Number 1 Visits Number 8

Kent, WA 20 December, 2008 – Kent Valley’s Pee Wee Rainiers, currently ranked #8 in the nation, had a surprise guest come to practice on Saturday.  Kevin Deeth of the University of Notre Dame spent three hours with the team talking about his hockey experiences and demonstrating skills on the ice.  Kevin is a leading playmaker and scorer on the #1 ranked college hockey team in the US.  Kevin lives in Gig Harbor and played his youth hockey in the South Puget Sound area.  Kevin was impressed with the commitment and talent of the Rainiers players and was pleased that the Rainiers were playing an active role in re-establishing pride in Seattle-area hockey and putting the Pacific Northwest back on the national map.  Kevin recounted his youth hockey days playing in a similar program to the Rainiers and the foundation it provided for him to play at an elite level of college hockey.

Kevin talked about his prep school experience at Shattuck St. Mary’s where he played with current NHL stars Sidney Crosby and Jonathan Toews.  Kevin also shared his experience winning the Tier 1 USA Hockey national championship as a senior.  This really piqued the interest of the Rainiers as they continue their pursuit of a USA Hockey national championship.

Kevin got on the ice with the team and shared some of the tricks of the trade he uses to compete at 5’ 8” against much bigger players.  Kevin credits much of his success to his off-ice conditioning and emphasized the importance of strong legs to be able to drive larger opponents off the puck.

Since Kevin entered Notre Dame two years ago, the hockey team has enjoyed their most success in the history of the program.  As a freshman, the Fighting Irish won the CCHA regular season and tournament championship, and won the program’s first NCAA tournament game.  Last year as a sophomore, Kevin was instrumental in leading the Fighting Irish to the Frozen Four and the national championship game.  This year, Notre Dame is off to their best start in program history and is currently riding a 14 game unbeaten streak which has had them firmly atop the national rankings for the past month.  Kevin’s looking forward to the 2^nd half of the season and another shot at winning Notre Dame’s first hockey national title.

The Rainiers really appreciated Kevin spending part of his holiday break, sharing his experiences and talking about the path players from the Pacific Northwest need to take to play Division 1 college hockey.  The players left the rink on Saturday night having a better understanding of the effort required to make their dreams come true.  The Rainiers play in the Chilliwack holiday tournament starting December 27 and return to Kent Valley on January 3-4 for PNAHA qualifying games.

Additional information regarding Kevin Deeth is available at the following URL:

http://und.cstv.com/sports/m-hockey/mtt/deeth_kevin00.html

Contact: Lew Sellers, Director of Communications

Kent Valley Hockey Association

6015 So. 240th Street

Kent, WA. 98032

(206) 914-9619 Cellular

Lew@KentValleyIceCentre.com

Eloise at the Kent Valley Ice Centre

Kent, WA 15 December, 2008 – As a youngster in the 50’s I was fascinated by author Kay Thompson’s stories about “Eloise at the Plaza Hotel” in New York.  You may recall that young Eloise lived in and grew up in New York’s Plaza Hotel where her father was the hotel’s manager.  While Kent Valley Ice Centre doesn’t have a lot in common with the historic and grand Plaza Hotel in New York, it does have its own version of Eloise and there are numerous parallels between the Plaza’s Eloise and Kent Valley Ice Centre’s version of the same.  Kent Valley Ice Centre’s Eloise is 12 year-old Rachael Rutherford.

Rachael’s mother, Dawn Rutherford, works at Kent Valley Ice Centre.  Rachael doesn’t actually live at the rink as Eloise did at the Plaza, but she does spend considerable time there, far more than most of the rink’s guests.  There is a small desk in her mom’s office where Rachael often does her homework.  There is a small TV in the office where Rachael can relax and watch a video.  Like Eloise at the Plaza, Rachael has many opportunities to explore the rink, interface with rink staff and enjoy the activities at the facility.

Watching Rachael grow up at the rink I often wondered how long it would be until she got hooked by hockey, the ice rink’s major activity.  Sure, she skated during public skating sessions and seemed to enjoy ice skating.  But, play hockey?  Rachael’s mom objected to the idea of her playing hockey.  “It’s too rough!” She would often say.  Even Rachael when asked if she would ever be playing hockey responded with a doubtful; “I don’t know about that.”

