CHIEFS EDGE EXPRESS

Oliver Lester - Photo courtesy of Garrett James

The Chilliwack Chiefs put the full court press on the Express in the third period en route to a 3-2 win Saturday night. Click here for boxscore

The visitors really limited the chances the Express were able to generate with the game on the line.

The Chiefs put the Express in an early hole within the first five minutes of the game.

Kaden Pickering snapped a shot that trickled through Clay Stevenson for a power play goal at 3:08.

Colby Pederson had 3 goals in his last 2 games
Photo courtesy of Garrett James

That goal was followed 1:35 later by a goal from Anthony Vincent who converted a set up by Skylar Brind'Amour off the rush for a 2-0 Chiefs lead. The goal for Vincent was the start of a great night for the Chiefs forward.

Colby Pederson found himself on a breakaway moments later but couldn't get a shot away. Then Josh Bruce was set up in the slot, but was unable to get off his best shot.

Jordan Schulting got the Express on t
he board when his point shot beat Mathieu Caron low along the ice moments after a power play expired.

A major reason Chilliwack was able to get out of the first period lead was Anthony Vincent who had three shot blocks in the first period alone. His most notable one come in the final moments of the first period when he took an Express shot off the face.

Shots were few and far between for both teams in the second period. Clay Stevenson made his best save of the night on a rebound chance for Kaden Pickering.

Colby Pederson evened things up for the Express roofing a backhand for a shorthanded goal. It was Pederson's 3rd goal in two games after striking twice Friday night in Merritt.

Chilliwack started the third period with purpose. They were controlling the puck and playing with speed in the Express zone. It didn't take long for them to get rewarded. Jake Gresh snapped a wrist shot up over the shoulder of Stevenson for a 3-2 Chiefs lead at 1:11.

That shift and goal really set the tone for Chilliwack for the final 18:49 of the game. They spent the majority of the period controlling the puck in the Express zone and along the boards. It wasn't pretty, but effective at killing the clock.

Jordan Schulting had a goal in the first - Photo courtesy of Garrett James

The Express chance to get the equalizer came 7 minutes into the period when Corey Andonovski was assessed a double minor for high sticking. The Express were only able to muster one shot in the four minute power play. They finished 0 for 6 on the power play.

On a number of occasions Chilliwack was able to pin the puck along the boards and just kill the clock. There was one scrum that allowed 20+ seconds to run off the clock. Then in the final minute of the 3rd period the final 40 seconds was mostly tied up in a scrum to the right of the Chilliwack net which was allowed to run for so long, the clock ticked down to 0:00 to seal the win for the Chiefs.

The final shots in the third period finished 14-2 in favour of the Chiefs. Over the course of 60 minutes, the Chiefs outshot the Express 29-12.

The Express are back in action Wednesday night when they host Merritt. 

EXPRESS @ CENTENNIALS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from Friday's 5-2 win for the Express in Merritt.

Highlights produced by Eddie Gregory.

AMBROSIO COMMITTS TO LAKE SUPERIOR STATE

Alex Amborsio (#10) Commits to Lake Superior State.
Photo courtesy of Damon James.

Coquitlam Express captain Alex Ambrosio has committed to Lake Superior State.

Extremely honoured and excited to announce I have committed to play D1 hockey for Lake Superior State University this coming semester. A huge thank you goes out to all my family, friends, teammates, coaches and the Express organization who have all helped me along the way #Lakers

— Alex Ambrosio (@ambro_10) December 22, 2017

The commitment is effective immediately.

The 20 year old Burnaby native was in his third and final season in an Express uniform. Prior to the start of the season he was named captain for 2017-18.

This season he had 9 goals and 16 assists for 25 points in 33 games. Those numbers were second highest on the Express as of the Christmas break. His 16 assists matches his career high in that category that he accumulated last year in 50 games. Ambrosio was also well on his way to surpass the 29 points he tallied in 2016-17.

In 134 career BCHL games, all with the Express he had 30 goals and 42 assists for 72 points. He also had 1 assist in 4 playoff games in 2016.

During his time in an Express uniform, Amboriso left an indelible mark on and off the ice as a first class individual. That is the mark he will leave behind as he moves on to the next stage of his hockey career.

Lake Superior State plays in the WCHA conference. Previous Express alumni to commit to Lake Superior State include goaltender Gordy Defiel. And former captain Mitch Nardi.

The Express would like to congratulate Alex
on this opportunity. And thank you for everything you have given to this organization. The BCHL is about moving players on to the next level, this is a well deserved next step.

COMETS VS. KINGS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from Saturday's 2-1 OT win for the Comets (Express) over the Powell River Kings.

Highlights produced by Eddie Gregory.

COMETS CROWN KINGS IN OT

Former Captain Jackson Cressey took part in a ceremonial face-off.
Photo courtesy of Damon James

The Coquitlam Comets go into the Christmas break on a winning note after a 2-1 overtime win over the Island division leading Powell River Kings. Click here for boxscore

Troy Robillard - Photo courtesy of Damon James

The Express wore their Comets uniforms in their annual tribute to the junior team that played from the 60's into the early 80's in Coquitlam.

Comets manager Sandy Michie would have been very proud how today's modern day Coquitlam team played for 63 plus minutes. They were solid in their own zone, the penalty killing was strong and were full value for the victory.

The Comets started the game by peppering the Powell River goal with pucks. They forced Kings goaltender Matteo Paler-Chow to be on his game early on. His best save off the first period came on a rebound chance for Christian Sanda.

Eventually the Comets broke through. Eric Linell started the play by navigating his way out of his own zone. Then when he entered the Kings zone he fed the puck back to Lucas Wong who let a point shot go that was tipped home by captain Alex Ambrosio.

The second period belonged to the Comets penalty killers. They were whistled for three separate infractions in just under six minutes. When the Kings were able to generate chances they had to face a dialed in Brock Hamm.

Jason Fortier leads a timeout - Photo courtesy of Damon James

Entering the third period the Kings had all five of the game's powerplays. The Comets finally got their first in the opening moments of the third period.

Jason Fortier tweaked his defenseman tonight. He played Jordan Schulting at centre with Jonathan Sheardown and Tyler Chyzowski who dressed for his second straight outing as an AP. That line consisting of two natural defensemen as forwards certainly didn't look out of place.

Four minutes into the third the Comets lost the services of Landon Fuller who got cut diving back to break up a play at his own blueline. To make matters worse, Fuller was called for tripping and didn't return to the game.

Eric Linell celebrates OT winner
Photo courtesy of Damon James

The remaining Express blue liners all stepped up in his absence the rest of the way. They weathered two more Kings powerplays in the final 6 minutes of the game.  The Comets finished the game with a perfect 8 for 8 night on the penalty kill.

Powell River was finally able to get a puck past a very stingy Brock Hamm. They needed a crafty deflection by Hunter Findlater of a Carmine Buono point shot with 1:07 remaining in the third period to break Hamm's shutout bid and tie the game at 1.

