Township of Langley, BC (Sunday, September 28, 2014) – The Langley Rivermen picked up their first two points of the season, defeating the Vernon Vipers 7-4 in Vernon on Sunday afternoon.
Brendan Gulka scored two of the team’s four third period goals, including the game winner and assisted on another, as the Rivermen notched their first win of the 2014/15 season.
Along with a pair of goals, Gulka assisted on Jacob Zeleznikar’s goal, which opened the scoring in the first period.
“I want to contribute more to the team this season,” said Gulka. “Not just on the fighting side of it, but more with points, so in the off-season I worked on my shot and getting to the areas where the goals are scored.”
“Without his effort tonight it could’ve easily been a different result,” said Assistant Coach Kurt Astle. “It was good to see him have a game like that, early in the season."
Langley had a full week of preparation coming into today’s game, where they worked their forecheck and power play. The Rivermen converted 2-of-4 times on the man advantage as Captain Kevan Kilistoff and Gage Torrel each scored their first goals of the season, late in the second period.
“Our power play got a lot of work in practice,” said Astle. “It was a pleasure to see that hard work pay off. We’re happy with the result in our special teams and we’ll try and continue it next week.”
Langley also did a good job staying out of the box, only having to kill off three penalties in the game. Darren Martin got the start for the Rivermen, stopping 23 shots in the victory.
It was a back-and-forth game, as the Vipers did their best to counter whenever the Rivermen would score. The Rivermen were able to open things up in the third period, thanks to some timely goals from Gulka and Will Cook. Marcus Vela would add an empty net marker to seal the deal.
“Resiliency is something we’ve been getting across to our guys,” said Astle. “When we get scored on, we just have to push back, that was another big focus for us all week.”
Vela and Cook each had a goal and two assists. Zeleznikar chipped in with a goal and an assist in the win.
Langley’s next game is on Friday, October 3rd when they visit the Coquitlam Express. The following day is the Rivermen home opener when they host the Nanaimo Clippers on Saturday, October 4 at 7:00PM at the Langley Events Centre. The first 1,500 fans receive a Rivermen Foam Finger, presented by Global BC. Fans will also receive 2-for-1 entry when they bring a food or cash donation to the Global Food Bank.
NOTES: Will Campion, Zac Masson and Jordan Schneider got on the score sheet with one assist each. Shots on Goal: VER 27 – LAN 26. Powerplay: LAN 2-4, VER 0-3. Saves/Shots: LAN – Darren Martin 23/27, VER – Jarrod Schamerhorn 20/26. Three Stars: LAN Brendan Gulka, LAN Will Cook, VER Thomas Aldworth.
For details visit www.LangleyRivermen.com