Rachael began to hang out with her friend Lydia Grauer, a veteran hockey player and daughter of another rink staffer, Les Grauer.  Soon, Rachael was wearing hockey skates instead of figure skates and there was talk of summer power skating and even a hockey school.  Then, last spring, Rachael was trying on hockey gear and it appeared that it was actually happening; Rachael was becoming a hockey player.

Rachael is playing hockey this season with the Kent Valley PeeWee Tornadoes.  It has been a rough journey for her.  As a beginning hockey player, she’s fought the learning curve and had her share of bumps and bruises.  Rachael was checked so hard in one of her games that her mom demanded corporal punishment for the 11-year-old kid that did the checking.  Rachael survived that hit and many others.  It seems that the sweet and mild-mannered Rachael is adapting well to the rougher side hockey.  Her journey into hockey has been an interesting one to watch.  Her skating and understanding of the game have improved with each practice and game.  She’s recently been throwing checks of her own and is getting a shot on goal now and then.  Last weekend, she came within inches of scoring her first goal.

Well, I’m happy to report that Kent Valley Ice Centre’s version of Eloise is now the complete hockey player.  In a game played Saturday at Kent Valley Ice Centre against the SnoKing PeeWee Blue team, Rachael scored her first ever goal.  Later that day, I asked Rachael how she had reacted to the scoring of the goal.  “Did you casually skate away after scoring the goal so people would think that you had done it before; like it was just another goal?” I asked her.  “No way,” she said. “I was amazed; I just screamed and jumped up and down.  It was so exciting.”  Her response contained the same youthful exuberance, excitement and joy, as if she were Eloise describing an incident at the Plaza Hotel.

Welcome to hockey Eloise!  Uh, I mean Rachael!  May your journey continue to be as exciting for you to travel as it has been for me to watch.  Congratulations on that goal!

Now, here’s this week’s KVHA News:

Mite Lightning Face SnoKing Mite Major Grey

Renton, WA 13 December, 2008 – The Kent Valley Mite Lightning traveled to Castle Ice Arena in Renton to take on the SnoKing Mite Major Grey on Saturday.  The Lightning were able to hold the powerful Mite Major Grey team to 4 goals.  It was a terrific effort by the Lightning considering they were out-shot 17 to 3.  Alex Bucci stood up well to the pressure from SnoKing Grey stopping 13 of 17 shots on goal.  Good job team!

Mite Tornadoes Stun Undefeated SnoKing Mite Blue 7 to 6 in NPSHL League Play

Kent, WA 12 December, 2008 – Kent Valley’s Dan McNabb had his hands full as scorekeeper last Saturday.  By my calculations, a goal was scored an average of every three and one/half minutes during the game.  That’s hardly time to write down one goal before the next one needs to be recorded.  But, more incredibly, Dan did all this with a pen in one hand and a microphone in the other hand.  He scored the game and announced it.  Dan should gets my vote for “Star of the Game.”  Well done Dan!

On the ice, it was a similar story for the two goalies as they were pretty busy.  The way I figure it, they each faced at least one shot every minute.  Subtract stoppages for icing, off sides and scores, it was probably more frantic than that.  However, the real story of the game centers around Hat Tricks, three of them.  Kent Valley’s JT Rimorin scored the Tornadoes first goal and their last two for a Hat Trick.  JT’s teammate, Kenneth Gill, scored two goals in the first period and one in the second period for a Hat Trick.  Zach Johntson scored a goal in the first period to bring the Tornadoes goal count to seven.  Rimorin’s Hat Trick goal was also the winning goal for the Tornadoes.  SnoKing also tallied a Hat Trick as Nicklas Oda scored a goal in each period and added a fourth in the third period.  Jacob Stevenson fell one goal short of a Hat Trick as scoring two goals for Blue, but not quite enough to catch the Tornadoes. 

The Kent Valley Tornadoes rounded out the weekend with a game at Puget Sound Hockey Center.  They also won that game.  Congratulations team for a great weekend.

