REGION CENTRE CUP VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

Some video highlights from the tournament have been sent my way. Here's the highlights from the first day of competition featuring Canada playing the Russian Junior Select Red Stars and Russia vs. Slovakia.

Here's the highlights from day two which includes Canada's 5-3 win over Russia.



Here's the highlights from the final day of the tournament which includes Canada's 6-3 win over Slovakia.

HOME...

It was another long day of travelling but the boys landed in Vancouver safe and sound Tuesday night. Everyone is a little jet lagged, but I'm sure everyone quickly made sure to get their first taste of whatever they were craving and missing back home. For me it was a Tim Hortons coffee.

Going back to the game vs. the Russian National team and Jayson Reardon getting jumped by a fan. There is a video of it and it was posted on Deadspin which is a sports entertainment site.

Check it out.

http://ca.deadspin.com/5793692/drunk-fan-joins-hockey-fight

COUPLE OF QUICK THINGS

The Russian Junior Red Select Red Stars finished the tournament 3-0 with a 5-3 win over the Russian national team. They battled back from a 3-1 third period deficit to get the win.

Captain Canada David Killip was presented the top forward award as part of the post game ceremonies. He was such a catalyst for Canada being in on the first goal in each of their first three games that they played.

Guys had a great night last night celebrating their trip and savouring their last few hours in Russia. We are back at the rink today to pack up the gear. Then shortly we will head back to Moscow for the night before heading to the airport to start making our way home.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the country and the people of Russia for making this trip so comforting for everybody. They welcomed us into their homeland and embraced the Canadians with so much admiration. Everyone was enjoying the last few moments last night they had to savour their friendly ways.

I have a few more house keeping things I would like to post on the blog perhaps after we get home.

Until then, Splaciba (Thank you) Russia!

GERVAIS LEADS CANADA ATTACK IN WIN OVER SLOVAKS

Bryce Gervais scored his first three goals of the tournament to pace Canada's attack in a 6-3 win over Slovakia to round out the Regional Centre Cup.

The win assured Canada a 2nd place finish with a 2-1 record.

They were facing a Slovakian side that was coming off a 12-1 schlacking from the Russian Junior Select Red Stars the day before.

Click to here to listen to Head Coach Tim Kehler's post game comments.

Canada got off to a fast start in the first period. They struck 4 times in a span of 4:49 on a pair of goals from Gervais and singles from Jarryd Ten Vaanholt and Austin Carroll.

It was a penalty filled second period. Slovakia got on the board just seconds into a 5 on 3 powerplay with a one timer from right point.

The Canadians got the goal back when Bryce Gervais completed his hat-trick by scoring on a 5 on 3 of their own.

Click to here to listen to Bryce Gervais' post game comments.

The teams traded goals to end the period and Brayden Jaw scored a well deserved goal to end the second period. He went to the net and banged home a a Justin Fillion rebound for Canada's 3rd powerplay goal of the afternoon.

Click to here to listen to Brayden Jaw's post game comments.

Canada surrendered a shorthanded goal with just over three minutes remaining to complete the scoring.

These two wins to finish the tournament takes this experience to a whole new level for the players, coaches, support staff and the parents.

Everybody left home in Vancouver on April 8th having no knowledge of what to expect when we arrived in Russia. Now that the tournament is complete for Canada, everyone will take home memories that will last a life time of a great trip.

Congratulations to General Manager Ron Paterson for doing a fantastic job of putting this whole trip together on short notice. This trip wouldn't be possible without the work he put in long before we left and when we got here.

Congratulations to Tim Kehler and Colin O'Hara for bringing this team together and guiding them to their 2nd place finish.

Hats off to Wayne Hubbard, Larry Martin, and Dan Illich for doing everything in their power to take care of the players needs at a moments notice.

Thank you to Alexei Volkov for being a translator here. His fantastic work made breaking the language barrier so easy. His easy going personality fit in so well with this group.

And last, but certainly not least congratulations to the players. They gave their all every single game. Will come away with the usual bumps and bruises. Those will heal and go away. But the memories they will come home with will last forever.

