Warriors, Mammoth Meet for Final Pre-season Tune-up
The Vancouver Warriors are getting ready for their final pre-season game Saturday night against the Colorado Mammoth.
The final exhibition game between the two squads will take place at Langley Events Centre Fieldhouse on Saturday, November 22nd at 7:00 p.m. PT. This match-up between Vancouver and Colorado will be a preview of the home opener next Saturday.
The Warriors are coming off a 17-11 loss to the San Diego Seals on November 15th. Lefty forward Marcus Klarich notched a hat trick, while Keegan Bal and Ryan Sheridan had a pair of goals each. The black and gold got singles from forwards Payton Cormier and Jesse King, and defencemen Shane Simpson and Remo Schenato.
Vancouver opened the scoring in the first quarter, but the Seals went on a five-goal run and held a 9-4 lead going into halftime. The Warriors made a push with five goals in the fourth quarter, but the Seals kept pace, taking the game 17-11.
Goaltender Christian Del Bianco played between the pipes for Vancouver for three quarters and Connor O’Toole played in the crease for one quarter.
Head Coach and GM Curt Malawsky said it was an important learning experience heading into their last week of preseason action. He’s looking for harder compete and overall consistency from the group.
“The highs were too high, and the lows were too low, and I didn’t like that we didn’t have that even keel; we didn’t play a consistent quarter,” Malawsky said. “They hit their shots, our power play didn’t cash in when we had the chance to cash in, and they outcompeted us. That’s not something you want to throw in the garbage can, you have to learn from that for sure, and we just have to be better. It’s our first game, no excuses, but we just can’t play like that again.”
This is the third preseason game for the Mammoth, Colorado’s first preseason game against the Halifax Thunderbirds ended in a tie 14-14 and in their second contest, they beat the Toronto Rock 11-10 in overtime.
Colorado returns its top two scorers from last season. Ryan Lee collected 95 points (36G, 59A) and New Westminster native Will Malcom notched 81 points (35G, 46A).
The Mammoth have some new faces as well, including Pitt Meadows native and former Warrior Dylan McIntosh. Other new faces include goaltender Kaleb Martin, forwards Andrew Kew, Braedon Saris, Jameson Bucktooth, defencemen Ari Stevens, Ben Stewart, Warren Jeffrey, AJ Mercurio, Dylan Hess, Reese Barnes, Connor Nock, and faceoff specialist Matthew Paolatto.
Kew, who tallied 74 points (28G, 46A) with the Georgia Swarm last season, scored five goals in their second pre-season game against Toronto.
Admission to the exhibition game at Langley Events Centre is free, and is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Fans can RSVP now to secure their spot by clicking here.