Below is the scoring summary for Saturday’s game:

Squirt Tornadoes 1 vs. SnoKing Jr. T-Birds White 5

Kent, WA 13 December, 2008 – The Kent Valley Squirt Tornadoes fell to the SnoKing Jr Thunderbird White 5 to 1 over the weekend.  The first period was scoreless as the two teams sized each other up.  SnoKing had four shots during that period while the Tornadoes had eight shots, all turned away by the goalies.  SnoKing began the scoring at 2:07 into the second period on an unassisted goal and followed that with another at 4:52 of the second.  Early in the third period the Tornadoes cut SnoKing’s lead to just one goal when Conner Pitlick scored unassisted at 4:06 of the third.  That goal turned out to be the Tornadoes’ only goal of the day as SnoKing added three more goals in the third period for a final score of 5 to 1.

The score sheet is still missing for the Tornadoes’ game on the weekend of December 6^th & 7th.  So, the details and the outcome are unknown.  However, it is worth noting that Briana Baker scored a goal in that game, her first of the season.  Briana has been working very hard on wing all season and everyone was delighted to see her hard work pay off with a goal.  Congratulations Bri!  Way to hustle!

Below is the scoring summary for the December 13^th game:

Squirt Selects Never, Ever, Give Up!

Kent, WA 13 December, 2008 – The Kent Valley Squirt Tier-II Selects hosted the Spokane Chiefs Squirt Majors over the weekend and in terms of losing a couple of hockey games, it was about as bad as one can imagine.  The Selects lost on Saturday by a score of 14 to 0 and lost again on Sunday 11 to 0.  Ouch!

The Selects knew going into the game that they were facing a tough Spokane Squirt Major team.  But, the Selects put on their game faces and took to the ice with a positive attitude and they never, ever gave up.  The team played every minute of both games as if they were down just one goal.  Kent Valley’s Cam Hansen played a heroic two games in goal for the Selects.  Hansen faced an incredible 104 shots over the two games.  Conner Pitlick was called up from the Squirt Tornadoes to play for the Selects.  Pitlick fit right in with the Selects and played well.

The Spokane Chiefs Major brought their “A” game to Kent Valley Ice Centre.  Every player on their roster had a goal or an assist over the two game series.  Nine of their twelve players scored goals in the two games and every player had at least one assist over the two games.

Papa Lew’s message to the Selects:  Hold your head high boys, you played hard and you never gave up. 

PeeWee Tornadoes Sneak by SnoKing Dragons

Kent, WA 13 December, 2008 – Last week I reported that the Tornadoes were leading the NPSHL League.  Well, I totally blew it!  I looked at the Seattle Jr. web site, clicked on the NPSHL Division Standings and used the information I found there, not realizing it was for the 2007/2008 season.  Please accept my apologies for the error.  For the record, current NPSHL Division Standing can be found at the following URL: http://npshl.com/default.aspx

The Tornadoes improved their win/loss record this past Saturday by getting a win over the SnoKing Emerald Dragons.  Rachael Rutherford got the Tornadoes off to a great start with a goal at 9:49 of the first period, the first goal of her hockey career.  Rutherford’s goal was assisted by Luke Blair.  Zakary Gustafson scored five minutes later, assisted by Jake Best.  SnoKing scored in the second period, the only goal of that period, to cut the Tornadoes’ lead to one goal.  The two teams matched each other for two goals each in the third period.  Nicholas Pizzey scored the Tornadoes third goal, unassisted.  Nick Calfy scored the game winning goal near the end of the third period.  Calfy was assisted by AJ Alonzo.

The scoring summary is below:

PeeWee Tier-II Selects Take Two Games Back From Tri Cities for Lock on PNAHA League Title

Kent, WA 14 December, 2008 – After losing two games December 6^th & 7th to Tri Cities in Kennewick, by one goal in each game I might add, the PeeWee Tier-II Selects were anxious to get those two games back and wrap up the PNAHA League Title.  They did just that this weekend by defeating the Tri Cities Jr. Americans 4 to 1 on Saturday and 3 to 1 on Sunday.

