LAST GAME: 6-2 win in Trail last night (2nd straight win)
Trail: 11-40-1-6 (29pts) - 8th/last in Interior
LAST GAME: 6-2 loss to Merritt last night (13th straight loss, 2 in OT)
Season Series: Merritt 4-2-1-0 (outscored Trail 29-19 overall, 20-7 during a 4-game win streak vs the Smoke-Eaters)
- Merritt officially clinched 2nd place last night with a win and Trail coupled with a Prince George loss to Penticton, so this final game of the regular season is more or less a practice game, a chance to relax, work on a few things, and maybe experiment with a few things
- team confidence has to be at one of the highest levels of the season coming into this game, after last night's performance where 14 of the 17 skaters picked up points, including the 4th line that was doing everything but "finishing" of late
- tonight the Cents will try to clean up their game a bit and eliminate any moments of carelessness from last night, and there were a few. It wasn't as "neat and tidy" of a game as the 5-2 win over Salmon Arm, and I'm sure the Cents felt like they gave Trail too much in the way of shots (36) and scoring chances (in the double digits)
- the goal tonight will be to come to as close to "perfection" as possible, as it's one last chance to fine-tune before the playoffs, and team will want to impress what's expected to be a massive crowd for the season finale, possibly and hopefully the biggest regular season crowd of 2011/2012. The players certainly deserve that
- despite no motivation in the standings for Merritt tonight, there are a few records they would definitely like to accomplish. First of all, they are all but surely about to set a new record for fewest goals against in a Centennials season... ever. The record from 1978/79 is 176, and after last night, Merritt has given up 169. So as long as they give up 6 goals or less, the all-time Cents record will belong to this year's team
- the other 2 records are not all-time records, but they're still significant. With a win tonight, Merritt would finish the regular season with 34 victories, which would match the 34 from 1988-89... it would be the most wins a Merritt team has had in well over 20 years (there have been a few 33 win seasons since then, but no 34 win seasons). And if they get that win, their point total of 76 would be the highest of any Centennials team since the 1978-79 season, in well over 30 years, or 3 decades. These new records would be by a very slight margin, but it doesn't matter. It's something for every player to brag about once they leave this team. Not to mention an excuse for coaches Luke Pierce and Joe Martin to pat themselves on the back
- if the potential for these records isn't motivating enough, the large crowd on hand, the atmosphere for the regular season finale should definitely help in that regard
- as far as Trail is concerned, they proved last night, down 5-0 in the 3rd, that they never quit, they never give up, and their heart is 2nd to none. They will be desperate again to try and break the slump, and in the process spoil the party atmosphere that will likely be on hand at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena
- for Merritt tonight, a big goal will be to score first and get the building rowdy. They're 24-2-1-6 when scoring first, and if they can pounce early tonight, the energy of the crowd could guide them the rest of the way. They'll also look to iron out their special teams and work out their inconsistent power play tonight (while trying to have a perfect night on the PK of course), and to keep their foot on the gas pedal for the entire 60 minutes, no matter what the score or how much time is left in the game. It's all about being "playoff ready" come Game 1 next Friday!
Puck drops at 7:30pm tonight at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena. LET'S PACK THE BARN!
If you can't make it to the game, it will, as always, be available on Q101 FM in Merritt, starting with the pre-game show at 7pm. You can also tune in online at Q101.ca or on the BCHL fanzone through BCHL.ca
Here are the projected lineups tonight for both teams, with Lino Chimienti slated to get the final game of the regular season between the pipes, and Brent Fletcher drawing back into the lineup after a 2-game suspension, possibly playing as the 6th defenseman in the absence of Dylan Chanter and Tyler Martin:
MERRITT:
Regan Soquila (93) Chad Brears (91) Evan Stack (9)
Silvan Harper (92) Brayden Low (94) Jakob Reichert (93)
Carter Shinkaruk (91) Brandon Bruce (93) Sean Maktaak (92)
Scotty Patterson (93) AP Payton Schaefer (93) Brendan Lamont (94)
Reece Willcox (94) Brandon Pfeil (92)
Richard Sabourin (92) Ross Mancuso (92)
Billy Marshall (91) Brent Fletcher (92)
Lino Chimienti (91)
Tyler Steel (93)
SCRATCHES
Dylan Chanter (95) - INJ
Tyler Martin (93) - INJ
TRAIL:
Garrett McMullen (92) Connor Tiechko (92) Eric Cooper (91)
Riley McDougall (93) Tanner Clarkson (93) Colton Schell AP (92)
Brent Baltus (92) Mitchell Foyle AP (96) Taylor House (92)
Kyle Horsman (94) Tre Potskin AP (95) Adam Wheeldon (94)
Tim Coish (92) Shane Poulsen (94)
Brandon Egli (94) Dane Birks AP (95)
Clayton McEwan (91) Joren Johnsen (94)
James D'Andrea (92)
Lyndon Stanwood (93)
SCRATCHES
Marley Keca (93) - INJ
Adam Fares (93) - INJ
Luke Bertolucci (95) - INJ
Brandon Long (93) - INJ
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