Roch stopped 34-of-35 shots in a 6-1 win over the Campbell River Storm last week.

“Evan was our steadiest player,” Cougars’ associate coach Suneil Karod said.  “Campbell River peppered us with shots and he stood strong.  Not only that, Evan displayed great leadership by keeping the team on track through the example of his play.”

According to Karod, Roch came up with some big saves at timely moments which gave Victoria the best possible opportunity to earn a win.

“Evan was also our best penalty killer in helping us kill all seven Campbell River powerplays.  He has been one of our most consistent players this season,” Karod said.

Roch finished the regular season with a 14-2-0-0 record, a 2.47 goals against average, and a .903 save percentage.

-

But for Steve Axford, it was the difference of winning a VIJHL scoring title or coming in second place.

Or none of the above.

Tied with Ty Jones of the Saanich Braves for 72 points leading up to Saturday night’s game, Axford recorded three assists in a 4-2 victory over Oceanside.

As for Jones, he scored once and added a pair of helpers to lift the visiting Braves past the Comox Valley Glacier Kings 4-1.

Back at the Howie Meeker Arena, Axford potted an empty net goal with 0.6 seconds remaining for what would have been his fourth point of the night but the play was blown dead as a result of a Victoria player being offside.

So what does all of this mean?

Axford and Jones will share the Doug Morton Trophy.

For the first time in team history though, the Cougars (36-5-0-1) finished first overall amongst all 37 Junior B teams in British Columbia.  Even if the No. 2 ranked Richmond Sockeyes win their remaining two games, Victoria will still have a better winning percentage.

The Cougars, which won their 16^th game in a row, got off to a slow start Saturday as they did not record their first shot on goal until the 6:05 mark – courtesy of a Graham Zagrodney wrist shot from the point.

Mark Van Helvoirt and his troops did manage to get one past goaltender Joshua Alalouf before the end of the period.

During an odd man rush, Jake Stolz slid the puck over to Chris Bannister who beat Alalouf with 27.3 seconds remaining.  Ryan Chan, who did not factor in the scoring, made a good defensive play by diving and poking the puck out of his own zone.

Taylor Gray scored his first of two at the 48 second mark of the second period.

Six seconds into Nick Bell’s roughing penalty, Josh Wyatt tipped home a Robert Zadra point shot at 11:11 to restore Victoria’s one goal lead.

The score remained 2-1 until the 57 second mark of the third period when a wrist shot by Colin Minardi fooled Alalouf.  Minardi’s goal, which was assisted by Connor Stephens and Axford, came on the powerplay.

Wyatt scored his second of the night after unloading a slap shot from the slot at 11:04.

Gray cut the lead in half with just over two minutes remaining in regulation after he beat Bryce Halverson short side.  Cougars’ Kyle Richter had all but one second remaining in his slashing penalty.

Halverson, who improved to 11-0-0-0, finished the regular season with a league leading 1.82 goals against average and .925 save percentage.

Shots on goal favoured Victoria, 29-22.

The playoff picture will have the No. 2 seed Braves playing the No. 7 seed Campbell River Storm, the No. 3 seed Glacier Kings squaring off against the No. 6 seed Kerry Park Islanders, and the No. 4 seed Generals (20-20-0-2) facing the No. 5 seed Peninsula Panthers.  All series are best-of-seven.

Victoria, which scored a league-high 200 goals and allowed a league-low 93 goals, receives a first round playoff bye.

-

COUGARS 2012 SUMMER ICE PROSPECTS (PDF)

These sessions are designed to allow players who are interested in playing or affiliating with the Cougars either next season or the following season an opportunity to get exposure with our club.   Sessions are non-contact, and are principally scrimmage sessions overseen by the Cougar coaching staff.

All sessions will be held at the Archie Browning Sports Centre in Esquimalt.  Cost for all 12 sessions is $180.00.

We recognize that not all players will be available to attend every session, but there are no drop-ins or partial registrations for these sessions.  Also please note that there will be a $50 administration fee for any registered player who cancels.

