MOWREY, GRIZZLIES COOL OFF CLIPPERS

Photo by Gordon Lee

December 03, 2009 Sharie Epp ©Times Colonist -

VICTORIA 7     NANAIMO - 4

The Victoria Grizzlies pulled a string on the knot in the middle of the B.C. Hockey League Coastal Conference standings yesterday at Frank Crane Arena.

Led by Dustin Mowrey’s three goals , the Grizzlies defeated the Nanaimo Clippers 7-4 in a topsyturvy game, and moved into a tie with the Powell River Kings for third place.

“[Mowrey] is so dangerous when he’s on, and if he gets one goal, you know he’s going to get two or three,” Victoria assistant coach Wade Bartley said. “It was a great win for us.”

The Grizzlies (14-9-2-3) are back home at Bear Mountain Arena for the weekend. They take on the Alberni Valley Bulldogs tomorrow night, and have a Saturday matchup against the Surrey Eagles, who visit Nanaimo (13-10-1-4) tomorrow.

The first period belonged to Victoria, who out-hustled the home side, after Nanaimo’s Nick Bell and Victoria’s Greg Simpson had wasted no time reviving the traditional rivalry, dropping the gloves three seconds into the game.

By the middle of the first frame, the Clippers had two shots on net, and the Grizzlies had two goals.

“Tonight, it didn’t seem like we had a lot of energy,” said Clippers veteran Joe Perry, who was resting an injury. “They made us play their game, instead of us playing our game.”

On the first one, Nanaimo goaltender Loic Boivin had the puck in his glove, and the Clippers thought the referee should have blown the

whistle. He didn’t, and 16-year-old Junior B Saanich Braves call-up Wade Murphy kept jabbing, and eventually poked the puck into the net at 9:32. Two minutes later, Madison Dias connected on a rebound, and the Grizzlies had the opening they wanted.

The Clippers picked up steam toward the end of the first period, and hit the second flying. When the Grizzlies gave one of the best power plays in the league a chance to shine, the game was tied in no time. The Grizz already had Mowrey warming the penalty box, and another striped arm in the air had the Clippers on a six-man rush, finished off by Andrew Gladiuk at 3:53. Still with the man advantage, Gladiuk tied it at 5:24, beating Victoria goalie Ryan Holfeld in the top corner.

With the game flashing from end to end, Mowrey gave the lead back to Victoria at 15:43. The Grizzlies ended the second and began the third period with a five-on-three advantage, and Graeme McCormack’s blast put Victoria up 4-2 at the 24-second mark.

Nanaimo barely paused before responding, however. It was another 16-year-old call-up, Myles Fitzgerald of the Oceanside Generals, who scored at 2:35, and the goals just kept coming.

Mowrey, on a power play at 10:31, made it 5-3, and paid when he slammed head first into the goal post. Colton Cyr, shorthanded at 10:41, came back for Nanaimo, but Mowrey, apparently none the worse for wear, completed his hat trick on another power play at 11:38.

“With all the penalties, there seemed to be no real rhythm, but we were able to battle in the third and hang on,” Bartley said.