The Selects were able to shut down the Tri Cities scoring threat of Anderson, Hollandsworth and Vickerman.  The trio figured in half of the Tri Cities scoring over the two prior games with Vickerman getting two goals in one game and a Hat Trick in the other.  This weekend was a different story for the Jr. Americans as the Selects held Vickerman scoreless and pointless over the two games, and limited Hollandsworth to just one goal on Saturday and Anderson to a single assist on Sunday.  The Selects obviously did their homework and it paid off as they wrapped up the PNAHA PeeWee Tier-II “A” Division title leaving Seattle Jr. and SnoKing to battle over third and fourth place.  Way to go Selects!

Scoring summaries are below:

Hat Trick Wins It for Midget Tornadoes

Story by Sheri Walsh

Kent, WA -- December 14, 2008 --  The Midget Tornadoes added another win to their league record Sunday in Kent as Zac Cadiente’s Natural Hat Trick made up all of the scoring against the Seattle Junior Badgers.  Kent was first on the board as Tommy Peebles and Tanner Coughlin set-up Zac Cadiente’s first goal early in the first period.  Six minutes later, the Tornadoes were on top 2-0 as Zac Cadiente took a great shot from the slot for his second goal.  But, the Badgers scored one of their own just before the first buzzer.  Then early in the second, Seattle Junior was able to tie things up due to a poor Tornadoes line change that left no players on the ice.  The score remained a nail-biting 2-2 for most of the second period until Zac Cadiente grabbed his Hat Trick and scored the game winning goal just before the second buzzer.  The two teams battled it out during the third, but the period was scoreless as the Tornadoes defended their lead.  The Tornadoes win 3-2 and boost their league record to 9 and 1.  Great job!

Kent Valley U-18 “AAA” Selects Fall to Top Ranked Langley “AAA” Eagles 3 to 4

Langley, B.C. 13 December, 2008 – Kent Valley’s U-18 Selects made a quick trip to Twin Rinks in Langley, B.C. Saturday to play the Langley “AAA” Eagles.  The Eagles are ranked #1 in the lower mainland of British Columbia with a record of 29 wins and two losses.

The Eagles scored the first two goals of the game before the Selects made it onto the scoreboard early in the third period.  Ryan Doner scored off a pass from Anthony Petruzzelli at 16:34 of the third to cut the Eagles’ lead to one goal.  The Eagles bumped the lead back to two goals at 13:59 on a Robbie Gerge goal.  Three minutes later Tyler Sybil set up Ryan Doner for the Selects’ and Doner’s second goal of the game.  The two teams played a defensive game for several minutes until the Selects Jordan Robertson was called for a Delay of Game penalty at 5:32.  Just over a minute later the official tagged Anthony Petruzzelli for tripping.  The Selects’ strong penalty killing line fell to the pressure of 5 on 3 as the Eagles’ Kent Christonsen scored the winning goal at 3:19 putting the Eagles’ up by two goals with three minutes remaining.  The Selects spent the next minute killing the remaining penalty and getting only a few offensive opportunities.  With the two teams back to full strength, the Selects’ turned up the pressure.  Eliot Grauer scored with 29 seconds remaining to put his team within a goal of the Eagles.  But, it was too little too late and the Eagles hung onto the lead to get the win.

A scoring summary is below:

Have a great week!

Contact: Lew Sellers, Director of Communications

Kent Valley Hockey Association

6015 So. 240th Street

Kent, WA. 98032

(206) 914-9619 Cellular

Lew@KentValleyIceCentre.com

ShoWare Center at Kent, Twenty-three Days and Counting to Grand Opening

Kent WA 10 December, 2008 – The “ShoWare Center at Kent” Grand Opening Celebration is just 23 days away.  Planning for the celebration, set for January 2^nd, 2008, is underway.  The first Seattle Thunderbirds hockey game in the new building is currently scheduled for January 3^rd. 

The agenda for the Grand Opening Celebration is in draft form at this point.  The agenda details are being worked out between the Seattle Thunderbirds, the City of Kent and SMG (the facilities manager.)  Penciled in on the draft agenda is an opportunity for our PeeWee Hurricanes and PeeWee Tornadoes rec teams to practice their skills under the direction of a team of Thunderbird players. 

The Grand Opening Celebration is tentatively set to run from 4:00pm to 9:00pm and will include hockey and basketball skills, a variety of entertainment, and self guided tours.  We’ll tell you more as things become more firm.  In the mean time, be sure you put January 2^nd, 2008, 4:00pm – 9:00pm on your calendar.  It will be a great day for Hockey, the Seattle Thunderbirds and the City of Kent.