This was a very entertaining game for 60 minutes. The teams each had 22 shots through three periods.

Powell River had a decent start to overtime with puck control and giving the Comets trouble coming out of their zone.

Once the Comets broke free Troy Robillard rushed into the Kings zone, then found a lane to the net and took full advantage of it and Eric Linell buried the rebound giving the Comets a 2-1 win heading into the Christmas break. For Linell it was his second overtime winner in just over a week.

Now the Express are off on their Christmas break until December 29th when they will travel up to Merritt. They will return home the next night vs. Chilliwack.

SPRUCE KINGS @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from Prince George's 3-1 win over the Express Friday night.



Highlights produced by Eddie Gregory.

SPRUCE KINGS GET LUCKY BOUNCE TO GET PAST EXPRESS

An unfortunate bounce for the Express ended up being the difference allowing Prince George to defeat the Express 3-1 Friday night. Click here for boxscore

Dylan Anhorn was credited with the game winning goal.

For most of the night neither team was willing to give the other much ice to create chances.

Corey Cunningham opened the scoring for the Spruce Kings when Jay Karanen's point shot bounced to Cunningham in the slot who beat Brock Hamm at 3:50.

The Express had chances moments later to equalize. Sam Kozlowski was stopped on a breakaway, Eric Linell was stopped on a 2-1 by Evan DeBrouwer among the first period chances.

A Prince George turnover allowed the Express to pull even. Eric Linell converted a giveaway scoring his 17th of the season at 7:57 to tie the game at one.

The game stayed tied until the third period when the Spruce Kings caught a lucky break while shorthanded. Dylan Anhorn cleared the puck from his own zone and it went into a vacated net by Brock Hamm who went out of his net to play the puck. The Express argued the puck had hit a player on the Express bench and the goal should have been disallowed. There was minimal discussion by the officials that allowed the goal to stand.

It took the Express some time to recover from the tough break. But once they did, they continued to generate chances.

Josh Bruce had back to back chances in the final minutes. Including a good look from the slot.

In the final three minutes the Express had a late power play, but they still weren't able to get the equalizer. They finished the night 0 for 4 on the power play.

The effort was there for the Express, despite what the boxscore shows. They were a tough break on the game winning goal from this game at least going to overtime.

Ben Brar then finished off the scoring by hitting the empty net with 4 seconds to play.

The Express will play their final game before Christmas Saturday night when they host Powell River. It will be the annual game where the Express will honour Coquitlam Comets, a junior team from a previous generation.

EXPRESS @ RIVERMEN HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from the Express 3-1 win in Langley Saturday night.

Highlights produced by Eddie Gregory. 

EXPRESS GRIT OUT ROAD WIN VS. LANGLEY

The Express joined the Wenatchee Wild as the only teams in the BCHL to defeat the Langley Rivermen on home ice in regulation by a score of 3-1 Saturday night. Click here for boxscore

It was the second straight road win for the Express and their third win overall in their last four games.

During this run for the Express, they've been at their best creating chances offensively, and getting out of the zone quick in their own end. They were able to do that on Saturday night. Plus the Express did a good job of blocking shots particularly in the middle part of the ice in their zone.

Josh Bruce forced a turnover at the Express blueline and walked in on a breakaway snapping a shot over the shoulder of Rivermen goaltender Braedon Fleming.

In their own end the Express showed good poise with the puck not rushing plays and getting it out of their end.

Early in the second period Eric Linell came close to adding to the Express lead beating Fleming with a wrist shot that hit the post.

12 minutes into the second period Landon Fuller got involved in a scuffle behind the Express net. The blue liner came up swinging on Ethan Leyh. Fuller was given a double minor for roughing and a game misconduct. So the Express had to play the rest of the game without their most physically imposing defenseman.

Dominic Davis dressed for a second game for the Express as an AP. He didn't look out of place throughout the night. He was even rewarded with some time on the penalty kill on Fuller's double minor.

Langley did pull even on that power play when Colin Bernard hammered a one timer from the point over the shoulder of Brock Hamm.

In the third Langley did start to ramp up their pressure looking for their first lead. But the Express stood tall against the Rivermen attack. And they had a sharp Brock Hamm behind them backing the team up.

His best save came early in the third off a re-direct by Ethan Leyh. Hamm also got some help when Trevor St. Jean hit the post midway through the period. He finished with 32 saves earning first star honors and is now 2-0-1 in his last 3 games.

With no Fuller to finish the game, the rest of the blue liners were tasked with additional minutes. They rose to the occasion. Doug Scott had a strong night on the backend. If he got paid, he would have earned his money. He had a number of shot blocks that clearly stung the Express blue liner who gritted it out.

The tie was broken by the Express who rushed into the Langley zone. Linell fed it across to Josh Wildauer, his shot went wide, but he stayed in pursuit the puck and set up captain Alex Ambrosio who snapped home the pass from the slot.

Langley's last gasp came moments later. Josh Bruce was called for a check to the head penalty less than a minute after Ambrosio's goal. With the game on the line, the Express shut down the struggling Rivermen power play.  Langley finished 1 for 4 on the power play. The Express were 0 for 2.

Colby Pederson battled hard all night long for the Express. He was battling for pucks, blocking shots and just played with a high compete level. He was rewarded for his play breaking away from his own blueline and rushing the puck up the ice and scoring into the empty net to seal the win.

It was the third win for the Express this season vs. Langley. Their first win on the road in the season series.

The Express have two games next weekend at home before their Christmas break Friday and Saturday vs. Prince George and Powell River. 

CHIEFS DOUBLE UP ON EXPRESS

Josh Bruce - Photo courtesy of Damon James

Chilliwack scored four unanswered goals en route to a 4-2 win over the Express Friday night in Coquitlam. Click here for boxscore

In the process the Express had their two game winning streak come to an end.

It was second meeting in a week between the two teams. The Chiefs were victorious by a 2-1 score in Chilliwack last Friday.

Both teams came out skating in the first period. But neither team was able to generate many shots.

Josh Wildauer opened the scoring for the Express moments after a early 2nd period power play expired.

Troy Robillard fired a wrist shot from the right point that was deflected by Wildauer in the slot for his 5th of the season at 5:42.

52 seconds later the Chiefs pulled even. Ryan Miotto snapped a shot from the slot under the arm of Clay Stevenson to even the score at one.

That goal tilted the game in Chilliwack's favour. They did a decent job working the puck along the boards in the Express zone and trying to control the play.

Christian Sanda - Photo courtesy of Damon James

Chilliwack captain Will Calverley returned to the Chiefs lineup after missing the previous three games with an injury. He gave the Chiefs the lead on the power play swiping home a loose puck that bounced his way off a Marcus Tesink point shot.

Regan Kimens scored Chilliwack's third goal of the period late in the frame firing a shot past the glove of Clay Stevenson after the Express failed to get the puck out of their zone for a 3-1 Chiefs lead after 2 periods.

Midway through the third period Ryan Miotto essentially sealed the win for Chilliwack by putting the puck into an empty net after Clay Stevenson coughed up the puck to Will Caverley who set up Miotto who scored his second of the night.

