The Roundup, pretty tame stuff Games,Division and amusing "Other News"

Last Week
The Ghostriders went 1-1 on the road last weekend. They lost their first game by a 3-2 score in Castlegar then rebounded with a 4-3 win in Nelson. 

In Castlegar
Coach Craig Mohr says the first game of the season, and for many of the players, their first ever junior game, resulted in some jitters and before the guys knew it they were down 3-0 part way into the second period... against a fairly hostile PIM taking Rebel squad. That's a + to me Rebs.

In the second half of the game the boys regrouped and played much better. Justin Peers scored on the power play in the second then late in the third Cole Keebler made it 3-2. The Riders had some good chances before the end of the game but couldn't finish and fell short dropping a 3-2 decision.

With a goal and an assist Justin Peers was named as the Player of the Game. New D-man Kegan Kingwell earned his first Rider point with an assist and Spencer Bender had 2 assists

In Nelson 
Ty Carron scored his first goal in the 1st period then after Nelson tied it up Cole Keebler made it 2-1. Carron then scored his second of the game and the Riders ended the period up 3-1.

In the second  Keebler scored again to make it 4-1 but Nelson battled back and scored 2 in the third setting up an intense last few minutes where, as Nelson's Bruce Fuhr says, Jeff Orser stood tall got the Riders a win. Full Story from Nelson here

Kevin Pierce, Joey Stensland and Aidan Wilson each had their first points in Nelson and Cole Keebler was named as the Player of the Game

Coach Craig Mohr's comment on the weekend "They played hard"

Radio Free Fernie
There were problems at the radio station so we had no play by play last weekend. I'm told Saturday night in Creston is a go... the bettin here is with the new radio station on air the Drive 99.1 will be makin sure the broadcast works  to say ahead of the new competition.

Injuries
The Riders will be without five guys this weekend, but a few are day to day... lucky they only play one game in Creston. Joey Stensland has left the team to go back to school. All the best Joey. They have brought in a few guys and when they are carded they will be announced.

In our Division
Kimberley and Creston went 2-0 and will likely be pretty good competition again this season. The Riders will find out about Creston on Saturday. Both teams have returning #1 goalies, Kimberley has Tyson Brouwer (95) and Creston has Brock Lefebvre (97) the Riders counter with Jeff Orser.

Golden and Invermere have identical 0-2 records, but the season is very young.

TEAM	GP	W	L	T	D	OL	PTS
Kimberley	2	2	0	0	0	0	4
Creston	2	2	0	0	0	0	4
Fernie	2	1	1	0	0	0	2
Golden	2	0	2	0	0	0	0
Col Valley	2	0	2	0	0	0	0

To no ones surprise Jason Richter leads the scoring race, but Kimberley won two 6 goal games vs Golden and the Rockies. Lautard and the other guys are no slouches either... Im bettin Rider Cole Keebler will catch up quickly.

PLAYER GP G A P Jason Richter (KD) 2 5 2 7 Paulsen Lautard (SS) 2 4 2 6 Jack Mills (SS) 2 3 3 6 Eric Buckley (KD) 2 0 6 6 Kurtis Redding (SB) 3 3 2 5 Alec Wilkinson (CVT) 2 1 4 5 Dario Piva (KS) 2 3 1 4 James Severs (CVT) 2 2 2 4 Jake Yuris (BVN) 2 2 2 4 Robb Johnson (KS) 2 1 3 4

In other news
Flames President Brian Burke was interviewed and one of the questions was about the 3 on 3 in overtime.  Burke says he is confidant the coaches will  "kill the joy and coach the life out of it".
Unfortunately I think he's right. Full interesting wide ranging interview here

See Spot run see Spot fall down, see Spot play again.
The NHL is hiring 30 "Concussion Spotters" to watch and report on concussions. How easy is this job... If he is wobbly after a hit or gets knocked out for even a second he has a concussion. NHL guys routinely let players play after these hits. So true to form the new "Spotters"  won't be able to stop a player from playing anyway. You can't make this stuff up Full Story Here


He will be Draft Eligible
When his team was up 7-0 a College hockey  goalie was tossed a can of beer by one of his frat brothers and he took off his helmet and chugged it ... read this amusing story here

The Weekly Roundup- Coffee- French lessons Dancing Queen Who's next

The Weekly Roundup

Coffee Break
Had coffee with Head Coach Craig Mohr and new Assistant Coach Pascal Morency (hint, click on his name for the video, you Rider players will like it) the other day where I found out that  Morency, who just finished up 12 years as a pro in several different leagues is much more than a hockey guy and is not only here to help the players on the ice, but off the ice as well . My guess is that the very personable Morency, who is a Certified Professional Life Coach through the World Coaching Institute, will be a rather large  bonus to the players and to Coach Mohr this year as well. Especially if we clear the benches?