Here’s the KVHA News covering the first weekend of December. 

Mite Lightning Fall to SnoKing Blue

Kent, WA 6 December, 2008 – Kent Valley’s Mite Lightning were tied 1 to 1 going into the third period.  SnoKing’s Oda scored a goal in the first period and Kent Valley’s Brandon Lajoie scored and unassisted goal in the second period to tie it up.  Lightning expectations were high going into the third period until SnoKing’s Oda scored his second goal of the game at 10:26.  Oda scored again 9 seconds later to earn his Hat Trick.  Less than a minute later SnoKing’s Stevenson added another goal.  SnoKing took advantage of a Power Play a minute later when Retig scored SnoKing’s final goal of the game.  In all, SnoKing scored four consecutive goals in 4 minutes and 7 seconds.  Kent Valley’s Hojae Kwon teamed up with Brandon Lajoie to launch a comeback at 8:00.  Brandon Lajoe got his second goal of the game at 4:09 with help from Hojae Kwon.  But, it wasn’t enough.  SnoKing held on to a 5 to 3 lead to win the game.  It was a great effort by the Lightning. 

A scoring summary is below:

Squirt Tier-II Selects Play in Spokane Tournament

Spokane, WA December 7, 2008 – The Kent Valley Squirt Tier-II Selects played five games in a Spokane tournament over the 3-day weekend.  The tournament was described as being a fun one.  In the future as the Selects’ recall this tournament, it will be game 2 that is remembered by everyone on the team.  Every player scored a point, a goal or an assist, in the game against the Missoula Bruins and the Selects’ goalie Cam Hansen earned a shutout.  Nicholas Snyder will remember scoring three goals and earning a Hat Trick in that game.  I wish I could have been in the locker room following the game.  I can just imagine the smiles and high-fives…  Oh the joy! 

Other tournament observations: 1.) Selects’ Goalie Cam Hansen had an outstanding tournament.  Look at the numbers!  Hansen stopped 33 of 35, 16 of 16, 38 of 41, 31 of 32, 20 of 24 for a total of 138 saves on 148 shots for an overall tournament save rate of 93.2%.  That’s an amazing statistic.  Well done young man!  2.) Squirt Tornadoes player Conner Pitlick joined the Selects for this tournament.  Pitlick is actually a Mite-aged player.  But, you wouldn’t know it by his performance in Spokane.  Pitlick fit right in with the Selects and even scored a goal in game two.  3.) Finally, it’s worth noting that the Squirt Selects have won 3 of their last 6 games.  And, the losses in Spokane were actually pretty close games.  Let’s face it; the Selects are improving with each outing.  Keep it up team!

Below is the scoring summary for the five tournament games:

PeeWee Tornadoes 4 Kitsap County Outlaws 2

Kent, WA December 6, 2008 – Derek Pizzey’s PeeWee Tornadoes hosted the Kitsap County Outlaws “Red” team for a NPSHL league game on Saturday.  The Tornadoes defeated the Outlaws by a score of 4 to 2. 

The scoring summary is below:

PeeWee Tier-II Selects Fail to Secure PNAHA

Kennewick, WA 7 December, 2008 – The Kent Valley PeeWee Tier-II Selects travelled to Tri Cities over the weekend hoping to nail down the PNAHA League title.  Instead, they came up one goal short on each of the two days.  The Selects will have another shot at Tri Cities this weekend when they host them at Kent Valley Ice Centre for two league games.  In the mean time, Les Grauer and his Selects will be studying the videos to discover ways to keep the puck away from the Tri Cities’ scoring threat of Taylor Vickerman, Dylan Hollandsworth and Keith Anderson.  The trio figured in half of the Tri Cities scoring over the two games.  Vickerman scored two goals on Saturday, including the game winner, and he earned a Hat Trick in Sunday’s game.  He also assisted on Keith Anderson’s game winning goal in the closing seconds of Sunday’s game.  Stay tuned, it ain’t over till it’s over…

Scoring summaries are below:

Kent Valley/West Coast PeeWee’s Earn Fourth in Las Vegas 2008 Silver Stick Tournament

Las Vegas, NV 7 December, 2008 – The Kent Valley/West Coast PeeWee Elite participated in the Las Vegas 2008 Silver Stick Tournament over the weekend.  Their record of 2 ties, 1 loss and 1 win earned them fourth place in the tournament.  Colton Meekhof got the game winning goal in overtime in the final consolation game to help his team earn fourth place in the tournament. 

