The North Vancouver Wolf Pack and Mission City Outlaws will battle one another for the second and final time this season in what will be the second Winter Classic league game of the year in Richmond. The game will take place at 1:00pm and will be the first of two games that the Pack will play in Richmond as the team will play the Delta Ice Hawks at 10:00am on Saturday morning. The Wolf Pack will be the home team in this game.
Mission City Outlaws
OVERVIEW
Record: 13-11-1-3
Road Record: 8-5-0-0
Home Record: 5-6-1-3
Last Game: A 5-3 loss in Langley on December 18.
Goals For/Goals Against: 97 GF/101 GA (-4)
Power Play: 17/92 (18.48%)
Penalty Kill: 21/98 (78.57%)
Leading Scorers: Brayden Stewart (27GP – 21G – 15A – 36PTS), Chase Newman (28GP – 12G – 16A – 28PTS), Cole Moffat (27GP – 7G – 17A – 24PTS)
Stealing the Show
Brayden Stewart, the 2001 born forward from Abbotsford, BC leads the Outlaws with 36 points and is 15th in league scoring. Chase Newman and Cole Moffat, both 2002 born forwards, are two other players who are counted on to produce for their team offensively. The Outlaws sit in 10th in goals for having only scored 98 goals in 28 games and the teams power play isn’t the greatest either as it is only operating at 18.5%. The Outlaws certainly have players who can produce offensively, but don’t expect the team to score many goals against a highly talented Wolf Pack team.
On a Mission
Carson Garneau (28GP-4G-10A-14P), Kade Padgham (23GP-2G-10A-12P), and Mackenzie Adams (23GP-1G-2A-3P) are all 2002 born defencemen and are the oldest defencemen on their team. Kade Padgham is an Alternate Captain while Carson Garneau has played 28 games, the most amongst all Outlaws defencemen. The Outlaws penalty kill is seventh in the PJHL while killing off 78.6% of their penalties. Mission has had the puck in their net 104 times which places them in eighth place on the goals against list in the PJHL.
An Outlaw
Brian Dale, the 2002 born goaltender from Mission, BC has played the most games for the Mission City Outlaws and he has suited up in 21 games this season. Dale has a .910SV%, a 3.48GAA, and 1 shutout in the 21 games that he has played in. Dale has played his last two seasons with Mission and prior to that Dale played for the Ridge Meadows Flames back in the 2019-2020 season. Max Fowle is the other goaltender on the Outlaws.
NORTH VANCOUVER WOLF PACK
OVERVIEW
Head Coach: Matt Samson
Record: 25-6-1-1
Home Record: 12-2-1-1
Road Record: 13-4-0-0
Last Game: A 5-1 loss in White Rock on December 19.
Goals For/Goals Against: 133 GF/81 GA (+52)
Power Play: 29/133 (21.8%)
Penalty Kill: 14/122 (88.52%)
Leading Scorers: JJ Pickell (33GP – 27G – 19A – 46PTS), David Coyle (32GP – 20G – 25A – 45PTS), Ryan Hunter (33GP – 10G – 29A – 39PTS)
Howling Offence
JJ Pickell, who is affiliated with the Coquitlam Express of the BCHL, and David Coyle lead their team in points and the Wolf Pack offence ranks third in the league in goal scoring thanks to their efforts. In 33 games so far this season, the Wolf Pack have been able to score 134 goals. Pickell leads his team with 27 goals while Ryan Hunter has the most assists with 29. Despite the fact that forwards JJ Pickell and David Coyle sit fifth and sixth in points in the PJHL, this is a team that is capable of having all of its players contribute offensively.
Furry Defence
The North Vancouver Wolf Pack sit third in the PJHL in goals against having only allowed 82 goals in 33 games. The Wolf Pack are the least penalized team in the PJHL and have the best penalty kill at 88.5%. Two Wolf Pack defencemen, Jonathan Wong and Sebastiano Biagi, have had playing time in the BCHL both for the Cowichan Valley Capitals. All Wolf Pack defensemen can be trusted to play key minutes and are able to play at both ends of the ice.
Stacking Pads
Wolf Pack goaltender Damian Perovic is the best goaltender in the league as Perovic has a .927SV%, a 2.31GAA, and 2 shutouts in 20 games. Sam Gilmore is fifth in the league as Gilmore has a .914SV%, a 2.60GAA, and 1 shutout in 12 games. Gilmore 19 is one year older than Perovic who is 18 and both goaltenders have a close relationship with one another and have played together on the Wolf Pack last season too.
Final Words
The last time that these two teams met it was the Wolf Pack who prevailed as the team beat Mission 8-4 back on October 12. JJ Pickell led the charge for North Van by scoring three goals, two of which came on the Power Play, and recording an assist. With the Outlaws having a record of 13-11-1-3 and sitting in fourth place in the Harold Britain Conference this may be the last time that these two teams play one another until next season. The Wolf Pack have a 13-0-0-0 record over the last five seasons against Mission.