Everyone here did a fantastic job of representing Canada and the BCHL very well while in Russia.

CANADA WINS OVER RUSSIA

It was a win that everyone involved in this trip will remember for the rest of their lives.

In prime time Saturday night vs. a Russian National team, the Canadians walked out with a 5-3 win.

Click to here to listen to Head Coach Tim Kehler's post game comments.

It was a game that had a little bit of everything. And when I say everything, I mean it.

Canada came to play right from the get go and had their best start to a game so far. They controlled the flow of play for the first five minutes. I'm sure it went a long way to give the kids the confidence that they could play with their opponents, and it would carry them for the rest of the game.

Against the flow of play Russia opened the scoring when Ignat Zemchenko came out from behind the net and lifted a backhand over Khaleed Devji.

The Canadians proved they were ready to play when they responded with a pair of goals by Devin Gannon and Mike Hammond 19 seconds apart 3 minutes after the Russians opened the scoring. Captain David Killip assisted on the first goal. He has been in on the scoring in each of Canada's first goal in the three games played so far.

Russia pressed hard afterwards looking for the equalizer. But Khaleed Devji was there to shut them down. He made a number of great saves to keep Canada in the lead. His legs were particularly sharp. He was kicking out first and second shots throughout the course of the first period. Devji's strong play allowed Canada go to the room with their first lead of the tournament.

It didn't take long for the lead to be extended as Josh Manson's point shot was kicked out and Devin Gannon was there to bang home the rebound for his second goal of the game.

Russia again pulled back within one as Aleksandr Gogolev came down his off wing on the right side and fired a shot right through the wickets of Devji.

Josh Manson had Canada's response just over three minutes later when his shot from the left wing was deflected and got past the Kirill Brashkin. That's when they decided to make a goaltending change bringing in Sergei Kostenko.

Manson had a very strong game for Canada. He scored a goal and added an assist. He was also very physical levelling a number of the Russians with a few big hits.

The teams continued to trade goals in the second period and Pavel Medvedev wired a shot over the shoulder of Devji from the high slot to again pull Russia within a goal at 4-3.

This game drew the biggest crowd we have seen for this tournament to date. The rink was about two thirds full and the attendance was about 4000. It made for a fantastic energy in the building. The fans were constantly chanting and dancing all night among other things. More on that later.

The roar the crowd made when Russia looked like they were generating any form of an attack brought the volume level up immensely. They certainly brought their "A" game when it came to their passion and love for their team.

Midway through the second period Head Coach Tim Kehler decided to play a hunch. With Canada in the lead, and Khaleed Devji played pretty strong, Kehler decided to replace Devji with Kris Moore for the remainder of the game. Devji had given the manager enough innings and it was time to go to the bullpen and have Moore try and bring this one home with some long relief.

Click to here to listen to Khaleed Devji's post game comments.

That set up what would be a third period that these kids will remember forever.

The powerplay still hadn't struck for Canada so far in this tournament. But it came up with the perfect time to find the back of the net for the first time nearly 6 minutes into the third period. Jarryd Ten Vaanholt slid one under Kostenko to give Canada their second two goal lead of the game.

Special teams would play a large role in the third period allowing Canada to come away with the win.

Over the course of the third period Canada was penalized four times in the third period and Canada bent but didn't break. That included a 6 on 4 disadvantage with just over three minutes to go as Russia desperate to get back into the game pulled their goaltender for an extra skater. All four Russian powerplays were killed off.

Midway through the third period came a moment no one will ever forget. There was some pushing and shoving along the glass just inside the Russian blueline. All the skaters inside the ice were involved. Then out of the blue a Russian fan with one to many Vodka's on this night decided he wanted to help his boys out as he hopped over the glass and went after Jayson Reardon.

Click to here to listen to Jayson Reardon's post game comments.

Reardon was fine as he wrestled the fan to the ice allowing the officials to escort him to the penalty box then back into the stands for the authorities to deal with him.

It was a joyous dressing room as you can imagine after winning that one. Hugs and high fives and big smiles were everywhere. Leaving the rink there was a crowd of young kids there to meet the players and high five them after the win.