Space is limited, and registration is on a first-in basis.  There will only be 4 goaltenders accepted, with the 5th being offered the space as an “on call” spare.

Wednesday, July 04, 2012     7:15-8:45 PM
Sunday, July 08, 2012               7:15-8:45 PM
Wednesday, July 11, 2012        7:15-8:45 PM
Sunday, July 15, 2012               7:15-8:45 PM
Wednesday, July 18, 2012        7:15-8:45 PM
Sunday, July 22, 2012               7:15-8:45 PM
Wednesday, July 25, 2012        7:15-8:45 PM
Sunday, July 29, 2012                7:15-8:45 PM
Wednesday, August 01, 2012    7:15-8:45 PM
Sunday, August 05, 2012           7:15-8:45 PM
Wednesday, Aug 08, 2012         7:15-8:45 PM
Sunday, August 12, 2012           7:15-8:45 PM

To register, download the COUGARS 2012 SUMMER ICE PROSPECTS (PDF) document, complete the registration form and mail it complete with a payment of $180.00 to the address on the bottom of the registration form.  Please print clearly.  You will receive an e-mail back confirming your registration.  If you have any questions, please contact:

Tony Carlson at 250-896-9648 email or
Gary Boyer at 250-592-0386 email .

On the VMHA players entry, the Cougars treated them with pop, chips, a Frisbee for the Cougars Frisbee toss and Esquimalt Recreation passes, and entered their names into a free VMHA draw for prizes. In the first and second intermission, the VMHA delighted the crowd with a shootout competition, the winning teams being treated to pizza and pop.

The Cougars held a meet and greet with the VMHA players in the first intermission, signing autographs and chatting with the players. The event was a resounding success, and the Cougars look forward to hosting the event again next year.

Steve Axford continued his torrid pace, leading Victoria with four assists.  The winger extended his scoring streak to eight games and now has amassed a whopping 22 points during that stretch.

Prior to the opening faceoff, Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League President Greg Batters was on hand to present the Andy Hebenton Trophy which is awarded to the regular season champion.  Cougars’ captain Brody Coulter, along with alternate captains’ Chris Bannister, Josh Wyatt, and Axford, gladly accepted the hardware from Batters.

Not letting the pregame festivities faze them, the Storm fired eleven first period shots towards Evan Roch and took an early one goal lead.

Jamie Severs, a 15-year-old call-up from the Campbell River Tyees, opened the scoring at 11:05 for his first ever goal.

Victoria (35-5-0-1), which was playing its final home game of the regular season, made it 1-1 after Sam Rice teamed up with Axford and Wyatt 20 seconds later.

Streaking down the left side and then cutting towards the net, Wyatt waited until goalie Andy Salazar was sprawled out on his belly before sliding the puck past him.  The goal, which was scored at 16:01, was assisted by Axford and Graham Zagrodney.

Penalties to Wyatt Trumbley and Max Crawford at 17:40 and 18:19 respectively put the Cougars on a two-man advantage.  Possessing the league’s top powerplay, Connor Stephens slid a pass through the crease to Bannister who banged it home with 33.8 seconds left in the period.

The Cougars finished 1-for-8 with the man advantage.

It remained 3-1 until the 5:21 mark of the middle frame when a goal by Wade Johnson gave Victoria a three goal lead.  Ryan Chan and Jacob Nixon were credited with the assists.

A penalty shot was awarded to Wyatt after he was hauled down from behind by Joel Wheeldon.  But before he could make his move, Wyatt had the puck poke checked off his stick at the last possible second by Salazar.

However, with 1.8 seconds remaining before the second intermission, Nathan Chen-Mack scored from Rice and Axford.

Roch, who was named the game’s first star, made one spectacular save after another.  With twelve minutes remaining in the game, Roch made a stick save off Campbell River’s leading scorer Tyson Rennie.  Then six minutes later, Dane Feeney was robbed of a sure goal.

