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Elimination Round Preview: Vees vs. Spruce Kings

Penticton Vees
(36-17-0-7, 4th in Interior Conference)

vs.

Prince George Spruce Kings
(26-25-3-6, 5th in Interior Conference)

Series schedule:

Game 1 – Friday, February 27th, 7:05 PM @ South Okanagan Events Centre
Game 2 – Saturday, February 28th, 7:05 PM @ South Okanagan Events Centre
Game 3 – Monday, March 2nd, 7:00 PM @ Prince George Coliseum
Game 4 – Tuesday, March 3rd, 7:00 PM @ Prince George Coliseum*
Game 5 – Wednesday, March 4th, 7:05 PM @ South Okanagan Events Centre*

* If neccesary

Regular season results:

Penticton won series 6-0

Saturday, September 20th – Penticton 7 @ PG 3
Sunday, November 16th – PG 2 @ Penticton 6
Saturday, December 13th – Penticton 3 @ PG 0
Saturday, January 3rd – PG 4 @ Penticton 5 (OT)
Friday, February 6th – Penticton 2 @ PG 1
Wednesday, February 11th – PG 3 @ Penticton 6

Series Preview:

The Penticton Vees take a decided advantage from regular season play into their first-round series against Prince George. The Vees, however, will be embarking into the playoffs minus offensive weapon and captain Denver Manderson, who is sidelined by a shoulder injury. While his presence will be a loss for the defending Fred Page Cup champs, few teams boasts the offensive depth on display in Penticton.

Midseason acquisitions Brodie Reid and Max Grassi brought point-a-game production to a squad that already had five players — Curtis McKenzie, Garrett Milan, Travis Ouellette, Ryan Viselli and Zack Josepher — over the 50-point mark.

The Vees have also been boosted by the strong recent play of netminder Jordan White, who has no lack of postseason experience after leading the Spruce Kings to the RBC Cup championship game two years ago.

In Prince George, the Spruce Kings also feature a balanced offensive attack led by forwards Alex Allan, Sean Ambrosie and Sam Muchalla, who missed the final six weeks of the regular season to injury. Trade deadline acquisitions Alex Goodship and Andrew Pickering were brought in to pick up the slack after the loss of Muchalla.

The Spruce Kings feature a strong blueline led by Top Defenceman nominee Zach Davies and NHL Draft-rated youngster Wes McLeod. And in netminder Kevin Genoe, the club has a goaltender who can be as tough to beat as any in the league when he's on his game.

The Experience Factor

Both the Vees and Spruce Kings boast a wealth of experience when it comes to postseason success. Despite a high amount of offseason turnover, the Vees still have a number of players who saw signifigant time during last year's Fred Page Cup run.

In Vinny Muchalla and Davies, Prince George have a pair of leaders who were regular contributors in 2007 when they played for the National Championship and shouldn't be intimidated by the gravity of playoff hockey.