But you can't celebrate too much yet. There is still another game to be played vs. Slovakia. Canada has a chance now to finish in second place if they defeat Slovakia.

REGIONAL CENTRE CUP UPDATE

Three games are now in the books at the Regional Centre Cup. The Russian Junior Select Red Stars are proving to be far away the class of the tournament.

They improved to 2-0 for a total of 6 points under IIHF rules with their wins over Canada and then a 12-1 trouncing of Slovakia in the first game to be played on Saturday. The two teams were tied at one in the first period. And then the Red Stars took over scoring 11 unanswered goals.

Of the three games I have seen them play including the exhibition game vs. Canada on Wednesday, they have now outscored their opposition 27-5. No one should be surprised by the results as they are a team that has older, bigger and stronger players than the other three teams participating.

The second game yesterday between the Russian National team and Slovakia was very entertaining. It was a back and forth affair that saw Slovakia jump out to a 3-1 second period lead only to see Russia come back and tie it before the period was done.

Slovakia re-took the lead in the third only to see Russia tie it again and force overtime.

Russia did have a powerplay in the overtime but weren't able to take advantage. Russia outscored Slovakia 2-1 in the best of three shootout to win 5-4.

INTERESTING OBSERVATIONS OF RUSSIA

Here's a few of the little things here in Russia that have caught my eye.

The children here at the rink are having the time of their lives. They're constantly dancing, chanting and cheering on their team. At the game Friday night between the Russian National team and Team Slovakia there was a group of fans in the corner of the rink that didn't sit for the entire game. They were waving their flags constantly, clapping and chanting various players names throughout the game.

The Canadian players are like little celebrities here. The locals want to get to know them. They're constantly asking questions and being very friendly. They have made everyone's experience here in Russia very comforting.

When it comes to the games, the way they announce penalties and goals on the public address system is a little different. They will say announce it when it happened from the duration of the drop of the puck to start the game. For example if a goal was scored at 12:43 of the second period, they will announce it as happening at 32:43. It is the same for when they put the goals on the old scoreboard at the rink we played in for the exhibition game in Moscow vs. the Russian Junior Select Red Stars.

And the PA announcers will announce everything. They will announce when a team is at full strength even on a powerplay goal. They will say it even after the announcement of a powerplay goal.

When announcing the rules for overtime and a shootout, they will say "if the game remains equal, there will be a five minute overtime and a shootout competition."

There have been a few fights at the tournament. When Canada got into a few fights in their first game, mostly double minor roughing penalties were assessed. Today in the game between Slovakia and the Russian Junior Select Red Stars, 5 minute majors for fighting were handed out. But no game misconducts.

Whenever one travels to a foreign country the food is always something that one wonders what it will be like.

There are somethings that are different compared to back home. First off all, they put dill on nearly everything. To quote Assistant Coach Colin O'Hara "It's the Russian parsley." At some of the meals they will serve bread with slices of ham on them as a side dish.

At dinner yesterday when we arrived back at the hotel, they served what I guess the locals would call a salad. Personally it's hard to figure out what it truly was. The best way to describe it was beets that were on top of a layer of some raw fish. Then on top it had some mayonnaise that was colored pink from the beets. I tried it at least be adventourous. It didn't taste that bad, but I decided I wouldn't eat that much for the sake of possibly regretting it later.

RUSSIA JR SELECTS WIN CLOSER GAME

For the 2nd time in 48 hours team BCHL representing Canada took on the team of the Russian Junior Selects in the Region Centre Cup tournament opener. This time around it was a closer game seeing Canada fall by a score of 6-2.

Click to here to listen to Head Coach Tim Kehler's post game comments.

Canada came out playing a disciplined and structured style. Kris Moore got the start in between the pipes and set the tone for the rest of the game as he made a number of big saves including a spectacular diving glove save four minutes into the game.

The Red Stars broke through in the second half of the period with goals on the powerplay by Nikolai Lukyanchikov, at even strength by Albert Konozov and shorthanded by Nikita Trochicki in a span of 4:15 to open a 3-0 lead.