Doug Scott rounded out the scoring for the Express jamming home a loose puck in the crease in the final minute after a good play by Johnathan Sheardown on a wrap around. AP Dominic Davis who dressed in his 4th game with the Express picked up his first BCHL point with an assist on the play.

The Express outshot Chilliwack 28-24. But unlike last Friday in Chilliwack,

the Express weren't able to generate as many quality chances on this night.

The power play finished 0 for 6 for the Express. Most of the night with the man advantage they had trouble setting up in the offensive zone. That was due in part to Chilliwack penalty killing pressure all over the ice. On the other side the Chiefs were 1 for 4 on the man advantage.

Saturday night the Express will visit the Langley Rivermen. 

EXPRESS @ VIPERS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from Wednesday's 3-2 OT win for the Express in Vernon.

LINELL OT HERO AS EXPRESS DROP BCHL'S TOP TEAM IN OT

Eric Linell took the first step to repeat as BCHL player of the week scoring the overtime winner as the Express defeated the BCHL's top team the Vernon Vipers 3-2 in overtime. Click here for boxscore

The win was the first road win for the Express in their 17th away game, and they posted consecutive victories for the first time this season. They're now 2-1-1 under Head Coach Jason Fortier.

The visitors looked a little sloppy in the opening minutes of the game. Then they settled into the game starting to generate their own chances.

Sam Kozlowski opened the scoring for the firing a wrist shot that deflected off the stick of a Vipers defenseman and past Anthony Yamnitski. That goal would be the first of a constant theme of the night of some slightly unconventional goals for both teams.

Injuries to the Express have seen them dress a few AP's in recent games. Nick Amsler dressed for his second straight game. Brayden Szabados meanwhile made his BCHL debut. They mostly played on a line with Jonathan Sheardown. When they were out there they gave the Express some valuable minutes.

Kozlowski struck again for the Express late in the second period. Again he caught a break. After taking a pass from John Sheardown, Kozlowski's shot from the slot bounced in off the stick of Vipers goaltender Yamnitski.

The lead for the Express held into the third period where things really got wild.

For the first 13 minutes of the period the Express were doing everything right to protect their lead. Then at 12:50 Vernon's Keyvan Mokhtari was called for cross checking. It was a great opportunity for the Express to put the game away.

Off the ensuing offensive zone draw the puck split the Express defense. That allowed Jesse Lansdell to pounce on the puck for a breakaway. He was given a slight hook then was awarded a penalty shot.

On the penalty shot Lansdell slid a backhand through the pads of Brock Hamm to get Vernon on the board with 7 minutes to go.

At the time the Express still had 1:50 of power play time remaining to at least re-store their two goal lead.

The Lansdell goal rattled the Express who never really set up on the power play. Then the puck was fired into the Express zone and Hamm was forced to race out of his net to clear the puck away from the oncoming Lansdell. The Vernon forward knocked down the clearing attempt and scored his second shorthanded goal of the night 1:20 after his penalty shot goal to tie the game at 2.

That goal capped off a period for Lansdell that saw him get shaken up earlier in the period on a pair of shot blocks.

At this time for an Express team that is still learning how to close out wins, let alone do it on the road against the league's top team this was their test.

In the final minute of the third period Josh Bruce was called for a check to the head penalty and was essentially done for the night with the minor penalty plus the automatic 10 minute misconduct.

The Express survived the final 15 seconds of regulation shorthanded. And the overtime intermission was a great time for the team to reset after blowing a two goal lead in dramatic fashion.

With 1:45 of power play time to open overtime at 4 on 3, the Vipers had no reason to rush to set up the perfect play to get the winner.

Vernon's patience may have actually played into the hands of the Express. Vernon worked the puck around, looking for the perfect chance and eventually the Express killed off the penalty.

Throughout the night Eric Linell just seemed to have the puck find his stick to create chances. They weren't going in for him in regulation. The puck found Linell's stick again in overtime. This time the BCHL's player of the week got a bounce only red hot players get as his shot went off the stick of a Vipers defenseman and past Yamnitsky giving the Express the 3-2 OT win.

For Linell it was his 7th goal in his last 5 games.

Brock Hamm turned aside 30 of the 32 shots sent his way to post his second consecutive win in the Express crease.

The Express return to action on Friday when they host the Chilliwack Chiefs. Then they will travel to Langley on Saturday night. 

LINELL POW, AMBROSIO HON. MENTION

Photo courtesy of Garrett James

After five consecutive goals in three games, Express forward Eric Linell was named the BCHL's player of the week. His linemate Alex Ambrosio was named an honorable mention after potting 1 goal and 5 assists.

See the full press release from the BCHL below: 

Coquitlam Express forward Eric Linell has been named the BCHL Player of the Week for the week ending Dec. 3, the league announced Monday.

Linell scored five time as the Express earned a win and a tie in three outings. The native of Great Neck, N.Y. opened the week with a two-goal outing in a 3-3 draw against the Langley Rivermen where he was 1st Star. He scored again the Express’ only goal the next game against Chilliwack and finished his week with another two-tally performance and a 2nd Star nod in a 6-2 triumph over the visiting Victoria Grizzlies.

With 15 goals and 25 points now on the season, Linell leads the club in both categories.

Honourable Mentions this week:

Nanaimo Clippers F Jake Harris: 3G, 4A, 1st Star, 2nd Star

Coquitlam Express F Alex Ambrosio: 1G, 5A, 1st Star, 3rd Star

Penticton Vees G Adam Scheel: 2W, SO, 55 saves/56 shots, .982 sv%, 0.50 GAA, 1st Star

Merritt Centennials F Zach Zorn: 3G, 1A, GWG, 1st Star, 2nd Star

Surrey Eagles F John Wesley: 3G, 2A, 1st Star, 2nd Star

Chilliwack Chiefs F PJ Marrocco: 2G, 1A, two 1st Stars

GRIZZLIES @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from the Express 6-2 win over Victoria Sunday. 

EXPRESS SNAP STREAK VS. GRIZZLIES

Jason Fortier has his first win as the Head Coach of the Coquitlam Express. It came in his third game behind the bench by a 6-2 score over the Victoria Grizzlies Sunday. Click here for boxscore

The win for the Express snapped their 15 game winless streak (0-14-1-0).

The Express were facing a road weary Victoria team that had played in Prince George and Vernon the previous two nights.

Early on it didn't look like Victoria was playing their third game of the weekend. They appeared to have opened the scoring off a won face-off in the Express zone in the opening minute. But upon further review by the officials it was deemed the deflection of the shot was contacted with a high stick.

Victoria didn't allow the no goal call to dissuade them. T.J. Friedman opened the scoring just shy of the 4 minute mark.

The red hot Eric Linell evened things up for the Express in the final minute of the first period scoring from the slot on a set up from captain Alex Ambrosio. The goal set off a frenzy of stuffed animals on the annual teddy bear toss night for the Express.