Below are the scoring summaries for the four tournament games:

PeeWee Rainiers Host Chilliwack Jr. Bruins

The Kent Valley Rainiers hosted the Chilliwack Jr. Bruins this weekend at the Kent Valley Ice Centre for a pair of games and an entertaining team dinner.  The Bruins came into the weekend leading PCAHA Tier 2.  In the first game on Saturday afternoon, the Rainiers struck quickly and had the Bruins on their heels throughout the contest.  The Rainiers were impressive in all phases of the game in the convincing 6-0 victory.

Following the game, players and parents of both teams were treated to a wonderful meal served by the Kent Valley Ice Centre.  The staff was extremely gracious and the food was outstanding as we expressed our appreciation to our friends from Chilliwack for making the trip down over the border for the weekend.  Following the meal, both teams participated in a holiday relay that included present wrapping, puzzle making and holiday caroling.  Players enjoyed the camaraderie off the ice without their sticks and helmets and got to talk about their interests and share laughs with each other.

Sunday morning started early for the Rainiers as they held their normal on-ice practice and dryland training beginning at 6:00 AM.  Following the practice, the Rainiers and Bruins squared off in the rematch.  Once again, the Rainiers jumped out to 2-0 lead.  However, the Bruins fought back and tied the game 2-2 in the 2^nd period.  The Rainiers seemed to get their second wind in the 3^rd period and answered back with two more goals to win 4-2.

The Rainiers want to thank the players and families from Chilliwack for the enjoyable weekend of hockey and entertainment. The team is looking forward to participating in Chilliwack’s holiday tournament later in the month.

Bantam Tornadoes Score Second Win

Story by Mary MacDonald

Kent, WA 7 December, 2008 – With a long time between wins the Tornadoes got their second win of the season against the Sno-King Grey.  Just 3 weeks prior the Grey beat the Tornadoes by exactly the same score 3-0 that the Tornadoes beat them.  But it was totally a team effort on Sunday that took the Tornadoes to victory.   Once again Dane Shaver came up big saving all 19 shots he faced.  While the Tornadoes only had 12 shots on net they were quality shots.  With no scoring in the first and both teams killing off a penalty a piece, we went into the second with the Tornadoes scoring 1 at the 5:10 mark and one at the 2:17 mark, then in the third both teams got into penalty trouble, SK was successful in killing there 2 penalties and the Tornadoes killed 3 of there own.  At the 8:56 mark Brendan Laik would score his second goal of the game, and seal the “W” for the Tornadoes.

Coach Gicewicz handed out multiple Kudos Awards:

 - MVP(s) – Dane Shaver (with a shut out) and Will Walkey (with the first and ultimately winning goal)

 - Dish(es) – Brady Anderson and Rebecca Gicewicz (each with 2 assists)

 - Best Defence – Erin Byrnes

 - Santa Claus – Tristan Sanabria

 - Hardest Worker – Brendan Laik (2 goals)

 - Comeback Player Award – Braedon Billheimer (back after a shoulder injury)

Bantam Tier-II Selects Win One and Lose One in Weekend Drama

Kent, WA 7 December, 2008 – The Tri Cities Bantam Rep team visited Kent Valley Ice Centre on Saturday and went home with more than a league win in their hockey bags.  They also took home a memory of youth hockey drama at its best, or worse, depending upon your perspective.  Rather than mention the names of the innocent or the guilty, let’s just say it was reminiscent of a game in Seattle’s old Mercer Ice Arena in 1979 between the Seattle Breakers and the New Westminster Bruins.  Following a brawl between the two teams and the assessment of penalties, most of them on New Westminster, the Bruins’ notorious Coach Ernie “Punch” McClean could not get the attention of referee Rob Schick to discuss the imbalance of penalties.  So, he threw a chair out onto the ice in the direction of Schick.  Schick saw the chair sliding across the ice but he didn’t see who threw it.  Schick skated to the scorer’s bench to issue a bench minor penalty.  McClean hollered at the top of his lungs but Schick continued to ignore him.  McClean grabbed another chair and threw it out onto the ice.  Then he threw some water bottles.  Finally, Schick blew his whistle and signaled for McClean to leave the bench.  McClean ignored him and was in the midst of pulling a player’s bench off its moorings when two Seattle Policemen entered the player’s bench and escorted an angry McClean out of the building.  I can’t remember who won or lost that game.  However, I remember the debris flying from the Bruin’s bench like it was last Saturday afternoon at Kent Valley Ice Centre…  It was memorable drama… 

