Tonight at the North Surrey Sport and Ice Complex, the North Vancouver Wolf Pack take to the ice for their second game of the week as they play against another struggling team in the Surrey Knights. Tonight marks the first of two meetings between these two clubs as the Knights will be in North Vancouver for a game on November 20.
Surrey Knights
OVERVIEW
Head Coach: Andy Liboiron
Record: 1-12-0-0
Home Record: 0-7-0-0
Last Game: A 4-3 road loss to Port Moody on October 23.
Goals For/Goals Against: 26GF / 88GA (-62)
Power Play: 7/52 (13.46%)
Penalty Kill: 12/60 (80%)
Leading Scorers: Montaro Uyeyama (14GP – 3G – 7A – 10PTS), Billy Thompson (11GP – 2G – 7A – 9PTS), Brandon Melsness (11GP – 3G – 3A – 6PTS)
Montaro Uyeyama
The 2001 born forward from Ladner, BC leads his team in goals (3) and assists (7) for 10 points in the 14 games that he has played this season. Montaro is no stranger to the PJHL as he is currently in his fourth PJHL season. He played his first two seasons with the Delta Ice Hawks before becoming a Knight. Montaro is the only player with double digits on this team so expect all eyes to be on him tonight for Surrey.
Improving the Fortress
Since the Surrey Knights first became a team in the 2016-2017 season they have missed the playoffs every year. It is no secret to anyone in the PJHL that the Surrey Knights have had a hard time finding success over the years. This season, the Knights have a 1-12-0-0 record and sit in a spot where they have been so many times before, which is last place in the PJHL. The Knights are a hard working team, but have a hard time generating offence as they have only scored 28 goals compared to 56 that have been scored by the Wolf Pack. It may very well be another year of re-building for this Surrey Knights team, but if they do plan on making it to the playoffs for the very first time then they need to start winning games fast otherwise their season will come to an end before it ever really begins.
NORTH VANCOUVER WOLF PACK
OVERVIEW
Head Coach: Matt Samson
Record: 11-1-0-1
Road Record: 7-0-0-0
Last Game: A 8-3 road victory over the Port Moody Panthers on October 25.
Goals For/Goals Against: 58GF / 26GA (+32)
Power Play: 12/55 (21.82%)
Penalty Kill: 4/41 (90.24%)
Leading Scorers: JJ Pickell (13GP – 14G – 6A – 21PTS), David Coyle (12GP – 7G – 10A – 17PTS), Alex Binette (13GP – 4G – 12A – 16PTS),
Anthony Reimer
In 13 regular season games, 2003 born forward Anthony Reimer has scored 6 goals and has been awarded with 6 assists which is good for 12 points in 13 games. On Tuesday night, the Wolf Pack travelled to Port Moody to take on the Port Moody Panthers. Reimer was named the first star of the game as he scored three goals to get a hat trick and to help propel his team over the Panthers. This is only his first season in the PJHL, but he has certainly lived up to people’s expectations especially those of the Wolf Pack head coach and GM, Matt Samson, who went out and acquired Anthony before the start of the season. Anthony Reimer has had a strong start to the season and hopefully he will continue to get better and build upon his early success.
Hunting Early
The Pack have won their last seven games. In six of those seven games they have scored the first goal of the game. Scoring the first goal is always important, but it has greatly benefited the Pack this season and if they can get the lead in the game tonight then they are in a great spot to win the hockey game.
COMPARISON:
When you look at the matchup between these two clubs, The Pack lead in all of the categories. It is the Knights who have played an extra game, but it is the Pack that has a much nicer record. It is important to note that the Wolf Pack is 13-0-0-0 against the Knights over the last five seasons. Despite this stat and the many others that favor the Pack, no team should ever be taken lightly in the PJHL. The game tonight is at 7:00 PM.