Justin Michealian tipped a pass home at the lip of the goal crease at 3:12 of the second period giving the Grizzlies their second lead of the night. That would be the final puck to get past goaltender Brock Hamm who shut the door the rest of the way to finish with 35 saves to post his first victory in the Express crease.

Just over two minutes after the Grizzlies goal, Linell struck again converting a set up in the blue paint from Jordan Schulting to tie the game at 2. The goal for Linell was his 15th of the season. By that point he had scored the last 5 Express goals dating back to Wednesday vs. Langley.

Christian Sanda, who appears to be a little rejuvenated lately gave the Express their first lead banging home a rebound to give the Express a 3-2 lead they would carry into the third period.

Jordan Schulting gave the Express some insurance early in the third jumping into the play and found a loose puck in the Victoria crease for his third of the season.

Sunday was a career day for Express captain Alex Ambrosio. He had a four point game with one goal and three assists. He capped off his memorable afternoon with a strong defensive play then rushing the puck up the ice and outwaited Victoria goaltender Bryce Schiebel and slid the puck home for a 5-2 Express lead.

Colby Pederson rounded out the scoring for the Express hitting the empty net with 1;53 to play. The 6 Express goals was a new single game high.

They're now 1-1-1-0 for three points since the coaching change. In that time they've only allowed 7 goals for an average of less than 3 per night in the short period of time.

The Express will seek their first road win of the season Wednesday when they travel to Vernon. 

CHIEFS USE THIRD PERIOD RALLY TO EDGE EXPRESS

Chilliwack scored twice in the third period for a come from behind 2-1 win over the Express Friday in Chilliwack. Click here for boxscore

The Express come away from Friday's game looking back on the number of chances they couldn't bury.

The chances for the Express started to come in the first period. Josh Bruce had a chance in the opening minutes. Then Sam Kozlowski had a pass go behind him on a 2 on 1 break.

It was a penalty filled game with the teams combining for 15 total powerplays.

Chilliwack had four advantages alone in the first period. That included a two man advantage for 1:22 after Johnathan Sheardown was called for a check from behind for a hit on Anthony Vincent. Sheardown was also given a game misconduct.

The Express limited the dangerous chances on the two man disadvantage as the Chiefs were patient moving the puck around. Things got more frantic in when the play went to 5 on 4 for the Chiefs. Chilliwack's best chance was Corey Andonovski ringing a shot off the post. Then Clay Stevenson stopping Kaden Pickering who tried to jam the puck in from the goal crease.

Chilliwack was penalized for back to back penalties in the first, but the Express couldn't strike.

The best chance for the Express came late in the period as Jordan Schulting got the puck at centre ice coming out of the penalty box and had a breakaway, but his shot hit the cross bar and went out of play.

In the second period Eric Linell was stopped on a breakaway by Mathieu Caron.

At the other end Clay Stevenson got some puck luck as Jake Gresh had his point shot hit the post and stay out. It was the same story moments later for Jared Turcotte.

Midway through the period Stevenson made the save of the night coming across to his left to rob Anthony Vincent who then crashed into the Express goaltender following the save.

Finally 17 minutes into the second period the deadlock was broken. Off a won face-off in the Chilliwack zone Haydn Delorme fired it back to Landon Fuller whose point shot was tipped by Eric Linell to open the scoring. For Linell it was his third goal in the last two games.

Chilliwack entered the third period with a power play with Fuller in the box for interference. That was followed early in the third by a interference penalty from Josh Wildauer.

Sensing the urgency of the situation with the Chiefs getting their second two man advantage of the game this time for 40 seconds Jason Tatarnic called his time out.

It only took the Chiefs 8 seconds to execute their plan and tie the game. Off the won face-off the Chiefs worked it down to the goal line to Tommy Lee who zipped a back door pass to Corey Andonovski who tied the game at 1. Chilliwack finished 1 for 8 on the power play.

Minutes later Anthony Vincent was called for roughing giving the Express another power play.

On that advantage came more great Express chances. First Alex Ambrosio ripped a one timer over the net. Then Linell was set up on a tip play and put it over the net with a half open cage.

As the third period progressed the Express had struggles coming out of their zone that led to turnovers.

One of those turnovers proved costly. Adan Berg stole the puck then dropped it back to Matt Slick who finally got some puck luck to go the Chiefs way as his shot hit the post then bounced off Stevenson and bounced in giving Chilliwack a 2-1 lead.

As the final minutes of the game ticked down the chances kept coming for the Express. Christian Sanda was stopped with a clean look from the slot. Then off the ensuing draw Colby Pederson was stopped on a backhand by Caron.

Then in the final minutes the Express had a two man advantage but wasn't able to get the equalizer. The Express finished 0 for 7 on the power play.

The shots finished 29-23 in favour of Chilliwack.

Friday was card cut down day where teams have their number of cards to add players to their roster reduced to 25 of they have that many left.

As a result the Express made a number of transactions. 20 year old blue liner Jake Brien was traded to the Pembroke Lumberkings of the CCHL for future considerations. And forward Aiden Wagner was released.

Brien dressed for 125 games in an Express uniform over parts of three seasons. He was a real warrior for the Express and deserves to be commended for how hard he played during his time with the club. He would be the first player to go down and block a shot for a teammate. On top of that he was a first class player off the ice.

Wagner only dressed for 23 games with the Express. But he certainly left a mark for being a hard working player on the ice. Off of it he has a very outgoing personality who treats everyone with the utmost respect.

Thanks to both Jake and Aiden for their contributions to the Express. 

RIVERMEN @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from Wednesday's 3-3 tie with Langley.

EXPRESS FIGHT LANGLEY TO A TIE

Jason Fortier made his Express coaching debut
Photo courtesy of Garrett James

It's been a busy 72 hours for the Express organization that started with making a coaching change announcing Jason Fortier took over as the Express bench boss for Barry Wolff on Monday.



The new Express had coach had little time to get acclimated with his new team before coaching his first game.

Fortier met with the players Monday, ran a practice Tuesday and was behind the Express bench Wednesday night.

He commented on wanting the Express to use their speed and try to be more of a puck possession team. Early on some of those tweeks were showing in the Express game. And it led to some odd man rushes.

One of those chances opened the scoring for the Express as Sam Kozlowski came down the right wing an snapped a shot past Chad Kromar to open the scoring.

E. Linell scored a pair of power play goals - Photo courtesy of Garrett James

That goal was the spring board to give the Express some confidence to try to create more chances, but Chad Kromar held the Express to just one goal in the period.

Rivermen captain Brendan Body pulled the visitors even in the final minute of the first period. He crept in from the left side and took a back door pass and snapped a shot past Brock Hamm.

Nik Ponak gave Langley their only lead of the night just 37 seconds into the second period.

Jason Fortier has done plenty of work in his short time as the Express Head Coach to implement his systems. That includes the power play. Some quick passes and puck movement were notable from the Express with the man advantage Wednesday.