A pair of Salmon Arm Silverbacks teamed up in the second period to get Canada on the board as David Killip was set up by Josh Manson at 4:22. Just 1:42 later Canada pulled within one as both Malcom Mckinney and Jarryd Ten Van Holt were poking away and it was Ten Van Holt who was finally able to jam the puck under the Russian goaltender at 6:04.

The momentum shortly after the goal by Ten Vaan Holt had a chance to turn back to the Russians as Justin Fillion was called for slashing just 2:10 later giving Russia a powerplay. Canada survived the disadvantage keeping the Russian lead at just one.

However they were able to take a 4-2 lead to the second intermisson when Evgeni Mons scored at 17:49.

Russia did add a pair of goals in the third period to conclude the scoring.

Nikita Trochicki lead the Russian attack with a pair of goals.

It was a game that had some chippiness to it. Austin Carroll of the Coquitlam Express did get involved in a skirmish after linemate Malcom Mckinney was pushed to the end boards and was shaken up for the moment.

Click to here to listen to Austin Carroll's post game comments.

Things got a little more emotional at 9:12 of the third period with the teams skating 4 aside and tempers started to flare in the Canadian zone and everyone was paired off. Canada did stand tall to some of the shots sent their way by the Russians.

Click to here to listen to Devin Gannon's post game comments.

What was interesting to watch after everything settled down was to see every kid in the building make their way down to the Canadian penalty box and taunt the players.

There was a large contingent of kids in the building making up the 1500 in attendance which made for quite an energy inside the 8000 seat facility despite it being less than a quarter full.

Like the exhibition game on Wednesday, plenty of rubber was sent the way of the Canadian net. Kris Moore had a very strong game keeping the score more respectable than in the exhibition game.

Canada plays their second game of the tournament tomorrow vs. a Russian National Junior Team at 5:30 am Pacific time.

APOLOGIES FOR THE LACK OF RECENT UPDATES

Sorry I couldn't provide any more updates in a more timely manner. The internet access we have had at the Hotel in Podolsk has been spotty at best. I haven't been able to get a strong enough signal to even log into the blog at the hotel. I hope to be able to provide some updates while at the rink where internet access is a little better.

A VISIT INTO MOSCOW

The boys had a day off between their lone exhibition game Wednesday and the start of the tournament Friday vs. the same Russian Junior Select team that beat Canada 9-2 Wednesday night.

The team went to the rink in Podolsk which is a beautiful modern arena for a morning practice. The rink the tournament will by played in is an exact opposite to the facility the exhibition game was played in which was an old building but it had plenty of character.

After the morning skate everyone made their way to the local train station and took the 40 minute ride into the heart of Moscow.

While on the train, one of the locals was reading the newspaper and noticed the players in their Canadian jackets and he started up a conversation with the boys about an article in the paper about the game.

The headline of the paper stood out which said in big bold letters "GOODBYE CANADA!!!" in Russian.

The friendly gentleman on the train translated the article to the players. Yours truly was quoted in the paper. I guess they're trying to read the blog here in Russia. I was quoted as saying that the boys had a rough flight from Vancouver to London which was far from the truth. It was very smooth flying on both flights to get here.

While the players were getting the lowdown on the game in the newspaper, Head Coach Tim Kehler struck up a conversation with a young girl and they were breaking down the language barrier by writing notes in the girls note book. They were discussing how she learned her limited English.

Once we arrived into Moscow, we quickly went to the Red Square and got some special treatment to get onto the grounds and quickly snapped as many pictures as we could before they shut it down in preparation for a function later in the day.

Then it was off to the mall where the boys huddled up and made plans for the day. Most of them went Arbat Street which is a stretch that is full of little souvenier shops mixed with a number of big box stores.

It was a great time for everyone to do plenty of shopping. Everyone did their part to make sure they will be bringing home a piece of Russian culture. Whether it's the dolls (I bought a Vancouver Canucks one which I am extremely happy about) Players also bought some of those infamous furry hats.

We have a translator here by the name of Alexei who has been a great help taking care of everything we need from the moment we landed in Russia. Today he set us up with his young friend Jaroslav who guided everyone on their tour of the shopping district in Moscow.

