Fernie Ghostrider News February 8, 2012
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedBy George Hurlbut
Nineteen year old Fraser Abdallah pitched a shutout stopping 28 shots on the road in Golden and the Ghostriders won 3-0 on Saturday and went 2-0 on the weekend. They are now 8-1-1 in their last 10 and Abdallah has a 6-2-1 record since coming back to Fernie after a couple of months in Kindersley (SJHL).
The Riders scored one in the first Ty Morton from Alex Milhouse one in the second RT Rice from Marty Wicks and one on the PP in the third McLaughlin from Milhouse and Carr for the 3-0 win.
Milhouse was named as the first star and Marty Wicks the second star. Brandon Shirley was the third star for the Rockets. Almost no penalties in this game as the boys played a prefect road game and even outshot Golden 47-28.
The Playoffs looming
The Ghostriders are now a perfect 8-0 against the Rockets and if they manage a first place finish they will have home ice against the aforementioned Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, but Kimberley may have something to say about it and despite losing 5-2 in Sicamous last Friday but won 8-0 the next night and are almost keeping pace with the Ghostriders
Next games
The Ghostriders now play a home and home against Creston next weekend and they have had trouble beating these guys lately. Friday will be the final regular season road game in Creston, the last time they travelled there they lost 4-3 in overtime. On Saturday Creston visits Fernie for their last regular season game vs the Riders and they won their last game here 4-3 on January 20th. The games mean nothing to Creston as they can’t be caught by Golden nor can they catch Kimberley or Fernie.
Off the Glass
The Ghostriders seem to have tightened up their ship for the last month of the season and have also reigned in most of the undisciplined penalties. It’s a game of cheap shots out there and they don’t call the game like in the NHL so you have to fight your way through the hooking, holding and head shots without retaliating. It’s not so important in the regular season, and in fact it’s good to retaliate with your own cheap shots and fights once in a while just so everyone knows you’re willing and able to “Gong Show” with the best, but in the playoffs you have to take the cheap shots because the PP can FU.
Last season the Ghostriders two top guns were the dynamic duo of Scott Morisseau and Thomas Abenante (photo) . Morisseau finished first in KIJHL scoring with 97 points in 50 games while Abenante finished in second place with 92 points but played 3 less games. Morisseau, who had shoulder surgery last summer wanted to play his final year at home in Castlegar so was moved there. Meanwhile Abenante who was a favourite of this writer is 21 this year and taking a course in Engineering Design and Drafting Technology at SAIT in Calgary. He says “ It’s a tough course but I’m liking it”. He also tweets once in a while that he’s missing his time in Fernie. We won’t tell him what us maintenance guys think of the engineers at the minesite…
And finally
Last summer former Ghostrider Coach Fred Harbinson “recruited” (the USHL uses a somewhat different word) several of their best players for his BCHL Penticton Vees. They hate him in the USA and a couple of weeks ago in Merritt they were whining all over the newspapers about how Harbinson was ruining the league by not making his players fight the Merritt players and becuase he recruited a good team instead of a bad team like they usually have in Merritt ( they are pretty good this season though). Anyway, Harbinson’s Vees now have a BCHL record with 30 straight wins. Congrats Fred
Anita Palmer receives George Majic Spiritus Award December 20, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedCongratulations go out to Anita Palmer who received the 2011 George Majic Spiritus Award Monday night at City Hall.
Anita is wearing the blue dress and Ann Majic is to her right side.
Palmer earned the award for her twenty plus years in local hockey where she varied between President, Vice president, Treasurer, Chairperson, Manager, Disciplinarian and even Gatekeeper with Fernie Minor Hockey , East Kootenay Minor Hockey, the Best Ever and Under 17 BC Cup . She also bullied us around (the Ghostriders executive) for 10 years as a Vice President then as Treasurer. Anita has volunteered at different levels for these groups since 1987 and last year was the Chair for the Cyclone Taylor Cup. Another Ghostriders connection to all this is the late George Majic who was the first Rider President and a founding father of the organization.
Phil Iddon hands the award to Anita
Anita with family and her son Mark who played 5 seasons with the Ghostriders
Source/ Read More:
http://ridernews.blogspot.com/2011/12/anita-palmer-is-2011-george-majic.html
Fernie Ghostriders Battle Kimberley December 17, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedBy George Hurlburt.
The Ghostriders lost 4-1 in a gong show hosted by the Kimberley Dynamiters last Friday night. Lots of fights, cheap shots and suspensions by both sides but the Riders dished out some extra ones and earned five of the seven suspensions. If it proved anything it proved that if they want to win the division again for the seventh year in a row, the Rider brass will have to make changes. The teams battle again on December 29 and 30 for some holiday spirit, but the spirit could be from the movie “The Exorcist.” Maybe bring a cross, just to be safe.
Grand Forks’ Coach/GM Brent Batten was gassed after a 0-21 start, that’s harsh, with 31 games left he could have easily won a game. Bruins Assistant Coach Matt Zamec is now the head guy. Last year at 8-41-1 the Bruins removed the successful (at least by their standards) Jesse Dorrans. Yeah I wanna coach in Grand Forks.
In Castlegar Coach/GM Steve Junker piped his (27-9) goalie Alex Ross out to the 8-16 Summerland Steam. Rider fans may remember that it was Junker who traded Andrew Walton to Fernie last year leaving Ross with Walton’s #1 spot. This year Junker made a three way trade that sees the Rebels get Jordan Gluck (6-11) from the Osoyoos Coyotes. Some GM may end up in a leg hold trap if this deal doesn’t work out.
The 22-2-2 Kamloops Storm recently graduated all-star goalie Lyndon Stanwood to the Jr. “A” Trail Smoke Eaters. GM Barry Dewar had been very vocal in the papers saying Stanwood was too good for the KIJHL so he got his wish. Dewar also lost defenseman Shane Poulsen to the 3-16-1 Smoke Eaters earlier this year as well. The swami sees a little white ball when the regular season ends for these Trail guys.
And finally, Austin Evans was hit with a vicious cheap shot by Rockies forward Todd Sykes last Thursday. Sykes ran the unsuspecting Evans hard into the boards when the puck wasn’t anywhere near him and only got a minor penalty. So if dangerous hits like that on unsuspecting players is only a minor, you need to keep fighting in the game. Right about now 22 Kimberley bobble head dolls are on the dash bobbing their heads up and down in agreement, and Oli Dickson and coach Roman Vopat are driving the bus.
Fernie Beats Hated Kimberley November 7, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedThe Ghostriders had an important 4-3 double overtime win over the hated Kimberley Dynamiters. Marty Wicks scored the O/T winner and Brendon Mangone and Alex Pronchuk (2) had the other goals. Chris Solecki got his eighth win of the season and after the weekend was in second place in KIJHL goaltending.
Fernie is now 2-1 vs Kimberley but the teams are just two points apart in the standings and seem destined to fight it out for first place in the division this year. It’s the first time since 2008/09 that the Riders have had any competition at all for first place, especially from Kimberley. The Riders finished a hilarious 47 points ahead of the Nitro’s last year and 30 points ahead of Creston (second), but this year we may see a photo finish and only one team get to be Secretariat. The other will be imitating 60’s TVs talking horse, Mr. Ed.
With four points in three games last week Connor McLaughlin is leading the team in scoring with 20 points. McLaughlin is easily the Ghostriders best all round forward, he competes hard every night, is good defensively and usually gets in on the scoring. Actually he is in on almost 30 per cent of the Riders scoring. McLaughlin came to Fernie late last season in a trade with Nelson and the Scottsdale Arizona native has been an on ice leader since game one. Another former Leaf now in Fernie is defenseman Ty Morton. Coach Verner traded with Nelson for Morton’s KIJHL rights last season when he returned from a year with the junior “A” Nanaimo Clippers. Ty is second in team scoring with 16 points, he played with Nelson in 2008/09. Expect both Morton and McLaughlin to be wired up next Thursday.
They are always one of the top teams in the league and on November 10 the Nelson Leafs (25pts) are here for a rare Thursday night game. Their coach this season is Frank Maida and he says he wants his team to be like the KIJHL championship team that he and Simon Wheeldon coached in 2009. They were all offence that year and defence was just something a player would jump over behind the local establishment when the coach showed up late at night. Could be a fun game for the Rider fans to watch.
With George Hurlbut
Fernie Ghostriders defeat Chase October 8, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedThe Ghostriders defeated the Chase Heat by a 6-1 score on Friday night here in Fernie. The Riders led 3-1 after one and 6-1 at the end of the second. The shots were 37-15 and the game was never in question.
Alex Milhouse scored a pair, one was a beauty stick handling around goaltender Jordan Vallance. Marty Wicks scored 2, one from the center line. Brendon Mangone and Andrew White chipped in singles. Chris Solecki got the win in net and is now 6-1 with a 1.13 GAA and a 955 save %. Tops in the KIJHL. Dylan Robertson(seen above) was named as the first star.
Stay tuned for more exciting hockey!
Fernie Ghostriders Outplay Invermere October 6, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedThe Ghostriders went into Invermere on Tuesday night for a leisurely skate and usual 7-1 win over the undermanned Rockies. The shots were a ridiculous 61-19 for the Ghostriders. Ty Morton, and Andrew White had 3 points each while Brendon Mangone chipped in with 2 goals. The other scorers were Zach Traverse Austin Evans, Derek Georgopoulos and Connor McLaughlin. Chris Solecki got the win in net. Very few penalties in this game and 200 watched.
Photo Andrew White- 3 assists Tuesday
Ty Morton and Connor McLaughlin are now tied with 10 points each for the Riders scoring lead. With the win the Ghostriders will not be part of the answer to the KIJHL’s trivia question on their site. Who will be the first team to win a game, Invermere, Chase or Grand Forks.
For Ghostrider home games click here.
Fernie Ghostriders won a 9-5 battle September 14, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedThe rookie laden Ghostriders won a 9-5 battle on Tuesday night here in Fernie. Fernie local Josh McSkimming had three goals and after being shutout last year looks poised to make some noise this season. The other scorers were Connor Haney, Connor MCluckie (2), RT Rice, Dane Carlson and Matt MacArthur. Richard Hubscher (3) Mitch Gallagher and Jordan MCluckie scored for the Nitros.
The best player on the ice was Alex Pronchuk for the Riders. He did it all with at least 3 assists (stats not so good in ex play) PK,PP and five on five. He will be a delight to watch this year.
Ghostrider’s Ready for Start of New Season September 3, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedChange is in the cards for Coach Will Verner and his Fernie Ghostriders.
Younger players, coaching adjustments, and a new focus on discipline and patience are some of the key factors in making sure this upcoming season is a successful one.
“We are going to try and get some more skill development this year,” said Verner. “Because we have a younger team and only six or seven players are returning from last year, there has to be an emphasis on skills. We have to be stronger on the puck.”
Last season there were only two 17-year-old players, but now there are going to be seven, with a few 16-year-olds thrown in the mix as well. Given the fresh faces, it’s going to be difficult to build on the momentum of the previous season.
“We were a goal short,” said Verner, referring to last year’s run against Castlegar in the playoffs. “We have had some success in the past, but it’s going to be interesting to see how we perform with basically a brand new team.
Aide from a more youthful presence on the ice, there is also a potentially advantageous comraderie between the players that, according to Verner, was missing last year.
“It’s more of a Kootenay based-team. There are a bunch of guys from Fernie and Cranbrook and Nelson so hopefully it will be a little bit of a tighter group.”
Verner, admits that in spite of the successful run the Ghostriders had a year ago, there were a few things he could have done to help the team, and himself.
“There were a lot of top guys playing on our team,” said Verner. “We had guys playing on the third or fourth line that would have been first line anywhere else. They had a lot of grander ideas individually, and it was my job to identify who the leaders were and I don’t think I did what I could have done. This year, with such a young team, there has to be a few guys that will be willing to step up and assume a leadership role, and a few guys that can understand their own role in terms of a team dynamic.”
That team dynamic started to form on August 22 with a conditioning and development camp in Fernie, and the first Ghostrider game is an exhibition against Beaver Valley on September 9. The first regular season game is on September 16 in Kamloops.
Ghostriders announce new players July 7, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedThe coaches and management of the Ghostriders are starting to announce what their line up for next year is going to look like.
Head coach Will Verner announced late last week that they had traded all-star goaltender Andrew Walton to the Nelson Leafs for defenceman Braeden Hikichi.
“We thank Andrew for his time in Fernie and wish him well with his new team, the Nelson Leafs,” said Verner. “Braeden is six foot and 190 pounds. He is an all-star defenceman and will excite fans with his offensive play.”
The Riders have also acquired 19-year-old goalie Chris Solecki, from the North Okanagan Knights.
“We watched Chris several times last year, and really liked the way he handled himself in the net,” said Verner.” Chris is very composed, has good rebound control and he can play the puck well.”
He said that with two solid goalies, the Riders will be a team that can re-load and push to win a championship.
The Riders also added an Elk Valley player to their line-up.
Sparwood forward, 17-year-old Dylan Robertson will enter his first season as a full-time player with the Ghostriders.
“Over the past two seasons Dylan has seen action with the Ghostriders as an affiliate player. Dylan spent the last two seasons playing midget hockey with the Elk Valley Wild,” said Verner.
“We are excited to have a forward that can play in all three zones. Welcome to the Ghostriders.”
Fernie Ghostriders 1-1 with Castlegar March 10, 2011
Posted by admin in : Fernie Ghostriders , comments closedWith a 5-2 win this Tuesday the Ghostriders evened their series with the Castlegar Rebels at one game apiece.
Rider forward Connor McLaughlin from Connor Morgan and Michael Anderson scored the first goal just 48 seconds into the game then a couple of minutes later Cale Wright from Scott Morisseau and Luke Richardson scored on the power play and the Riders never looked back. Alex Milhouse from Jordan Hirano and Jeff Zmurchyk ended the period with another goal for a 3-0 lead.
At the start of the second Rebel penalty killers Spencer Brodt and Ryan Aynsley teamed up for a short handed goal but the Riders who learned a thing or two from playing Creston scored their fourth goal with just :32 left on the clock. Scott Morisseau from Jeff Zmurchyk and Luke Richardson scored the PP goal.
In the third Tyler Robinson from Anthony Delong scored yet another Rebel short handed goal but a few minutes later Scott Morisseau picked up a rebound from a Mark Strachan shot to make it 5-2.
The Ghostriders are in Castlegar for 2 games and them home Monday March 14th at 7:30pm for Game 5. Come out and support your team!