Royal Lepage Place on Wednesday night – taking on the Merrit Centennials. The game was filled with end-to-end action as both teams played hard for the win.  Despite flying into town just last night, new Warriors goaltender, Dwayne Rodrigue played a very solid game, and kept the boys in it by stopping a late third period break-away.  The game went to double overtime, with Warrior Dru Morrison scoring the winner in a 3-on-3 battle.  The crowd gave the team a standing ovation for their efforts and the team was obviously very grateful to get the win.

I spoke with Coach Rylan after the game …    “It feels good to win…  I think we finally got rewarded for some of our efforts here tonight”. 

I also asked the coach whether he thought our new goaltender was a big part of the win…  “I think so, yeah, I mean he stopped that one break away there and I think that is what you want from your number one goalie, is to give you a chance to win and he did that tonight”.

I also had a chance to speak with Richard Vanderhoek after the game and he was obviously relieved to have the monkey off of their back.  He credited hard work and the solid play of netminder Rodrigue for getting them the win.  I kidded him about his attempt at a Movember mustache and he replied that “all the guys are doing it, but now we got a win so we gotta keep it”.

West Kelowna announced on Wednesday that it is bidding to win the Kraft Hockeyville contest for 2011/2012.  I got to speak to spokesperson, Todd Simpson during the game.  Todd played a number of seasons in the NHL and was the captain of the Calgary Flames.  Todd was very excited to be a part of the West Kelowna bid, and truly believes that we deserve it.  Let’s all get behind this exciting movement.  Check it out at http://www.westkelownahockeyville.com

Next game is Friday night against the Trail Smoke Eaters at Royal Lepage Place.  Come on out and cheer on your Westside Warriors!

And that is your Westside Warriors game report!

Hello hockey fans! This is Matthew Abrey with your Westside Warriors game report! The game did not start off well for the Warriors. The Penticton Vees scored four times in the first, but the Warriors battled back. Sadly it wasn’t enough, falling to the Vees 7-4. When I asked Coach Rylan Ferster what they need to work on, he said this: “Well we like our work ethic, you know we had thirty nine shots tonight and give up under twenty, and usually under twenty five, so our compete level is good and our work ethic is good, and we have some issues and we will sort them out.”  Max French was also out with an arm injury.  I caught up with him in the stands and this is what he had to say about his condition: “right now I’m just kind of taking it day by day and just trying to get a recovery going as fast as possible and will hopefully be in the lineup in the next few weeks “.  I also interviewed Dustin Cave after the game. He came out with no shirt on! I bet there were a few girls in town who would’ve loved to be me for this interview!   The Warriors have a road trip this week, going to Langley and Chilliwack, but are back home on the 23^rd to face the Centennials.

 I’m Matthew Abrey, and that’s your Westside Warriors game report!

Hello hockey fans!  The Westside Warriors took on the Trail Smoke Eaters Sunday afternoon.  The Smokies broke into an early two goal lead, but the Warriors tied it up in the second and dominated the play for the rest of the game.  We went to overtime, and despite amazing Warrior chances, the Smoke Eaters managed to score with just over a minute remaining in the extra period.  Final score 3-2 Smoke Eaters.  Newcomer James Leonard played solid between the pipes, but was replaced by regular Steve Racine near the end of the second as part of a penalty killing strategy.  The game got rough near the end of the second and the Warriors lost forwards Max French and Travis Blanleil to injury.  No word on if they will be ready to return to the lineup this week. 

The Warriors just returned from losing three on the road.  I asked Coach Rylan what needs to happen and he replied,  “We have to keep working... it’s been difficult here and we just can’t seem to get a hockey bounce when we need it”.  This was also our first chance to see new defenceman, Josh Monk , who was acquired in a recent trade for Brayden Sherbinin.  I spoke with Josh after the game and he echoed the coaches comment, saying that he thought  they played hard enough to win, but that the bounces just didn’t go their way.