It was a goal off the rush however that even things up for the Express on the power play. Alex Ambrosio raced into the Langley zone on the right wing. He caught a break as a Rivermen defender lost his footing allowing the Express captain to gain entry into the zone. He then put a backhand pass onto the tape of Eric Linell who tipped it home to tie the game at two.

This was the 5th meeting of the season between the Express and Rivermen. In most of the games between the two teams there has been an underlying animosity in the games. It was no different on Wednesday.

In the first period Doug Scott had a notable stare down with Sean Gulka. They met again in the final minutes of the second period. Scott was going to be penalized for a hit on Trevor St. Jean. Gulka didn't take too kindly to the hit and the two dropped the gloves. A pretty even fight saw each guy get in their fair share of shots. Earlier this season Scott had a fight pretty much in the same spot of the ice with Nik Ponak.

Just 13 seconds into the third period Eric Linell was shoved into the corner boards and had a pretty hard collision on the fresh ice. Fortunately for the Express forward he got up right away. But Carter Stephenson was called for boarding.

On the ensuing power play Linell made Stephenson pay scoring his second of the night from another set up by captain Alex Ambrosio at 2:05.

Midway through the third period Langley even things up again. A shot from the right point by Carter Stephenson was tipped by Ethan Leyh and the shot had just enough to trickle through Brock Hamm to tie the game at 3.

Four of the five games between these teams have been tied at some point in the final 6 minutes of the third period.

Wednesday's game was the second of those games to go to overtime. Josh Wildauer used his speed to draw a penalty coming out of the corner in the first overtime.

On the 4 on 3 advantage the Express moved the puck around looking for their opportunity to win it. But bad ice conditions late in the game made it a challenge for the Express to settle a bouncing puck.

Photo courtesy of Garrett James

The Express couldn't convert on their opportunity. They finished 2 for 6 on the power play. Langley was 1 for 2.

In 3 on 3 double overtime Wildauer was stopped powering in from the left wing. Langley goaltender Chad Kromar finished with 23 saves on 26 shots.

At the other end Brock Hamm made overtime saves on a Eric Butte breakaway. Then he had to reach back with all he could to keep a puck out that was rolling towards the goal line. Hamm finished with 31 saves.

With the tie the Express are still winless in their last 14 games, but more efforts like Wednesday and that streak won't last much longer.

The Express are back in action Friday in Chilliwack. 

MARK PETTIE INTERVIEW

Coquitlam Express President Mark Pettie discusses the decision Monday to relieve Barry Wolff as the Express Head Coach & GM and his replacement Jason Fortier.

WOLFF RELIEVED AS EXPRESS HEAD COACH

This is never an easy day. Especially when it involves a friend.

The Coquitlam Express have relived Barry Wolff as the Head Coach & GM of the Coquitlam Express. Jason Fortier has been hired as the new Head Coach and Assistant GM of the Express.

Barry was hired in the spring of 2013. Over the course of 4 plus seasons behind the Express bench Wolff guided the Express to a 88-148-7-15. His best success coming during his first season in 2013-14 when he led the Express to a 27-26-2-3 record. Then in the playoffs he guided the team to series wins over Prince George, Langley, Victoria and a four game sweep of Vernon for the second BCHL championship in Express history.

Wolff also served as an assistant coach and Head Coach with Team Canada West at the World Junior A challenge. Winning a gold medal in 2015.

See the Press release from the Express about the coaching change below.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 27, 2017

New Direction with Coaching Staff

The Jr A Coquitlam Express of the BCHL is pleased to announce the hiring of Jason Fortier as Head Coach and Assistant General Manager.

With 12 years of coaching at the Junior A and AAA Midget levels, Jason brings to the team deep experience and a long track record of success behind the bench.

His last two seasons were spent coaching in the CHL, most recently in 2016/17 as an Associate Coach with the OHL's Kitchener Rangers and then the prior 2015/16 season as Assistant Coach with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the QMJHL. During his season with Rouyn-Noranda, the Huskies won the QMJHL Championship and competed in the Memorial Cup, ultimately losing in overtime in the Tournament Final.

During the 2013/14 and 2014/15 seasons, Jason was the Head Coach and General Manager of the Jr A Toronto Lakeshore Patriots of the OJHL, winning back-to-back OJHL Championships and competing in the 2014 RBC Cup in Vernon, B.C. In these same two seasons, Jason also served as the Director of Hockey and Assistant Coach of the Toronto Nationals Midget AAA team, winning consecutive Ontario Midget AAA Championships and earning two trips to the Telus Cup Canadian Championship, claiming victory in the 2015 Tournament.

Over a six year time span, Jason compiled an impressive Jr A coaching record of 234 wins, 100 losses and 28 OTLs and he is one of the few coaches who have coached in the Memorial Cup, the RBC Cup and the Telus Cup.

Jason was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and played junior hockey in the OHL. He subsequently played in Germany and Holland, and then in the Central Hockey League in the USA. His maternal roots are in Trail, B.C. and his father played for the Smoke Eaters in the 1969/70 season. We are pleased to welcome Jason to the Express family and to the Coquitlam community.

At the same time, we want to thank Barry Wolff for his years of commitment and dedication to the Express. Barry helped the team to a BCHL Championship in 2013/14 and has worked tirelessly for the organization. We wish Barry every success in his future pursuits.

-30-
Media Contacts:

Mark Pettie
President, Coquitlam Express Jr. A Hockey Club
markp@coquitlamexpress.ca

BULLDOGS @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from Sunday's 4-2 Bulldogs win over the Express.

BULLDOGS PULL AWAY FROM EXPRESS IN 3RD

Express celebrate parents weekend - Photo courtesy of Damon James

Alberni Valley struck three times in the third period to break open a tight game en route to a 4-2 win over the Express. Click for boxscore

Josh Bruce had a power play goal
Photo courtesy of Damon James

The win salvaged the final game of a three game road trip for the Bulldogs.

It was a penalty filled affair in the first period. Mitchell Oliver opened the scoring for the Bulldogs by beating Brock Hamm with a one timer for a power play goal.

The Express had a lengthy first period two man advantage that buzzed with plenty of chances in the Bulldogs zone but they couldn't finish their chances.

Then on the fourth power play for the Express in the first period Josh Bruce tipped home a pass from Eric Linell to tie the game at one. Troy Robillard made a great play on the goal to hustle and hold the puck in the Bulldogs zone.

Poor ice conditions made for some pretty sloppy hockey for both teams all afternoon long.

The game remained deadlocked until Keaton Mastrodonato beat Brock Hamm with a wrist shot from the right wing midway through the third period.

Less than two minutes later the Express pressed for the equalizer and found it when Doug Scott jumped into the play and found a loose puck in front of the Bulldogs net and poked home his first BCHL goal at 11:37.

That didn't phase the Bulldogs who kept up their attack in the third period. Ryan Steele re-stored the Bulldogs lead just 2 and a half minutes later to make it 3-2. That goal was followed by Jackson Doucet who beat Brock Hamm with a wrist shot up over his glove just 1:18 after Steele's goal at 15:23 to seal the win for Alberni Valley. That goal capped a 17 shot third period for the visitors.

