The Vancouver Northeast Chiefs left nothing open to chance this past weekend, launching the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League playoffs like an Elias Pettersson howitzer.
Now, they hope that recipe can be repeated as the Chiefs journey to Prince George to play the league’s No. 2 squad, the Cariboo Cougars, in the best-of-three semifinal.
The Northeast side, which draws its players from east Burnaby, New Westminster, the Tri-Cities and Ridge Meadows, enters the series against the Cougars as slight underdogs, having finished third overall during the 40-game regular season.
Fresh off of a 2-0 series sweep of the Vancouver Northwest Hawks, on back-to-back 3-2 victories, the Chiefs feel both tested and pumped for the next challenge.
Head coach Jeff Urekar isn’t concerned about what happened in four meetings with the Cougars during the regular season, believing that his team is well-versed with the obstacles ahead in a best-of-three series to be played in Prince George.
“We’ve faced our share of adversity this season, trailed and had to battle back,” remarked Urekar. “It’s a formidable task and that’s why we pushed all season to get home ice advantage. But we’re not intimidated (about playing in Prince George). We’re looking at it like just a regular weekend series.”
In head-to-head play, three times the two squads skated to a draw. The lone outlier came Sept. 30 in Burnaby, when the visiting Cougars emerged with a 2-0 win.
The last time they met was in the league’s first-ever outdoor game two months ago, which ended in a 2-2 tie. All the games, beginning Friday, will be played at the Kin Centre, which has Olympic-sized ice sheet.
“It’s a good, even matchup, with both teams having similar identities,” added the Chiefs coach. “We both have good depth, are hardworking and skate the game well. The ice (sheet) is a bit wider so there’s more room for creativity and we have to use that to our advantage and capitalize on our scoring chances.”
Cariboo posted the league’s best goals-against record during the regular season, surrendering just 90 goals while scoring 182 times – 10 more goals than the Chiefs. In their quarterfinal series against the Greater Vancouver Canadians, the Cougars outscored the Lower Mainland rival 12-4 in a two-game sweep.
To get past the Cougars, who finished just two points ahead of the Chiefs in the battle for second place, the Northeasterners will have to continue with their sharp defensive shutdown work, which was led the past week by Burnaby netminder Logan Terness. The 16-year-old faced 53 Hawks shots over the two games and was rock-solid, getting stellar support from his defence.
"(Terness) has had a tremendous year for us, as has (Michael Harroch)," noted Urekar. "He's been steady all year, gotten some good looks with Trail (of the B.C. Hockey League) and given us a chance to win nearly every game."
The opposing netminder, like Terness, has been instrumental in his team's results, which saw the Cougars, at 27-8-5-0, fall just two points back of first place Fraser Valley but two points up on the Chiefs..
“We’ve got to get in on (Cariboo goaltender Xavier Cannon) and create a net-front traffic. He’s a good goalie. Anytime you’re in a series like this, you have to work hard to wear down their defence and create offence at the net,” said Urekar.
Cannon posted a league-best 2.02 goals against average over 21 starts, while Terness had a 2.63 average in a season where he split starts with Harroch.
Getting an early lead would do wonders to continue the team’s momentum.
Against the Vancouver Northwest Hawks last week, the Chiefs got a quick jump on their rivals in both games en route to a 2-0 best-of-three series sweep in Burnaby.
A pair of goals from captain and New West native Dante Ballarin, the first just 21 seconds into the game, put the hosts ahead 2-0 on Friday in Game 1 before the time clock hit 1:20.
After the Hawks closed the gap on a powerplay midway through the first, Burnaby’s Dante Berrettoni restored the two-goal advantage 12:53 into the third. The Hawks’ Tyler Cristall made it 3-2 with six minutes remaining, but the Chiefs put it into lockdown mode for the win.
It was nearly a carbon copy on Saturday at the Copeland Arena, but with Maple Ridge’s Nicolas Roussell supplying the early Chiefs firepower. He opened the scoring 22 seconds into the game, then doubled it at 3:27. The Hawks coach called a timeout at that point to help his squad refocus, and the two teams played equal for more than 20 minutes until Coquitlam’s Jack Steffens made it 3-0 early in the third period.
Ballarin’s line, with Coquitlam’s Quintin Hill and Port Moody’s Ryan Tattle, doesn’t have to carry the mail every game, thanks to a balanced lineup. But in big games the trio have produced and will be in the spotlight in Prince George.
Tattle finished atop the Chiefs’ scoring ranks with 24 goals and 24 assists, ninth overall in the league. Ballarin stood 12th with 18 goals, 28 assists, while Hill was one-point back with 22 goals and 23 helpers.
When it comes to big goals, Ballarin seems to regularly be in the mix, Urekar said.
“He’s just a great leader for our guys, he makes everyone feel a part of the team. He blocks shots, finishes his checks. … At the Mac’s (Midget hockey tournament in Calgary) he got the first goal really quick and scored a hat trick in our game against the Calgary Buffalo that took the crowd right out of it.
“He just does whatever he can to give us an edge.”