Well, the incident in the Select’s game wasn’t quite that dramatic.  But it was memorable.  The Selects were assessed 19 penalties during the game for a total of 62 minutes.  Two Kent Valley coaches received Game Misconducts.  Tri Cities had 13 penalties for 29 minutes.  The Selects lost to the Tri Cities’ Bantams 4 to 0.

Sunday’s outing was much calmer and the result was more favorable.  The Selects played the SnoKing Bantam Tier-II team at Castle Ice Arena in Renton.  The Selects, minus a Head Coach and Assistant Coach, won the game 3 to 0.

A scoring summary is below:

Midget Tornadoes Shut-out Everett Kodiaks

Story by Sheri Walsh

Everett, WA December 6, 2008 -- Kent Valley’s Midget Tornadoes rolled into Everett Saturday with only ten players and skated away with their eighth league win.  While Kent’s roster was diminished due to illness, the Tornadoes were not affected as they shut-out Everett 6-0.  Taylor Birkeland earned a Hat Trick and Justin Hill-Sellers earned a Playmaker while the rest of the team took advantage of more than twenty minutes of power plays.

Taylor Birkeland was first on the board with Justin Hill-Sellers and Kyle Miller Smith getting the assists.  By the time the first period was over, Taylor Birkeland had scored again with the help of Justin Hill-Sellers and Zach Bloss.  While there were no goals in the second period, there were a lot of penalties as the Tornadoes found themselves with a two-man advantage at one point but were unable to capitalize.  Zac Cadiente scored on a beautiful breakaway set-up by Sam Bartels in the third period to make it 3-0.  Tommy Peebles knocked one in with Zac Cadiente and Jared Prado getting the assists, and Taylor Birkeland earned a Hat Trick on a deflection and the fifth goal of the game.  At this point, Everett started racking up penalties with one of its players being ejected.  Brandon Ly, taking advantage of a power play, scored the final goal.  Kent wins 6-0.          

Goalie Josh Severeid earns the shut-out.  The Tornadoes improve their league record to 8-and-1.  Congratulations!

Other Hockey Related News:

Expect Parking Congestion at Kent Valley Ice Centre This Saturday from 7:00am to around 1:00pm.

The City of Kent Parks Department will hold their annual “Fun Run” event early Saturday morning until around 12:30 to 1:00pm.  If you have a Saturday morning event at Kent Valley Ice Centre you may have to park in Auburn and ride the transit.  Last year’s event created havoc for Kent Valley Hockey Association members attending Saturday morning hockey games.  An estimated 2,000 runners participated in last year’s event and each one of them drove a vehicle to the event.  So, have a plan and be prepared.  Good luck!

Hockey Helmets Recalled by Reebok-CCM Due to Head and Neck Injury Hazard

NEWS from U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
Office of Information and Public Affairs
Washington, DC 20207

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 2, 2008
Release #09-058

Firm's Recall Hotline: (800) 451-4600
CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772
CPSC Media Contact: (301) 504-7908

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Hockey Helmets

Units: About 1,000

Distributor: Reebok-CCM Hockey U.S. Inc., of Montpelier, Vt.

Hazard: The helmet's chinstrap can unexpectedly disengage while in use. If this happens, the helmet can fall off, posing a head and neck injury risk to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: None reported.