The shots finished 41-28 in favour of Alberni Valley.

Up next for the Express they have a pair of games next weekend up in Prince George.

WILD 5 EXPRESS 1

Murphy Stratton and Jasper Weatherby each scored twice to pace the Wild in a 5-1 win over the Express. Click here for boxscore

Stratton's two goals came in the opening 8 minutes of the game to give the Wild a 2-0 first period lead.

His first goal saw Stratton re-direct a Sam Hesler pass through the pads of Brock Hamm. 3:50 later Stratton snapped home a pass from Chad Sasaki on Wenatchee's first power play of the night. Wenatchee peppered the Express net with 17 first period shots, while at the other end Wild goaltender  Austin Park only saw 5 first period shots sent his way.

Haydn Delorme cut the Wild lead in half on a second period power play. The puck came to the Express rookie in the slot who chopped a shot home for his third goal of the season. The Express went 1 for 3 on the power play.

Then in the final minute of the middle period Delorme had some bad puck luck behind the net. Delorme saw bounce over his stick behind the net when he tried to reverse it but it was stolen by Jasper Weatherby who potted his 20th of the season on a wraparound for a 3-1 Wild lead after 40 minutes.

Weatherby overtook Surrey's John Wesley for the BCHL lead in goals with second of the night and 21st of the season on a two man Wild advantage early in the third period. Wenatchee finished 2 for 5 on the power play.

Cooper Zech rounded out the scoring snapping home a shot from the slot at 18:18.

Wenatchee finished with 47 shots while the Express struggled all night to generate many quality chances finishing with a season low 14 shots. The set back was the 10th straight loss for the Express.

The Express return to action Sunday afternoon when they host the Alberni Valley Bulldogs. 

EAGLES @ EXPRESS HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights from Surrey's 5-3 win over the Express Saturday.

EAGLES SWEEP HOME AND HOME

- Photo courtesy of Damon James

Much like 24 hours ago in Surrey the Express battled the Eagles down to the final moments only to see Surrey seal the game in the final minute with an empty net goal. Saturday it was a 5-3 Eagles win coming on the heels of a 4-2 Surrey win Friday night. Click here for boxscore

Brock Hamm was named first star - - Photo courtesy of Damon James

The start was a different story for the Express. Friday Surrey jumped out to a 2-0 first period lead. Saturday the Express returned the favor.

Haydn Delorme opened the scoring for the Express just over 5 minutes in the game when his wrist shot was stopped by Daniel Davidson but the rebound bounced off a Surrey defender and into the net for his Delorme's of the season.

1:11 later Josh Bruce took advantage of Cory Babichuk getting hauled down and losing the puck springing a breakaway for Bruce who scored for a 2-0 Express lead. It was the third straight game for the Express vs. Surrey that they scored a shorthanded goal.

Former Express Dominic Masellis started the Surrey comeback when he picked off a Express clearing attempt and snapped a shot through the pads of Brock Hamm.

Two minutes after the Masellis goal with the Express already shorthanded, Lucas Wong collided knee on knee with Desi Burgart, the Eagles forward was hurt on the play and didn't return. Wong was assessed a 5 minute major for a game misconduct for kneeing.

On the two man advantage John Wesley who had a hat-trick Friday, teed up a one timer for Owen Norton who fired it home to tie the game at two.

Surrey had four powerplays in the first period which helped their cause to finish the period with a 18-7 advantage in shots. The Express started the game by outshooting Surrey 4-0.

Landon Fuller gave the Express their second lead of the night early in the second period as he blasted home a slap shot for his first Express goal in his second game with the club.

Friday night neither team could strike on a  combined 15 powerplays for the Express and Eagles.

Surrey's Jeffrey Stewart scored the third power play goal of the game when he converted a pass from behind the net to tie the game at 3. The Eagles finished 2 for 8 on the power play while the Express went 1 for 3.

Like many games for the Express this season,


the game was hanging in the balance going to the third period. They needed someone to rise to the occasion to get that key third period goal to get them back in the win column.

Josh Bruce had multiple bids to get that key goal for the Express. In the opening minute of the third period his chance set up by Alex Ambrosio was stopped by Daniel Davidson.

At the 6 minute mark Connor Sundquist had his shot stopped by Brock Hamm, then Chase Danol put the rebound off the post and finally Aaron White buried the third chance to give the Eagles their first lead of the night.

Landon Fuller - Photo courtesy of Damon James

Josh Bruce found himself alone in front of the net and was robbed by Daniel Davidson to keep Surrey in the lead with 4 minutes to play. That goal proved to by the key chance the Express needed to finish for the equalizer.

In the final minute Ryan Brushett hit the empty net to seal the win for Surrey.

The Express have had 16 of their 21 games this season decided by two goals or less. They have 8 games decided by two goals with 5 of those games sealed with an empty net goal by the opposition. That shows just how tight the difference has been between winning and losing for the Express in a good chunk of their games this season.

Up next for the Express is a Thursday visit to the Langley Rivermen. 

WESLEY'S HAT-TRICK PACES EAGLES BY EXPRESS

John Wesley's hat-trick paced the Eagles attack in a 4-2 win Friday night in Surrey. Click here for boxscore

He hit the 20 goal plateau in the first of a home and home between the two teams.

The game saw three new members of the Express make their debut. Oliver Lester and Landon Fuller got the call on the blueline. And Brock Hamm started between the pipes.

Unfortunately for Hamm a 100 game WHL veteran he got off to a rough start. Chase Danol scored on a rebound for a 1-0 Eagles lead just 54 seconds into the game.

Then 54 seconds later Cory Babichuk who returned to the Eagles from the USHL slid a cross ice pass to John Wesley who scored his first of the night.

Rough start with two pucks getting past Brock Hamm within the first two minutes, but then he would settle in and have a pretty strong game the rest of the way.

Moments later another new member of the Express Oliver Lester got tangled up with an Eagle in the corner, he got up on his feet and was seen in discomfort. He didn't return for the rest of the game.

Friday's game was filled with penalties handed out to both sides. When the Express met Surrey two weeks ago their power play let them down going 0 for 5 in a 4-2 loss. It was the same story again Friday night.

The Express were given four first period powerplays, including a brief two man advantage for 11 seconds but the Express were unable to cut into the Eagle lead.

It was hard not to notice the third member of the Express making his debut with the team in the first period. Landon Fuller brings size at 6'5 and puck moving ability to the Express blueline. He narrowly missed connecting with Will Lawrence on a long breakaway pass. Then on the defensive side he used his long reach to poke the puck off the stick of John Wesley cutting in from the right wing.

In the opening moments of the second period Alex Ambrosio broke out with Eric Linell shorthanded. The captain put a pass on the tape of Linell who blasted home a one timer for his 8th of the season. It was the second shorthanded goal for the Express this season.

Wesley quickly restored Surrey's two goal lead converting a set up from behind the Express net by Ty Westgard just 1:34 after Linell's goal.

