(Submitted by Alex Hoegler, BCHL communications)
The West Kelowna Warriors are two wins away from reaching the Fred Page Cup Finals, but their success up to this point hasn’t left them satisfied.
While they stunned the league by knocking off the heavily-favoured Penticton Vees in the Interior Division Finals to reach Round 3, there wasn’t much self-congratulation. They have a long way to go, according to head coach Rylan Ferster.
“Everyone thought, for whatever reason, there was such a big party,” he said of the Warriors upset over the Vees. “Our dressing room was pretty subdued after we won.”
The Warriors are currently riding the hot glove of goaltender Matthew Greenfield, a mid-season addition who has gone 9-5 through 14 playoff games, with a 2.18 GAA and .935 save percentage. Ferster emphasized how critical he has been in helping them get this far.
“Obviously acquiring Matthew Greenfield certainly helped out with our success, really solidified that position for us,” Ferster said. When you have a guy like that, he gives you an opportunity to win every night. If you talk to any coach, that’s probably all they want from their number-one goalie.”
After a 5-1 road win against the Chilliwack Chiefs on Tuesday, the Warriors dropped a 4-1 home decision to the Nanaimo Clippers on Thursday night. The magic number of wins to move on remains at two. Ferster has gradually gotten accustomed to the three-team round-robin format, something he hadn’t experienced before.
“I’m new to it…It’s different. You go through those two seven-game series,” said Ferster, who as a player won the 1990 Centennial Cup Junior A national title with the Vernon Lakers. “You prepare for one team then you got to stop and prepare again. It’s a bit like the regular season.”
After playing two games in four nights, the Warriors don’t play until April 6, when they host the Chiefs. By the time the matchup starts, West Kelowna will have not played in nearly a week.
“We have the six days off now, so that’s going to feel like a month,” Ferster said. “Usually in the playoffs one day off feels like forever, so this is going to feel like eternity. But I take it 100 times out of 100, we’re very happy where we are.”
Ferster has emphasized how huge it’s been for the city of West Kelowna to rally around the team. The Warriors had 1,327 on hand in last night’s game, and had over 1,300 in attendance for Games 3, 4 and 6 against Penticton.
“This playoff run has been amazing. We had a great crowd in here last night, he said. “The community here has really jumped on board and been really supportive. It’s loud, it’s electric.”
With eight playoff wins down and six to go, the Warriors can clinch a spot in the Fred Page Cup Finals by next Friday, should they take care of business against Chilliwack and Nanaimo. For the team, Ferster said that they need to keep their focus on the present, and not worry about the past nor the future.
“Make your best shift the one that you’re in, these games are so important,” he said. “You can’t afford to worry about your last shift. For me, it’s more about being in the moment.”