Description: This recall involves RBK and CCM brand hockey helmets. Helmets included in this recall have a HECC sticker with date code JUN - 2013. HECC stickers and model numbers are located on the back of the helmets.  Models included in the recall are:
 
Brand | Model Numbers | Colors Of The Helmet Shells That Require Inspection | Colors Of The Helmet Shells That Are Not Affected By This Recall
 
RBK | HT8K | Black/Black, Black/Silver, White/Silver, Navy, Red, Green, Maroon, Yellow | White/Black, Royal
RBK | HT6K | Black, White, Navy, Red, Royal | None
RBK | HT6K Combo | Black, White, Navy, Red, Royal | None
RBK | HT4K | Black, Navy, Red, Royal | White
RBK | HT4K Combo | Navy, Red, Royal | Black, White
CCM | HTV10 | Yellow | Black, White, Navy, Red, Royal, Green, Maroon CCM |
HTV10 Combo | Black | White, Navy, Red, Royal CCM | HTV08 | Black, White,
Royal, Yellow | Navy, Red, Green CCM | HTV08 Combo | Black, Medium Black,
White, Navy, Royal | Red CCM | HT692 | White, Navy | Black, Red, Royal CCM |
HT692 Combo | Black | White, Navy, Red, Royal
 
Sold at: Sporting goods stores nationwide and Internet retailers from May 2008 through July 2008 for between $80 and $200.
 
Manufactured in: Canada
 
Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using and return the helmets to the place of purchase for a free replacement helmet.
 
Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Reebok-CCM at (800) 451-4600 between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, or visit the firm's Web site at www.reebokhockey.com and http://en.ccmsports.com
 
To see this recall on CPSC's web site, including pictures of the recalled products, please go to:  http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09058.html

Have a great week!

Contact: Lew Sellers, Director of Communications

Kent Valley Hockey Association

6015 So. 240th Street

Kent, WA. 98032

(206) 914-9619 Cellular

Lew@KentValleyIceCentre.com

Thanksgiving Weekend a Slow Weekend For Some Teams, Not So For Others

Kent WA 3 December, 2008 – Many of our KVHA teams were idle over the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend but not all of them.  The Midget Tornadoes put together exhibition games with Bremerton, our PeeWee Hurricanes participated in a weekend tournament at Bremerton (no report yet), our Bantam Tier-II Selects played an exhibition game with Seattle Jr., our Kent Valley/West Coast PeeWees met up with Seattle Jr. in Wenatchee for two exhibition games, and our Midget U-18 “AAA” Selects played in the Las Vegas Silver Stick tournament.

Enjoy the stories below!

Kent Valley/West Coast PeeWee “AAA” Whomps Seattle Jr. in Two Exhibition Games in Wenatchee

Wenatchee, WA November 29 & 30, 2008 – The Seattle Jr. PeeWee “AA” Admirals traversed the Cascades over the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend, but instead of turkey they got skunk.  The Kent Valley/West Coast PeeWees skunked the Admirals on Saturday 9 to 0 and skunked them again on Sunday 13 to 0. 

Game 1:  KV/WC scored 3 goals in each of the 3 periods.  Conlan Ross earned a Hat Trick and assisted on one other goal for a 4 point game.  Austin Mayton scored two goals and earned an assist for 3 points.  Shots on goal were not recorded for either team.  It is assumed that KV/WC’s David Zacks earned the shutout.  Way to go David!  Below is the game summary:

Game 2:  KV/WC’s Dylan Gambrell scored 5 goals and added 2 assists for a seven-point effort in game 2 of the series.  David Zacks hardly broke a sweat in game 2 stopping 5 of 5 for a non-glamorous shutout.  Below is the scoring summary: 

Over the course of the two games every KV/WC player, except for two and the goalie, earned at least one point for a goal or an assist.  Congratulations to Coaches Jimmy Gambrell and Mark Meekhof, and the Kent Valley/West Coast PeeWees, for an excellent outing.

Bantam Selects Fall to Seattle Jr. Admirals

Kent, WA November 30, 2008 – The only thing even on the score sheet for this game was the penalties; seven for each team.  The Seattle Jr. Admirals outshot the Selects 30 to 23 and outscored them 5 to 1.  The Selects shared the goalkeeping assignment between Dimitri Nikitin and Curtis Rydrych.  Nikitin stopped 4 of 5 shots for 80% and Rydrych stopped 21 of 25 shots for 84%.  A scoring summary is below: