Tonight at the Harry Jerome Rec Centre the North Vancouver Wolf Pack (0-1) hope to tie up their first-round series against the Grandview Steelers (1-0). A Wolf Pack loss means that the team’s season comes to and end. A win will force a third game tomorrow night at the Burnaby Winter Club. The puck drop is set for 7:15 PM.
The Steelers handed the Wolf Pack a 4-3 overtime loss on Wednesday night. The club had goals from Andrew Casellato, Alex Binette, and JJ Pickell while Wolf Pack goaltender Zoltan Bencsik made 31/35 saves.
GRANDVIEW STEELERS
OVERVIEW:
General Manager/Coach: Aldo Bruno
Record: 1-0
Goals For/Goals Against: 4 GF/ 3 GA +1
Power Play: 0/2
Penalty Kill: 2/3 (66.6%)
Leading Scorers: Mason Brown (1GP-2G-0A, 2P), Max Chelico (1GP-1G-0A-1P), Nathan Bran (1GP-1G-0A-1P)
5 Overagers: Vincent Timperio (F), Alec Pettingale (F), Kaidan Johnson (F), Dylan Narduzzi (D)
2 Overagers: Alex Binette (F), Daniel Dalla Pace (D)
‘BROWN’IES ARE GOOD
Mason Brown (Abbotsford, BC) is the only player entering tonight’s contest with two goals. Brown had two goals in under two minutes to tie the game back up for Grandview who trailed the Wolf Pack 3-1. The right-shot forward began his PJHL career last season with the Abbotsford Pilots and had seven goals and 5 assists for 12 points in 17 games. At the conclusion of that season he made his way over to the Abbotsford Pilots. Brown picked up 10 goals and six assists for 16 points in 19 contests before heading to Grandview. The 2004-born product struggled to continue his offensive numbers recording three goals and two assists for five points in 22 games. Brown’s two-goal outing on Wednesday puts him one goal behind the three that he scored during the regular season.
BUSY AT THE DEADLINE
The Grandview Steelers were one of the busier teams at the PJHL trade deadline this season. Grandview acquired the following players:
Markus Johansen (D, 04’): KERRY PARK ISLANDERS
Aidan Texeira (F, 04’), Ben Ruthven (F, 03’): RICHMOND SOCKEYES
Mason Brown (F, 04’): ABBOTSFORD PILOTS
Cameron Northard (D, 03’): ALDERGROVE KODIAKS
NORTH VANCOUVER WOLF PACK
OVERVIEW:
General Manager: Dean Samson
Head Coach: Mike Borrelli
Record: 0-1
Goals For/Goals Against: 3 GF/4 GA -1
Power Play: 1/3 (33.3%)
Penalty Kill: 2/2
Leading Scorers (PLAYOFFS): Andrew Casellato (1GP-1G-1A-2P), JJ Pickell (1GP-1G-1A-2P), Daniel Dalla Pace (1GP-0G-2A-2P)
Leading Scorers (REGULAR SEASON): JJ Pickell (45GP – 42G – 32A – 74P), Andrew Casellato (42GP – 18G – 43A – 61P), Ryan Hunter (39GP – 10G – 36A – 46P)
MORE GE’LATO’
It didn’t take long for JJ Pickell to invite his teammate Andrew Caseallto to the 60 points club! Casllato entered his final game of the regular season with 56 points and came out of the night with 61. A two-goal night and three assists propelled Casellato to a second-place finish in team scoring. The Italian forward had 18 goals and 43 assists for 61 points averaging 1.45 points per game. The Italian forward not only finished his first season with the Wolf Pack with the second-most points on the team he also had the chance to represent the Wolf Pack in November. Casellato (Burnaby, BC) had 9 goals and 12 assists for 21 points in 18 games before suiting up at the event. Casellato also had three, 3-point games, including the first game that he played with the Wolf Pack on October 6th. The left-shot forward from Burnaby, BC is embracing the battle of Italy to its fullest having scored one goal and adding an assist on Wednesday night.
STRENGTH OF THE PACK
North Vancouver finished off their last 10 games with a record of 7-3-0-0. The club ended the series with a 3-game win streak. The team’s strength is its depth and every wolf will need to play its part against their highway rivals.
NOTES FROM GAME 1
- Cameron Northard (D) was responsible for two of Grandview’s three penalties.
- Grandview scored three unanswered goals which included the overtime winner.
- Both JJ Pickell and Andrew Casellato had two points: a goal and an assist. Both players factored in on each other’s goals.
- At least one goal was scored in each period of the game.
*GAME 3: Sunday, February 19 @ 7:15 PM