After everyone was done shopping, we met at a clock at the foot of Arbat street at 6pm sharp and made our way back to the train and eventually came back to Podolsk for dinner.

Dinner was served as soon as we arrived back at the hotel then it was time to shut it down for the night and relax before the tournament opens for real on Friday vs. the Russian Junior Selects.

RUSSIA JR. SELECTS SEND EARLY MESSAGE

It was quite an eye opening experience for the boys representing Canada. They lost their exhibition game to the Russian Junior Select Red Stars team by a score of 9-2.

The Russian team put on a pretty fine display of skill, speed and puck possession.

Click to here to listen to Head Coach Tim Kehler's post game comments.

Kris Moore of the Salmon Arm Silverbacks got the start in goal and he continued his strong play from the playoffs in the opening period. He only allowed one goal as the Russian Junior Selects sent plenty of pucks his way.

Click to here to listen to Kris Moore's post game comments.

The Russian Junior Selects had a little more luck in the second period. Putting a pair of pucks past Moore to extend their lead to 3-0 before Moore stepped aside allowing Khaleed Devji to play the second half of the game which was the plan heading into the game.

The Express netminder allowed a goal two minutes after entering the game.

Captain David Killip of the Salmon Arm Silverbacks got the True North Strong and free on the board when he was on the receiving end of a nice pass from Coquitlam's Jake Charles.

Click to here to listen to David Killip's post game comments.

The RJS beat Devji three more times before the period was done with two of them being goals and another hitting the post.

It was 6-1 for the Russian Junior Selects after two periods.

The Russian Junior Selects have an older and bigger team than the one representing the BCHL. First of all, players were available to be selected from a Under 22 junior league. So they had 5 89's and 8 90's on their roster. Team Canada has 5 90's on the team.

It was a 7-1 game in the third period when another member of the Express was able to find the net as Malcom Mckinney scored from in front. Mckinney and the rest of his linemates from Coquitlam Jake Charles and Austin Carroll had a pretty solid game despite the lopsided score.

Brayden Jaw of the Nanaimo Clippers was also noticeable especially in the first two periods being a physical force whenever he could.

The home team added two more goals in the third period to round out the scoring.

They had a chance in the final 90 seconds to hit double digits when they were awarded a penalty shot. It was then the Russians got real cocky and looked to rub it in. Number 32 took the penalty shot. (The roster sheet provided only had the players names in Russian) and he decided he was going to dangle with the puck with one hand on his stick and try and pull a fast one past Devji but it didn't work.

Despite allowing 9 goals, the penalty killing had a pretty strong night for the Canadians. They killed off the first four Russian powerplays before finally surrendering a powerplay goal which had little impact on the outcome as it was the 9th goal of the game for the Russian Junior Selects

The same two teams will do it all again Friday night here in Russia when the tournament gets underway for real.

LINE UP FOR EXHIBITION GAME

Here is your line up for tonight's exhibition game vs. the Russia Junior Selects.

Goaltenders Kris Moore and Khaleed Devji are expected to split the game. Head Coach Tim Kehler said he would speak with both goaltenders before deciding on who will get the start.

22- Bryce Gervais	25 - Mike Hammond	24 - Rjay Berra
17 - Brett Knowles	18 - David Killip	20 - Devin Gannon
12 - Jarryd Ten Vaanholt	16 - Evan Richardson	19 - Brayden Jaw
21 - Jake Charles	15 - Austin Carroll	26 - Malcom Mckinney

5 - Jayson Reardon	6 - Josh Manson
4 - Mitch Jones	3 - Justin Fillion
2 - Troy Paterson	24 - Brandon Pfeil

1 - Kris Moore

31 - Khaleed Devji

BREAKAWAY COMPETITION VIDEO

Here's some video of a breakaway competition the boys had at the skate Tuesday night.

FINALLY A GAME TO PLAY

It is game day for the boys, albeit an exhibition game against the Russian Junior Selects. But everyone is ready to hit the ice and play a game.

They've had a few two a day practice sessions and a single practice yesterday. Now I think everyone is sick of competing against themselves and are looking forward to their first opportunity to measure themselves up against one of the teams they will face when the tournament begins on Friday.

