The Nelson Leafs ready for the Posse to arrive
By The Nelson Daily Sports
Riding a four-game winning streak the Nelson Leafs roll out the red carpet for the Princeton Posse in Kootenay International Junior Hockey League action Saturday night at the NDCC Arena.
The 9-5 Leafs, third in Murdoch Division standings, host a struggling Posse currently treading water in a seven-game losing streak.
Ironically, the last time Princeton won a game was in late September when the Posse defeated was the Nelson Leafs.
“Give them credit, they played a good game although I thought the score wasn’t indicative of the game,” said Leaf coach Dave McLellan of the 6-2 loss September 25 in Princeton.
“But we expecting a good game (against Princeton).”
“When a team is struggling, and we’ve had a rash of teams playing us, they find ways not to lose,” McLellan added. “So we expect a tough game Saturday against Princeton.”
The Leafs won twice last weekend, scoring just enough times to know off 4-9 Grand Forks and 3-10-0-0-1 North Okanagan.
Leafs rocky start all but a distant memory
A quarter of the way into the season, the Leafs are on a bit of a roll after a rollercoaster start.
But wins in four straight games has the coaching staff pretty happy about the direction of the Green and White.
“This is a young team,” said McLellan. “We expecting it to take time for the defence to settle in and learn how to play Junior hockey. We’re getting much better in all aspects of the game so we’re pretty happy with the direction we’re going.”
No luck Miller
If Leaf captain Rayce Miller didn’t have bad luck he’d wouldn’t have any luck at all.
Miller will miss Saturday’s game against Princeton after taking a puck to the face Sunday against North Okanagan Knights.
Miller had some dental work and mouth surgery this week.
Miller has had a tough start to the season.
The Arizona native started the season recovering from Plantar fasciitis, an injury that limited off-season training.
The injury kept Miller out of the lineup before being cleared to play a few games into the season.
However, McLellan knows first hand the skill of Miller and is hoping early season injury bug goes away so the Leaf counterman can return to his all-star self.
Showcasing Nelson Minor Hockey Champs
Before the game, the Leafs will host the two West Kootenay Minor Hockey Champions from Nelson.
The Bantam House and Peewee House champs from 2015 will be in the building, skating a victory lap on the ice before Saturday’s game.