It was at this point Brock Hamm really settled into the game for the Express. One of his best saves off the night came off a rush as Hamm came to his right and got his pad down to rob Jordan Robert on an odd man rush. Hamm finished the game turning aside 36 of the final 37 shots sent his way after the first two Eagles shots went in. He was recognized as the game's second star.

Penalties assessed to the Express in the first half of the third period cut into time the Express could have used to cut into the Eagles lead. The Express penalty killers deserve credit for killing off all 8 Eagle powerplays.

Will Lawrence made his return to the Express after missing the previous three weeks. He buried the rebound of a Alex Ambrosio shot to make it a 3-2 game with just under 5 minutes remaining in the third period. Ambrosio finished with two assists and Eric Linell had one goal and one assist.

A scrum late in the third period resulted in the 6th power play of the night for the Express. It was a pretty ineffective man advantage with lots of puck control, but not many dangerous chances generated. That was a pretty consistent theme on a 0 for 7 night on the power play for the Express.

In the final minute the puck came back to Landon Fuller at the Eagle blueline, but it bounced over his stick forcing him to go back for the puck in the Express zone, moments later the puck was on the stick of Jordan Robert who set up Wesley who hit the empty net for his third of the night.

The Eagles finished the game outshooting the Express 42-32.

The return matchup of the home and home will be played Saturday night in Coquitlam.

EXPRESS SHUFFLE ROSTER

Head Coach and GM Barry Wolff has been busy this week, especially with his GM duties.

He's made a number of moves to change the look of the Express roster.

It started Monday when the Express traded veteran forward Mitch Newsome (97) to the Humboldt Broncos (SJHL) for goaltender Brock Hamm (97).

Newsome was acquired by the Express on January 10, 2016 from the Salmon Arm Silverbacks in exchange for future considerations.

In parts of three seasons with the Express, the Surrey native dressed in 61 games scoring 11 goals and adding 25 assists for 36 points. He also had 1 goal and 1 assist in 3 playoff games with the Express in 2016.

Hamm, a Saskatoon native comes to the Express where he played the previous three seasons with the Saskatoon Blades of the WHL. In 100 career WHL games Hamm has posted a record of 33-50-6-2 (wins-losses-overtime losses-shootout losses) with a 3.97 GAA and .886 save percentage. He also posted one shutout.

In 2015-16 Hamm played a career high 56 games posted a record of 21-26-3-0. He began his junior career with the Humboldt Broncos in the 2014-15 season where he posted a 9-10-0 record in 21 games while posting one shutout with a 2.78 GAA and .918 save percentage.

Wednesday, the Express traded the rights of forward Blake Hayward (98) to the Prince George Spruce Kings in exchange for forward Nic Holowko (97).

Hayward dressed for 107 games for the Express over the previous three seasons with 15 goals and 28 assists for 43 points. He also represented the Express twice at the World Junior A challenge winning gold in 2015. He committed to Union University late last last season. This season he dressed for 6 games with the Lincoln Stars of the USHL where he didn't register a point and was a -2.

Holowko comes to the Express with 208 career games of WHL experience with the Seattle Thunderbirds, Prince Albert Raiders and Kamloops Blazers. He has 21 goals and 32 assists for 53 points in his WHL career. He dressed for 7 games with Kamloops this season he has 3 goals and 1 assist.

Nic is the nephew of TSN 1040 radio host and long time TV sportscaster Don Taylor.

The final move the Express have made is adding defenseman Landon Fuller (99). The Express acquired his rights as future considerations in the January 2017 trade that sent Dominic Masellis to the Surrey Eagles.

Fuller comes to the Express from the Tri City Americans of the WHL. He brings some size to the backend at 6'5, 235 lbs.

He has 16 games of WHL experience over parts of 3 seasons with 1 assist. In 17-18 had his lone helper in 8 games. The Williams Lake native also split 44 games last season with Salmon Arm and Surrey with 1 goal and 4 assists for 5 points. 

EXPRESS VALIANT EFFORT FALLS SHORT IN CHILLIWACK

The Express haven't won in Chilliwack regular season or playoffs since the season finale in their championship year of 2014.

The streak was extended to 21 tonight, but it wasn't from a lack of effort tonight as the Express fell by a 6-5 score.  Click here for boxscore

The Express matched Chilliwack stride for stride as the two teams traded blows and goals all night long.

The visitors got off to a great start, it was sparked by Josh Bruce who scored his first Express goal on a breakaway at 4:27.

2:20 later it was 2-0 Express. Eric Linell raced after a loose puck in the Chilliwack zone and put a pass right on the tape of Sam Kozlowski who snapped home his 4th goal of the season. The goal for Kozlowski was his first in 11 games. He was pointless in his last 5 games entering Saturday's contest.

As fast as the Express took the two goal lead, Chilliwack erased it.

38 seconds after the goal by Kozlowski, Adam Berg on a tip of a Bryan Allbee point shot got the Chiefs on the board. 54 seconds later Jared Turcotte with shot from the boards found a hole on Clay Stevenson to tie the game at 2.

It only took the Express 40 seconds to restore their lead. Eric Linell found himself alone in the slot with the puck on his stick. His first shot was stopped by Mathieu Caron, but he buried his own rebound for a 3-2 Express lead. Linell finished with 1 goal and 2 assists.

When everything was said and done the teams combined for 5 goals in a span of 5:32. The three Express goals chased Chilliwack goaltender Mathieu Caron after only facing 6 shots.

In the opening minutes of the second period the Express got pucks to the net only to have pucks cleared away from the goal crease by Chiefs defensemen before any Express forwards could poke home the loose pucks.

While the Express couldn't convert on puck battles in the crease, Corey Andonovski found a loose puck in front of the Express net scoring his 4th of the season to tie the game at 3.

Midway through the period the Express took their third lead of the night. Alex Amborsio's shot was stopped by Daniel Chenard and Josh Bruce buried the rebound for his second of the night. The goal snapped a power play drought for the Express which hadn't scored in their previous 10 opportunities. Enterting the game the Express were just 3 for their last 45 on the man advantage.

Sam Kozlowski drew the second assist on the goal. He finished with 1 goal and 2 assists.

The rollercoaster ride Saturday night continued as Anthony Vincent scored 1:05 later for the Chiefs to tie it again at 4.

Then in the final minute of the second period the Chiefs took their first lead of the night on a goal by Kaden Pickering who sped into the Express zone and snuck a shot through Stevenson's pads at 19:32.

In the opening minutes of the third period Chilliwack seemed content to control the puck as much as they could in the Express zone, and not be overly concerned with throwing pucks at the net. Chilliwack's patience allowed the clock to slowly tick down while protecting a one goal lead.

Anthony Vincent snapped a shot through Stevenson for his second of the game to make it 6-4 at 12:05. That goal hurt the Express as they can't afford any soft goals with such a small margin of error that separates the difference between winning and losing for the Express.