The players and coaches are at the rink now for their game day skate which begins shortly. Then it's back to their rooms to pack everything up from the Russian Olympic training centre before packing up the truck with the gear and get on the bus and head to the Vityaz Sports Arena for the game at 6:30pm local time. (5:30am Wednesday back home.)

The real deal begins begins on Friday again vs. today's opponent the Russian Junior Selects. Then they will face a Russian Junior National team Saturday at 6:3o pm local time. Then the tournament will wrap up Sunday with a game vs. Slovakia at 3:00 pm local time.

VISIT TO THE KREMLIN

After breakfast this morning, everyone hopped on the bus and we all went into the heart of Moscow. We went and visited The Kremlin which is where Russian President Vladimir Putin does his work.

Words do not do justice to describe the beauty seen in the building. On our tour, part of the first place we saw was where Russian Tsars and other visitors would take residence while staying there.

We weren't allowed to take pictures, but I can tell you it was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen or likely will ever see in my life. Absolutely stunning crystal chandeliers, gold all over the walls.

All visitors were under instruction to stay on the carpet the entire time on the tour. Once we got to the second floor, everyone was allowed to take their cameras out and start taking pictures.

More beautiful architecture and paintings on the walls. No two rooms were any where near similar looking. Each one was very unique on it's own.

There was a grand hall which was just stunning. Along the walls, there were names of military personnel who received awards for their service. Plus, there was a hall way full of paintings of Russian Generals. Perhaps the most stunning display was another grand room which had a Royal throne which was something to be seen.

Even the hard wood floors in some parts were something to be seen on their own.

We were in the area not too far from the Red Square, but we didn't have time to get there today. We hope to get a chance to see it later on in the week.

Now the boys have a quick rest, before hitting the ice for an evening practice.

JERSEY NUMBERS

Here is the numerical roster for this team.

1 - Kris Moore
2 - Troy Paterson
3 - Justin Fillion
4 - Mitch Jones
5 - Jayson Reardon
6 - Josh Manson
12 - Jarryd Ten Vaanholt
15 - Austin Carroll
16 - Evan Richardson
17 - Brett Knowles
18 - David Killip
19 - Brayden Jaw
20 - Devon Gannon
21 - Jake Charles
22 - Bryce Gervais
23 - Brandon Pfeil
24 - RJ Berra
25 - Mike Hammond
26 - Malcom Mckninney
31 - Khaleed Devji

HELLO FROM RUSSIA

Good morning... It took me more than a day to get my internet to work in my room so I wasn't able to post anything until now.

It's day two for this Team in Russia. We had a long day and a half travelling from Vancouver and eventually arriving here in Moscow.

Our first flight took us northeast towards Nunavut, then by Greenland, over Iceland before finally making it's way to London. We had about a 7 hour lay over in London on Saturday. So most of the guys took the down time and took the train from Heathrow Airport to the Subway, then they took that right into the heart of London.

Assistant Coach Colin O'Hara had spent some time in London in the past, so he was our tour guide through London and did a fantastic job and taking us around to see Buckingham Palace, Westminister Abby, Big Ben etc.

Then it was back to the airport for our flight to Moscow. We arrived around 5am local time and made our way to where we are staying at the moment which is the Russian Olympic training centre.

The boys skated in the evening on their first night. They skated again this morning, and will have another skate at night.

From what I have heard, the two Russian teams have been fairly impressive looking in practice. So Tim Kehler knows the teams his squad will face will be good.

The weather here is still fairly cool. Right around the freezing mark. There is snow on the ground. And there's been some flakes falling from time to time.

RON PATERSON INTERVIEW

The GM of this group of BCHL players that will represent Canada at the invitational tournament in Podolsk Russia spoke with the Team 1040's Barry Macdonald in advance the team departing overseas.

Click to here to listen to the interview. (Audio courtesy of Team 1040).

The team leaves for London Friday night, then will make their way to Moscow before finally settling into Podolsk. They will play some exhibition games before the tournament begins playing three games vs. the other three teams participating with the team with the most points accumulated being declared the winner.