Sports
Offensive juggernauts set to face off
The Tunnel Series begins Thursday in
Richmond.
Geographic rivals, separated by the George
Massey Tunnel, Delta Ice Hawks and Richmond Sockeyes were also statistically
the top two teams in the Pacific Junior Hockey League during the regular
season. So when they drop the puck shortly after 7 p.m. in Game 1 of the
best-of-seven Tom Shaw Conference final, the anticipation will be red-hot.
Clearly there is little to choose between the
teams. While Delta finished atop the standings with 38 wins in 44 games, the Sockeyes
were no slouchers either with a 33-8-1-2 record. As for the season series
between the two clubs, it was even at two wins apiece.
Delta kicked things off with a 5-2 win Sept.
21 at Minoru Arenas. Goalie Jordan Naylor, the first star of the game, made 28
saves as the Ice Hawks built up a 5-1 lead after 40 minutes.
Richmond, with back-up goalie Hardarshan
Hoonjan making 31 saves, blanked Delta 3-0 Nov. 14 at Ladner Leisure Centre.
Richmond forward Brett Gelz’s strong overall game earned him first-star honours,
while teammate Ty Paterson had two assists.
Richmond outlast Delta 6-5 in overtime in the
third meeting Dec. 7 at Minoru. Delta outshot Richmond 40-38 in the game, with
Richmond captain Tyler Andrews completing a hard track with the fourth-period winner.
He also earned an assist. Delta captain Dhaliwal had two goals and two assists.
Delta won the most recent game, 4-1, Jan. 30
at Ladner Leisure Centre. The Ice Hawks outshot the Sockeyes 45-24.
Richmond advanced to the conference final
with a 4-1 series win over North Vancouver Wolf Pack in the opening round of
the playoffs, while Delta swept Grandview Steelers in four straight games.
The Sockeyes defeated North Vancouver 5-4 in
overtime in Game 5 Feb. 22 at Minoru. Arjun Badh scored the winning goal, from
Andrews, at 1:25 of the second OT period. Andrews paced Richmond with three
goals.
Aldergrove Kodiaks will face the Abbotsford
Pilots for the Harold Brittain Conference title. The Kodiaks earned a 4-1
series win over Ridge Meadows Flames, while the Pilots swept Langley Trappers.