Horse Shoes
 In my fairly wide ranging conversation with Morency he brought up the point  that he has played for a lot of coaches over the years and Rider Coach Craig Mohr is right up there with the best of them.... he  says "the team, and the town is lucky to have him".  Morency who also coaches at the  Fernie Academy  with Spokane Chief's Director of Player Development Chris Moulton  adds that some of the coaches he had over the years were barely aware of  the concepts Mohr teaches the players in practice. Or did he say some the coach he had barely aware concepts of Craig...
Anyway.... he speaks much better english than I do French. The Rider players are lucky to have Pascal along for the Ride this year as well as the super fit Jeff Zmurchyk who won't hurt either.

Photo Pascal and Melanie

Dancing Queen  
So your wondering how does a guy from Montreal end up here in Fernie. Pascal had visited here before so was familiar with the area and town but more importantly his girlfriend Melanie Jolicoeur was recruited by The Castle Movement, 441 1st avenue, where she will be teaching dance classes. Jolicoeur owned a successful Dance School for 10 years and performed and taught dance internationally until she got injured.  Dancers can follow Melanie on Twitter  @JolicoeurMel and players can follow Pascal on Twitter  @morency_p
See Melanie's video here

The Ghostriders had three practices in Colman AB this week because the ice was not available in Fernie due to the Provincial Mine Rescue Competition. Already four guys were sitting in the stands with injuries and will miss this weekend's games in Castlegar and Nelson... which by the way... will be broadcast live on the Drive 99.1 radio in Fernie and Sparwood at 93.5. Howie Ashmore will do the play by play for the first weekend then Tom Ross will take over.

Here is a list of the players signed so far, expecting Adian Wilson to pass through the HC registry shortly. Several rookies and 5 twenties.

#	PLAYER NAME	BY	P	GP	G	A	PTS	P/G	PP	SH	GW	PIM
18	Spencer Bender	'95	F	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
23	Dalton Bouvier	'98	C	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
20	Trevor Broad	'98	D	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
7	Dan Burgess	'96	D	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
15	Ty Carron	'97	C	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
27	Mack Differenz	'97	RW	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
6	Kyle Haugo	'98	D	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
25	Cole Keebler	'95	C	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
4	Keagan Kingwell	'97	D	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
21	Justin Peers	'96	W	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
3	Kevin Pierce	'98	D	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
13	Evan Reid	'96	LW	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
9	Jacen Richards	'98	LW	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
28	Lane Sim	'97	RW	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
26	Tayler Sincennes	'96	RW	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
14	Joey Stensland	'97	LW	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
8	Ryan Teslak	'98	D	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
5	Travis Thomsen	'95	LD	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
17	Mitch Titus	'97	RW	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
24	Dustin Watt	'95	D	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
	TEAM TOTALS				0	0	0	-	0	0	-	0

= Injured  = Suspended  = Rookie  = Reserve  = Import  = Affiliate  = Committed

GOALIE STATISTICS
• CLICK ON A HEADER TO SORT BY THAT STATISTIC •

#	GOALIE	BY	GP	W	L	T	G	A	PIM	SO	MP	GA	GAA	SH	SA	SV%
30	Brandon Butler	'96	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	-	-	-
1	Jeff Orser	'95	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	-	-	-

Round' the League

Wasted Ink
Most writers and stats geeks know this already, but the KIJHL's esports website does not keep track of game winning goals. Well the web site actually does keep track, but the scorekeepers almost never remember to click the game winning goal box.
 The Riders won 37 games last year yet only had 2 game winning goals listed on the KI website. Kamloops won 33 and had 11 listed etc. There is a place on the  sheet for game winning goals but in this day and age of smart phones and smart asses the esports' program should automatically credit the game winning goal. If I had any say I'd push esports for this fix....because there are other "points streak" etc  options out there. We rant every year about this but nothing happens.


Who's Next
The Summerland Steam have given up a home game and will play it in Williams Lake against the 100 Mile House Wranglers on November 14th.  For those who haven't been following this column, Williams Lake is looking to put a team in the KIJHL.... and 100 Mile House, Summerland and Kamloops etc can't wait for it to happen and have been playing games in Williams Lake for the last couple of seasons. One of the leaders in WL, Rob Sandrock, says his group has until December to apply for a franchise for next season. I believe the going rate for a new team is $150,000 but you could get an existing team and move it for less. The 100 Mile House Wranglers bought Pentiction and moved it up to 100 a couple of years ago. Don't forget that when 100 Mile was looking for a franchise  they were on record as saying that were talking to a few teams about moving, not just Pentiction... So I wonder who's next ?

The link to the Williams Lake story is below and a little Williams Lake Jr Hockey History is last.

Link to Williams Lake franchise story


The Red Deer Indy Graphics are pretty happy with Lane Sim, Mack Differenz, Tayler Sincennes and Kegan Klingwell who all play with the Riders this season. Sincennes is in his second year with the Riders... and I still can't spell his name without lookin. The Graphics have 13 players in the KIJHL, see the Tweets below.

RedDeerIndyGfxChiefs ‏@IndyChiefs  Sep 6

Congrats to Alumni @lanesim18 @Mackdifferenz18 @sincy36 @kingwell14 this season with @RiderNewsKIJHL #rdproud

9 retweets11 favorites

RedDeerIndyGfxChiefs ‏@IndyChiefs  Sep 6

2 Seasons removed from RDMH and we have 13 Players Playing in the @KIJHL and 3 @KIJHL players promoted to the @TheAJHL and @bchl #rdproud

Shame... Shame
Well if the Spokane Braves sound a little pissed because only BV would play them in the exhibition season... I wonder what Kimbo is thinking.... See the amusing Tweets about Spokane below.

 Kimberley who held their main camp last weekend, won't even get one exhibition game. Had they held their camp a little earlier... I know for a fact Fernie would have played a home and home, and it would have been lucrative for both teams.

1.  Riders retweeted

   BVNITEHAWKS ‏@BVNitehawks  7h7 hours ago

   No other team would play them.... Shame on the rest of the #KIJHL
2. BVNITEHAWKS ‏@BVNitehawks  7h7 hours ago

   Just had a quick chat with a #spokane player, turns out the only games they had in ex were against us.
   
   
   

   Williams Lake to join the KIJHL ?

   First A little Sunday AM thirty something year history lesson.
   
   In the 1980's the Williams Lake Mustangs were part of the PCJHL (Peace Cariboo) Junior A circuit who's league Champion played off against the BCJHL Champion for the  BC Jr A hockey Championship.
   
   Then in 1991 the PCJHL joined up with several teams in the South to form the RMJHL (Rocky Mountain) Jr "A" league who were in competition with the still intact BCJHL. The RMJHL featured several teams who  KIJHL fans will be familiar with, Fernie, Kimberley, Creston, Nelson and Castlegar all played in the RMJHL as did Trail and Cranbrook who each had storied KIJHL histories
   
   Then in 1996 the BCJHL who are now called the BCHL, and who didn't like the competition for players, took in Trail Prince George and Quesnel and that killed off the Peace Cariboo division, and in a few short years... the RMJHL as well.
   
   Williams Lake was not part of the new BCHL and had no hockey until 2002 when they joined the BCHL for a few seasons calling themselves the Timberwolves They lasted five years before going bankrupt in 2010 and they haven't had hockey since. Their relatives in Quesnel lasted until 2011 before they also found out the BCHL was a rich man's league.
   
   So here we are, two big hockey towns without hockey and Williams Lake has an eye on the KIJHL, and you can be absolutely certain Quesnel is looking as well.
   
   Observations from afar
   
   So the big question is will they buy an existing team like 100 Mile did when they bought Pentiction (There are more than a few KI teams out there who are struggling at the gate) or will they buy a new franchise at ... last I heard...  $150,000.
   
    Either way it's going to get harder to win in the KIJHL with bigger and bigger centres joining up in the last few seasons. Personally I hope they get an existing team so as to not water down the league any more than it is.  Every season we have a few teams who don't seem to be able to recruit enough good players to compete, adding two new teams in  big centres won't help. And yes, it could happen surprisingly fast.
   
   Anyway, Below is a story that was circulating on Twitter. With a link to the WL Facebook page.
   
   

   Management team announces intentions to bring junior B hockey to lakecity

   April 23, 2015 · Updated 5:25 PM
   0 Comments
   

   The chance of a junior B team coming to Williams Lake became much more of a possibility Thursday following an announcement made on Facebook.

   Rob Sandrock — a professional hockey player born and raised in Williams Lake with more than 16 years of pro experience — revealed he's been managing the page, "Williams Lake Jr. B Hockey," and said he's formed a management team with Total Ice Training Centre's Tyrel Lucas and Speedy Petey's Car Wash and Lube's Ryan Bailey about bringing a team to the lakecity.

   "[This group] has the knowledge and experience to succeed," Sandrock said via the announcement. "Tyrel has been developing hockey players for the past seven years and with his facility will give junior players the training and instruction that other teams can only dream of.

   "Ryan … a well-established accountant and brings a wealth of business knowledge to our group."

   Sandrock, who has a masters degree in sport management, said the trio has a deeply-rooted passion for the game, Williams Lake and the next generation of hockey players.

   "We are here to bring an entertainment option to Williams Lake while providing local hockey players the opportunity to stay and play in their hometown and create positive role models for our younger youth," Sandrock said.

   "While we may be the driving force trying to bring a team to Williams Lake it will be your team, Williams Lake's team and will be treated as such. Without you, we will not be successful. With you, we can create something the whole city can be proud of, to call theirs and to be a part of."

   Sandrock said the management team will be arranging an information forum in the near future to create an opportunity to answer any questions from the public.

   Until then, he said he can be reached with questions and comments at robsandrock@icloud.com, or on his Facebook page, "Williams Lake Jr. B Hockey."

   
   

The Weekly Roundup, Horror, New Guy, NCAA hippos- fire sale- tonight's game

Wednesday September 2nd 7AM

The Weekly Roundup

Run Away in Horror
 Well parents will be happy to hear that Athletic Therapist and Ghostrider's Trainer  Kayla Neufeld is now providing concussion evaluation and treatment for the Rider hockey players. Meaning this year she will be even better able to tell when a player should or shouldn't be on the ice. Now I know there was a time when players (and coaches) had looks of horror on their faces when approached by the Kayla's of the training world, but with all the new information out there on concussions it's pretty much accepted that sitting out is the thing to do... In related news, I followed Justin Peers on my Twitter the other day, I have a scheduled an appointment with Kayla tomorrow... She works at Fernie Athletic Therapy click to see their website and concussion page

New Guy in Town
After losing three year assistant coach James Ouimet last week Ghostriders Head Coach Craig Mohr brought in recently retired (as a player) Pascal Morency on to the coaching staff.

Morency just moved to town after playing five years in the QMJHL then 12 years pro in the AHL, CHL, ECHL,UHL and in Austria. He is just starting his coaching career and is a Certified Professional Life Coach through the World Coaching Institute which is  ICF approved. Welcome to Fernie Pascal.

Tonight's Game

The Ghostriders played mostly rookies last night and lost 4-2 in Invermere. Coach Craig Mohr said the Rockies have a few pretty good players this season so we shouldn't expect another last place finish this year. That's good as far as I'm concerned as they will play here in Fernie four times this year. Hope they don't have another fire sale....The Riders will add a few more vets for tonight's game at 7:30  and by Saturday vs Creston the coaches plan on using, for the most part, the guys who will start the season on the road in Castlegar and Nelson.

It's hard to read but the goal scores for the Riders were Mitch Titus (he was an AP last season) and Jamal Borhot who played with the Calgary Royals Midget AA team last season. Former Rider player and coach Brian Youngson's son Brandon started the game in net and coach Mohr said he was pretty good. Thanks to the Rockies Twitter for sending the photo of the game sheet.

An interesting bunch of stories out there about how the NCAA has passed a ruling allowing teams to pay players this year. Just like the CHL (WHL OHL QMJHL )  teams do, only our  CHL players are not eligible for an NCAA scholarship. 

 Some (like me) think it's hypocritical, (an animal from Africa ? ) but I'm not the only one. Funny how you can't drink, go to war or even go on some job sites till you're 18, but the NCAA forces 15-17 year old players to make a "them or us" decision as minors.  For the uninitiated...them means the CHL or us meaning the USA's  NCAA scholarship college route. See the Tweet below.

Anyway we will have more on this potentially game changing situation in the coming months. Also for the uninitiated, the Jr A BCHL  are part of the  CJHL and their main recruiting tool is players in their league can get NCAA scholarships. If the CHL players could get a NCAA scholarship recruiters may tell the potential players to play in the WHL etc so they could see them play against the best players before dolling out any money.

 Riders retweeted

Zenon Herasymiuk ‏@ZenonHerasymiuk  23h23 hours ago

LRT's: Complete joke that kids lose NCAA eligibility for exhibition games- & teams can pay players now down there. Something needs to change.

Future Rider contemplating the
NCAA vs CHL

Rider President ‏

FGR exhibition game tonight @7:30 Fernie Memorial. 

Come out and cheer on the boys!@craigmohr9 @RiderNewsKIJHL

	DATE	TIME	AWAY		HOME		LOC
EX	Tue, Sep. 1	7:30P MST	Fernie		Col Valley		Invermere - Eddie Mountain Memorial Arena
EX	Wed, Sep. 2	7:30P MST	Col Valley		Fernie		Fernie Memorial Arena
EX	Fri, Sep. 4	7:30P PST	Fernie		Creston		Creston - Johnny Bucyk Arena
EX	Sat, Sep. 5	7:30P MST	Creston		Fernie		Fernie Memorial Arena
RS	Fri, Sep. 11	7:00P PST	Fernie		Castlegar		Castlegar Complex
RS	Sat, Sep. 12	7:00P PST	Fernie		Nelson		Nelson Community Complex
RS	Sat, Sep. 19	7:30P PST	Fernie		Creston		Creston - Johnny Bucyk Arena
RS	Fri, Sep. 25	7:00P MST	Fernie		Golden		Golden Arena
RS	Sat, Sep. 26	7:30P MST	100 Mile		Fernie		Fernie Memorial Arena