The Warriors head up to Vernon and Salmon Arm this week, but return to face the Penticton Vees on Saturday night at Royal LePage Place.  Come on out and cheer on the boys!

I’m Matthew Abrey and that’s your Westside Warriors game report.

Hello, Hockey Fans!  This is Matthew Abrey with your Westside Warriors game report!  The Warriors had a great double-header this weekend, starting with the Coquitlam Express on Friday night.  The Warriors totally outplayed the Express, with the shots on goal being 41-27 in favour of the home team, and the final score being 5-2.   I spoke with Michael King after Friday’s game and he said that, “We definitely started to click there. It definitely helps when you get a few goals early”. 

The team also welcomed goaltender Steve Racine back to the ice after missing a few games due to a concussion.  Max French was glad to see him back between the pipes – “He’s a great goalie… and it’s great to see him back in the net.  He played really well tonight”

On Saturday we faced the Prince George Spruce Kings.  The Warriors easily shut down the Spruce Kings’ two big lines and came out with their second win of the weekend, and a 6-2 final score.  Defenceman Michael King scored a goal both nights, while Tyler Krause had two great games, scoring a goal Friday night and two more on Saturday.

I caught up with Tyler Krause after Saturday’s game.  When asked about the strange music coming from the locker room after the games, Tyler says, “Yeah, our team has a little tradition at the end of games to listen to Justin Bieber, so that’s our winning song”

Apparently Justin Bieber is helping our boys win hockey games!

I am Matthew Abrey and that is your Westside Warriors game report!

Hello everybody! This is Matthew Abrey with your Westside Warriors game report! The Warriors had another double-header this weekend, starting with the Penticton Vees on Friday night. The Warriors were happy to see their captain Izaak Berglund return after missing a few games with a concussion. Speaking of concussions, the Warriors had to call up a replacement from the minors after losing their starting goaltender, Steve Racine, to a concussion earlier in the week. The Warriors faced some penalty trouble in the first and found themselves down 4-0 early on. Despite battling hard, and scoring 3 goals in the second period, the Warriors were not able to obtain a lead. The Vees won the game 8-3. Despite the score, Coach Rylan Ferster thought the team played well.

The Warriors rounded out the double-header with a game on Saturday night against the Salmon Arm Silverbacks. The team came out strong and jumped to an early 2-0 lead. Highlights were call-up goaltender Connor Wilkinson stopping a Salmon Arm penalty shot, and forward Max French scoring a short-handed goal. The score was 4-2 mid-way through the third, but Salmon Arm was able to tie it up and force overtime. A controversial call put Connor Dempsey in the penalty box during overtime, and Salmon Arm was able to put the game away a minute and a half in. A hard-fought game by the Warriors, but Salmon Arm came out with a 5-4 win. I’m Matthew Abrey and that’s your Westside Warriors game report!

Hello sports fans! This is Matthew Abrey with your Westside Warriors game report, as the boy`s split two games this Thanksgiving weekend. The Friday night game started off well with Westside opening the scoring. The Warriors also had a pair in the second and third to take it 5-2 over the Merritt Centennials. It was Max French`s birthday, as well! When asked about his game, Max said “I think we played well out there. I thought the team played well and it was a grinder game. The boys were going hard tonight and it was nice to see.”

Shifting to Saturday`s game against the Chilliwack Chiefs, the Warriors struck twice in the first, and then again in the second, but Chilliwack scored @ 12:11 in the third to get the go ahead goal. Despite out shooting them 44-25, our Warriors fell 4-3 in a hard fought match. After the game, winger Richard Vanderhoek said that they were a little slow out of the gates but picked it up towards the end. He also said that his favourite Thanksgiving foods are stuffing and some chocolate milk!

The Warriors have another double header this weekend facing the Penticton Vees on Friday night, followed by the Salmon Arm Silverbacks on Saturday. Puck drops at 7p.m both nights. Come on out and cheer on the boys!!

And that`s your Westside Warriors game report!

-Matt