This Friday night the Peninsula Panthers will host the Westshore Wolves in their first home game of the 2014/15 season.
First-year bench boss Grant Sjerven will be directing the team Friday and after running the club through main camp last weekend followed by a week of practice, he said he feels the club is ready to compete.
“We have a lot of kids from the Peninsula on the team and I am pretty sure that we will play a hard-working and entertaining brand of hockey,” said Sjerven.
“At this time of year we are still trying to put all the pieces of the puzzle together but it makes for exciting hockey.
“We are all pretty excited to lace up the skates for real on Friday.”
Panthers’ owner and manager Pete Zubersky said he has seen his fair share of season openers and is looking forward to Friday night.
“It will be a young team once again and that includes our goaltending. Seventeen-year-old Will Harvey is a Nanaimo product and he will get the start between the pipes.
“A kid to watch will be Connor Mowatt who played Midget hockey in Nanaimo last season. He will not turn 16 until October but is as big as a house and likes to use his size,” Zubersky continued.
“The lineup will feature a lot of locals who played their minor hockey out here on the Peninsula and I know they are really excited to get going.”
The Panthers beat the Wolves in five games in the first round of the playoffs last season and the rivalry is expected to heat up once again, Zubersky said.
The home opener beings at 7:30 p.m. at Panorama Recreation Centre.
For more information visit ppanthers.bc.ca.
reporter@peninsulanewsreview.com