Alex Ambrosio cut the deficit back to one with his 5th of the season at 13:34. Mitch Newsome quickly snapped it to Riley Johnson who made a quick one touch pass to Amborsio who snapped it home from the slot. The goal for the captain capped off a one goal and one assist night. He hadn't had a point in his previous 7 games.

That goal would be as close as the Express would come. They couldn't find the glorious chance that would result in the game tying goal that would send it to overtime.

Up next for the Express is a home and home next weekend with Surrey.

EAGLES DOUBLE EXPRESS

Clay Stevenson made 34 saves - Photo courtesy of Damon James

The Surrey Eagles reached the .500 mark (8-8-1-1) Saturday night by doubling the Express by a 4-2 score. For the Express it was their 5th straight setback. Click here for boxscore

It wasn't from a lack of effort from the Express, more so a lack of execution on the power play. The Express finished 0 for 5 Saturday night.

In the first period it looked as if Surrey was going to be the only team to get opportunities on the power play.

Aaron White opened the scoring on Surrey's first power play of the night sliding home the rebound of a Jackson Ross point shot at 1:34.

Just under 6 minutes later the Eagles struck again. Ty Westgard showed good poise as he gained entry in the Express zone and slowed down to look over his options and found John Wesley coming late and he slid a backhand through the pads of Clay Stevenson for a 2-0 Eagles lead.

The Express were called for the first four penalties of the night. While shorthanded the Express cut into the Eagles lead.

Newcomer Josh Bruce broke out on a 2 on 1 with Josh Wildauer, Devon Mussio got on his horse to join the rush. Mussio as a third option played a role to set up the goal as Mussio took a drop pass then slid it to Wildauer who tried to set up Bruce, but the pass hit the stick of Eagles defenseman Perry Winfree trying to get back in the play and in the net.

The first period saw both teams dish out a decent number of hits. Most notable for the Express was rookie Josh Graham. He along with Christian Sanda teamed up to deliver a big hit on Desi Burgart on the opening shift of the game. That hit was the spring board for a good game for Graham who was using his size very effectively delivering hits most notably in the first two periods. It got to the point that the Eagles were looking over their shoulder when number 26 was on the ice. By the third period they were getting a little tired of Graham's strong physical presence.

The Express effort level certainly was there from the Express all night. They started to turn the game in their favour in the second period. Only problem was they couldn't finish their chances. The Express outshot Surrey 14-11 in the middle period.

It was a tough start for the Express to the third period. Wesley beat Clay Stevenson with a slapshot for his second of the night just 27 seconds into the third period.

After Surrey got a run of powerplays in the first period, the Express got their run in the second and third periods. They couldn't finish on a double minor assessed to Jesse Nelson in the second period.

Jonathan Sheardown made his Express debut - Photo courtesy of Damon James

Then the Express got three more powerplays in the third period but couldn't take advantage of those chances to cut into the Eagles lead. Among those penalties assessed was a bench minor and a game misconduct to Eagles Head Coach Brandon West.

Eric Linell did cut into Surrey lead re-directing a Lucas Wong point shot to make it a 3-2 game with just under 7 minutes left in the third period.

The Express hoped that goal would be the spring board that would reward them for their strong play and find a way to tie the game.

It didn't end up to be the case as Ryan Brushett put the finishing touches on this game scoring with just 3:41 left in the third period to make it a 4-2 game.

Daniel Davidson finished with 26 saves to pick up the win for Surrey.

Up next for the Express is next Saturday in Chilliwack. Click here for boxscore

EXPRESS TRIO OF TRADES

The Express have made three seperate trades. In the deals that have brought in players to the Express future considerations have gone the other way.

They acquired forward Joshua Bruce (99) from the Powell River Kings and defenseman Jonathan Sheardown (98) from the Nipawin Hawks (SJHL).

Bruce from Surrey has played 25 career BCHL games with the Powell River Kings and Surrey Eagles. This season he has 1 assist in 4 games with Powell River. Last year he split the season with 3 games in Surrey and 18 in Powell River. Bruce has 2 goals and 5 assists for 7 points in his BCHL career. He also dressed for 6 games last year with Vancouver and Saskatoon of the WHL scoring 1 goal.

Sheardown started the season with the Sherwood Park Crusaders of the AJHL with 1 assist in 5 games. He was then traded to Nipawin for future considerations where he didn't dress for a game before being acquired by the Express.

The New Westminster native spent the previous two seasons with the Vancouver Northeast Chiefs of the BC Major Midget league. In 16-17 he was a point per game player with 17 goals and 23 assists in 40 games.

Defenseman Hunter Fraser has been traded to the Brockville Braves of the CCHL for future considerations. Fraser played 10 games with the Express this season registering 1 goal and 1 assist. 

WONG OT HERO FOR EXPRESS OVER RIVERMEN

The Express added to the overtime torment of the Langley Rivermen to give the Express a 2-1 win Friday night. Click here for boxscore

Lucas Wong's first BCHL goal gave the Express the win and dropped Langley to 0-6 in overtime this season.

Like a week ago between the two teams in Coquitlam it was a tight and tidy defensive game for the Express. This one only needed a few extra minutes for the Express to get the job done.

Dating back to Wednesday vs. Chilliwack the Express have been able to have veterans Will Lawrence, Mitch Newsome and Sam Kozlowski return to the lineup. That has allowed Head Coach Barry Wolff to spread some of his speedy forwards throughout the lineup.

Friday that balance paid off as the Express were able to roll through their lines consistently throughout the game and spend more time in the opposition zone.

The trio of Haydn Delorme, Colby Pederson and Eric Linell teamed up to open the scoring for the Express. Delorme chipped it in and Pederson got in on the forecheck to win the race for the puck and he set up Linell who snapped home the pass four minutes into the game. That would be the lone goal of the first period that saw Langley outshoot the Express 14-10.

Clay Stevenson got the call for the Express between the pipes. He had a steady game in the Express crease. He had to make some of his better saves of the night in the second period. He was very aggressive in his crease using his big frame to give the Langley shooters very little room to pick their spots.

Daneel Lategan late in the second snuck a shot from a sharp angle past Clay Stevenson to tie the game at one.

The Express penalty killing unit had a perfect five for five night. Most of those kills came at key times in the game as Alex Ambrosio was called for two penalties in quick succession late in the second period. The second of his penalties carried over into the third period.

Then in the final 7 minutes of the period the penalty killers shut down two more Rivermen powerplays.

At even strength in the third period the Express did a good job of rolling their lines and have some consistent puck control in the Rivermen zone. That work in the offensive zone made life easier for Clay Stevenson and the Express in their own end of the rink. Stevenson finished with 35 saves for his second victory of the season.

The game winning goal for the Express was a good reflection of the Express patience throughout the game. Sam Kozlowski button hooked inside the blueline to give himself some time, then he threw the puck at the net that was stopped by Lucas Wong reading the play went to the net and buried the rebound for the overtime winner on his first BCHL goal.

Coquitlam will play their next four outings on the road starting tomorrow night with the second meeting this week against Chilliwack. That will be followed by a weekend road trip next week in Victoria, Nanaimo and Powell River.