The Cougars capped off the scoring with 55.4 seconds left when Bannister deflected in a Stephens pass.

Treading in unchartered waters, Victoria was outshot for only the second time this season, 35-28.

Salazar, who stopped 20 shots, was replaced by Nick Babich at the start of the third period.

The VIJHL scoring race is still murky as ever.  Axford holds a slim two point lead over Ty Jones of Saanich who recorded a pair of assists in his game against the Peninsula Panthers.

Jones does have a game in hand though.

The Cougars will have a first round playoff bye whereas Campbell River (15-25-0-1) will face the Comox Valley Glacier Kings, Oceanside Generals, or Saanich in a best-of-seven series.

Next game for Victoria is Saturday, February 18 against the Oceanside Generals.  Game time at Oceanside Place, located at 830 West Island Highway, is 7:30 p.m.

-

THREE STARS:

1^st star, Evan Roch (Saves:  34, Save Percentage:  971)

2^nd star, Chris Bannister (Goals:  2, Assists:  0)

3^rd star, Steve Axford (Goals:  0, Assists:  4)

-

Game time at the Archie Browning Sports Centre, located at 1151 Esquimalt Road, is 7:15 p.m.

Victoria concludes its 42 game schedule against the Oceanside Generals on Saturday.

Brandishing a league leading 34-5-0-1 record, the Cougars shoot for their 15^th consecutive victory and 14^th win in a row on home ice.

Victoria also captured the regular season title for the second straight year and won that distinction as early as mid-January.  It was also the third time in the last five seasons the Cougars have finished with the most number of points at the conclusion of the regular season.

They also earned a first round playoff bye.

Furthermore, VIJHL President Greg Batters will be on hand to present the Andy Hebenton Trophy to Mark Van Helvoirt and his troops at the beginning of tonight’s game.

Victoria has won all five meetings with Campbell River so far this season including a 10-1 win in their most recent encounter on Jan. 27.  They have outscored the Storm 31-10 and have earned a shutout in one of those contests.

The Cougars extended their winning streak to 14 games with a 3-1 victory over the Peninsula Panthers last Friday.

Jake Stolz, Chris Bannister, and Nathan Chen-Mack scored for Victoria.  Getting the start in net was Evan Roch who stopped 29 shots for his 13^th win of the season.

With one week remaining, the VIJHL scoring race comes down to Brody Coulter and Steve Axford of Victoria and Ty Jones of the Saanich Braves.  All three players have 68 points.

However, Jones has one game in hand.

Axford made it a three-way race by amassing six points in two games last week.

Campbell River comes into tonight’s contest sporting a record of 15-24-0-1 and is trying to get on a roll before the playoffs start.

Who they will play in the first round is anyone’s guess.

Only three points separate the Comox Valley Glacier Kings, Saanich, and Oceanside in the standings.

If the season were to end today, the No. 7 seed Storm would play the No. 2 seed Glacier Kings in a best-of-seven series.

Campbell River recently split a home-and-home series with Comox Valley, winning 4-3 on Friday and then losing 4-1 a day later.

Tyson Rennie leads all Storm scorers with 37 points.

Campbell River concludes regular season play by hosting the Kerry Park Islanders on Saturday.

-

-

STANDINGS:  Victoria – 1^st place, 69 points, South Island Division.  Campbell River – 3^rd place, 31 points, North Island Division

-

TEAM LEADERS:  Victoria – Brody Coulter, 27 goals; Steve Axford, 43 assists; Robert Zadra, 135 penalty minutes.  Campbell River – Dane Feeney, 14 goals; Tyson Rennie, 24 assists; Jesse Spooner, 215 penalty minutes

-

GOALTENDERS:  Victoria – Bryce Halverson (1.80 goals against average, .927 save percentage); Evan Roch (2.57 goals against average, .897 save percentage).  Campbell River – Nick Babich (3.89 goals against average, .889 save percentage); Andy Salazar (4.11 goals against average, .881 save percentage)

-

SEASON SERIES:  Victoria leads, 5-0-0-0

-

PAST RESULTS/FUTURE MEETINGS:

September 9, 2011.  Victoria Cougars 4 @ Campbell River Storm 1

September 15, 2011.  Campbell River Storm 4 @ Victoria Cougars 5

November 18, 2011.  Victoria Cougars 3 @ Campbell River Storm 0

December 1, 2011.  Campbell River 4 @ Victoria Cougars 9

January 27, 2012.  Victoria Cougars 10 @ Campbell River Storm 1

-

HOME/AWAY RECORDS:  Victoria – Home, 18-1-0-1.  Campbell River – Away, 5-15-0-0

-

STREAKS:  Victoria, 14-0-0-0.  Campbell River, 0-1-0-0

-

LAST TEN:  Victoria, 10-0-0-0.  Campbell River, 5-5-0-0

-

All players who show up to tonight’s game wearing their VMHA jersey will be admitted free of charge.

Tonight, the Victoria Cougars will be taking on the Campbell River Storm.

This incredibly popular event promises to be a fun-filled night for everyone.

-

ACTIVITIES AND GIVAWAYS INCLUDE:

A Frisbee toss

Goodie bags for VMHA players

Prize draws for VMHA players

A shootout in between the first and second intermissions between pre-determined VMHA players

Free pizza and pop to the winning VMHA teams from both shootouts

Free pizza and pop to the VMHA team with the best attendance

An autograph session with the Cougars players

-

Furthermore, VIJHL President Greg Batters will be on hand to present the Andy Hebenton Trophy (awarded to the team that finishes the regular season with the most points) to Mark Van Helvoirt and his troops at the beginning of the game.

Game time at the Archie Browning Sports Centre, located at 1151 Esquimalt Road, is 7:15 p.m.

Doors open one hour prior to game time.

-

In back-to-back games last week, Axford collected two goals and four assists.

“Not only did Steven lead his team offensively, he was excellent in his defensive play as well,” Cougars’ associate coach Thomas Kala said.  “Steven has really shaped into one of the best all-around players in the league.”

According to Kala, Axford was a true leader on the ice.

“Steven’s determination and leadership were very evident.  He has been a great piece in the Cougars success this year,” Kala said.

Axford currently has 25 goals and 43 assists for 68 points in 39 games.

-

Although the Victoria Cougars came away with a 3-1 win over the Peninsula Panthers on Friday, what stings the most was how Roch lost his shutout bid.

With one minute and 47-seconds remaining in regulation, Peninsula went on its fourth and final powerplay when Colin Minardi was assessed a two minute minor for slashing.

Immediately following the penalty, Peninsula took a timeout to discuss strategy.  Instead of sending five players out, head coach Rob Armstrong pulled goaltender Kylar Stern for an extra attacker.

The move paid off.

During a mad scramble in the Cougars goal area, Trevor Yee managed to get a hold of the puck and fire it home while Roch lay on the ice with 1:07 left in the game.

Prior to, 77 seconds in fact, Victoria had a goal disallowed.  Despite signalling a goal, referee Mike Christians conferred with one of his linesmen to get a second opinion.  After a brief discussion, Christians ruled that the net had come off of its moorings.

The score remained 3-0 in favour of the Cougars.

Jake Stolz, who oozes with potential, opened the scoring at 7:33 of the first period.  From the blueline, Stolz took a pass from Steve Axford before firing the puck into a wide open net.  On the play, Stern was leaning the wrong way.

With another point under his belt, Axford moved into a first place tie for the VIJHL scoring race with the likes of teammate Brody Coulter and Saanich Braves’ forward Ty Jones.  Coulter did not play Friday and neither did Jones whose Braves hosted the Kerry Park Islanders.

Chris Bannister doubled the lead with 40.8 seconds left in the period when his shot beat Stern short side.

Half a minute later, a fight broke out between Rhys Williams and Panthers’ leading scorer Joe Densmore.  Both players were issued automatic game misconducts.

The score remained 2-0 until the 7:47 mark of the third period when Nathan Chen-Mack beat Stern with a wrist shot from the high slot.

In the period, both Josh Wyatt and Graham Zagrodney rang the puck off the iron.

Roch, who has won his last six starts, made 29-of-30 saves.  200 feet away, Stern faced 49 shots.

Victoria improved to 34-5-0-1 and extended its win streak to 14 games.

The loss dropped Peninsula to 16-19-0-4.

In other action around the VIJHL, the Kerry Park Islanders defeated Saanich 4-3 in a shootout while the Campbell River Storm won 4-3 over the Comox Valley Glacier Kings.

Next game for the Cougars is Thursday, February 16 against the Campbell River Storm.  Game time at the Archie Browning Sports Centre, located at 1151 Esquimalt Road, is 7:15 p.m.

-

THREE STARS:

1^st star, Jake Stolz (Goals:  1, Assists:  1)

2^nd star, Evan Roch (Saves:  29, Save Percentage:  .967)

3^rd star, Kayle Ramsay (Goals:  0, Assists: 0)

-

The talented forward recorded a season high five-points as the Victoria Cougars blanked the Oceanside Generals 5-0 in one of two Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League games Thursday night.

Up in Kerry Park, the Islanders trailed the Peninsula Panthers 6-4 after two periods (results were unavailable at press time).

Axford, who previously had three four-point games, moved to within a point of teammate Brody Coulter and Ty Jones of the Saanich Braves for the league scoring title.  Both Coulter and Jones have 68 points apiece.

It was the second time this season that Victoria has blanked the Generals.  Back on Sep. 8, in the season opener for both teams, the Cougars won convincingly 9-0.

Garnering third star honours Thursday was goaltender Bryce Halverson.  The 18-year-old from Calgary, Alberta, who came into the game with a league leading 2.00 goals against average and .918 save percentage, made 25 saves which included stopping a second period penalty shot.

With the Cougars leading 3-0, Luciano Somerville broke in on a shorthanded breakaway only to be hooked from behind by a Victoria defender.  Wasting little time, referee Jordy Davis pointed to centre ice.

After skating wide left, Somerville darted down the middle of the ice and instead of finding the back of the net he fired the puck directly into Halverson’s pads.

Victoria (33-5-0-1) opened the scoring at 9:52 of the first period when Josh Wyatt took a goal mouth pass from Sam Rice and beat starting goalie Michael Gudmandson.

Travis Briggs came within inches of tying the game two minutes later after he rang the puck off the iron.

Penalties would haunt Oceanside as the Cougars would score their remaining goals on the powerplay.

Axford scored his first of two when his point shot through traffic rippled the twine at 14:58.

The score remained 2-0 until the 12:59 mark of the second period when Walton banged home an Axford rebound from the side of the net.  Then with less than two minutes remaining in the period, Rice fed the puck to Axford who one-timed it for his 25^th goal of the season.

Rhys Williams rounded out the scoring at 7:52 of the third.

Victoria went 4-for-6 with the man advantage while successfully killing off all three Generals powerplays which included a five minute major assessed to Wade Johnson.

Gudmandson stopped 31-of-36 shots while his replacement Joshua Alalouf turned aside all three shots he faced in eleven minutes and 51-seconds of work.

Oceanside (18-18-0-2) remained two points back of the No. 3 seed Braves and five points back of the No. 2 seed Comox Valley Glacier Kings.  The Generals are winless in their last four games on the road.

Next game for the Cougars is Friday, February 10 against the Peninsula Panthers.  Game time at the Panorama Recreation Centre, located at 1885 Forest Park Drive, is 7:30 p.m.

-

THREE STARS:

1^st star, Steve Axford (Goals:  2, Assists:  3)

2^nd star, Mark Walton (Goals:  1, Assists:  1

3^rd star, Bryce Halverson (Saves:  25, Save Percentage:  1.000)

-