News

The Valencia Flyers Junior A Hockey Club is proud to introduce Bill Muckalt as the new Head Coach of the Valencia Flyers.

black296tuuk — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 01:27:00 GMT

As an eight year NHL veteran and 1996 & 1998 NCAA Division I National Champion with the Michigan Wolverines, Coach Muckalt hales from Vancouver, British Columbia and now resides in Valencia, CA and has been named the Head Coach of the Valencia Flyers Junior A Hockey Club playing at the Ice Station in the WSHL (Western States Hockey League). Having played with the Vancouver Canucks, N.Y. Islanders, Ottawa Senators and most recently the Minnesota Wild, he has had the opportunity to play for and learn from some of the best coaches in the game today, including Mike Keenan, Jacques Lemaire, Jacques Martin and Red Berenson. During his career Coach Muckalt was considered a power forward with a knack for the net. He was the runner up for the prestigious Hobey Baker Award annually given to the Nations outstanding division I hockey player. He was twice named the NHL’s rookie of the month in the 1998/1999 campaign.

As the new Head Coach of the Flyers Bill brings a tremendous amount of experience and knowledge to the Flyers program. His philosophy is that of a well conditioned, disciplined team with focus being on hard work and integrity. Having had success at Eastern Michigan University first as an assistant and then as a head coach, Bill knows what it takes to make a hockey team successful.

“I am looking forward to the opportunity I have here to not only bring a WSHL Championship to Valencia but to be able to grow hockey in general for Southern Ca. I am excited to get started and am truly looking forward to working with not only the core from last year’s team but all of the new talent that we will be bringing in this season. I am truly amazed at the talent not only here at the Ice Station but in Southern Ca as a whole”

Selected by Vancouver Canucks round 9 #221 overall 1994 NHL Entry Draft

			Regular Season					Playoffs
Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1994-95	U. of Michigan	NCAA	39	19	18	37	42
1995-96	U. of Michigan	NCAA	41					28	30	58	34
1996-97	U. of Michigan	NCAA	36	26	38	64	69
1997-98	U. of Michigan	NCAA	46	32	35	67	94
1998-99	Vancouver Canucks	NHL	73	16	20	36	98	--	--	--	--	--
1999-00	Vancouver Canucks	NHL	33	4	8	12	17	--	--	--	--	1999-00
1999-00	New York Islanders	NHL	12	4	3	7	4	--	--	--	--	1999-00
2000-01	New York Islanders	NHL	60	11	15	26	33	--	--	--	--	2000-01
2001-02	Ottawa Senators	NHL	70	0	8	8	46	--	--	--	--	2001-02
2002-03	Minnesota Wild	NHL	8	5	3	8	6	5	0	0	0	2002-03

2009 Prospect Camp Schedule

black296tuuk — Fri, 29 May 2009 00:37:00 GMT

The Valencia Flyers will be hosting their 2009 Prospect Camp from Friday May 29, 2009 to Sunday May 31, 2009. Please see below for the full schedule.

Friday May 29th, 2009
05:00pm - 06:00pm: Registration/Check-in
06:00pm - 06:45pm: Orientation/ Greet-n-Meet
07:30pm - 08:30pm: Teams 1 & 2 Game
08:45pm - 09:45pm: Teams 3 & 4 Game

Saturday May 30th, 2009
10:45am - 11:30pm: Teams 1 & 2 Practice
11:30pm - 12:15pm: Teams 3 & 4 Practice
01:00pm - 02:00pm: Players & Coaches Lunch/Q & A*
04:00pm - 05:00pm: Teams 1 & 3 Off-ice Testing**
05:00pm - 06:00pm: Teams 2 & 4 Off-ice Testing**
06:45pm - 07:45pm: Teams 1 & 3 Game
08:00pm - 09:00pm: Teams 2 & 4 Game

Sunday May 31st, 2009
09:45am - 10:45am: Teams 1 & 4 Game
11:00am - 12:00pm: Teams 2 & 3 Game
12:30pm: Camp All-Star Rosters Posted***
12:30pm - 02:30pm: Exit Interviews (non All-star players)
04:30pm - 05:30pm: Camp All-star Game
06:00pm - 07:45pm: Exit Interviews (All-star players)

*Players & Coaches Lunch will be in the banquet room upstairs at Ice Station Valencia
**All Off-ice sessions will be at Valencia High School (across the street from Ice Station Valencia)
***All-Star Rosters do not reflect who will be invited to Main Camp

Prospect Camp Dates Set, Sign Up Now!

black296tuuk — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 02:40:00 GMT

The Valencia Flyers Junior A Hockey Club will be hosting their annual Prospect Camp May 29th-31st at Ice Station Valencia. This is your chance to become a part of the winning tradition that the Flyers have established.

The Flyers are coming off of their most succesful season yet, coming within 1 game of a berth at the USA Hockey Tier III National Championships and having several players move on to the NCAA level.

Included in this 3 day camp are up to 4 on ice sessions all run by the Flyers coaching staff, off ice testing and training, team jersey, group lunch on Sat. and individual player interviews with Flyers coaches and management.

All players must pre-register by May 15th to ensure a spot at camp. And all camp attendees will need to register with USA Hockey for the 2009-2010 season. You can download your registration form here.

Cost for the camp is $199. Spots are limited so make sure to get your deposit in to reserve your place at this exciting camp. For more information and to register stop by Ice Station or visit us at http://www.valenciaflyers.com/ or contact Coach Hartly at (661) 775-8686 ext 227 or email to chartly@icestation.net or Scott Allegrini @ 661-775-8686 ext. 204 or email to scott@icestation.net

Flyers’ Most Successful Season Comes to an End

black296tuuk — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:36:00 GMT

The Valencia Flyers' season came to an end over the weekend as they lost to the Phoenix Polar Bears in the WSHL Western Division Playoffs. It was the first appearance in the division finals for the Flyers and although they had their most successful season to date the loss still leaves a sour taste in their mouths. "We are very proud of what we accomplished this year, "declared Flyers coach Chris Hartly. " We definitely would have liked to continue on a bit longer this year and we know that we had the potential to go further. We just came up a little short. But we don't want that to take away from what we accomplished this season as an organization."

In game one of the division series, which was played at the Polar Ice Arenas in Arizona, the Flyers showed the potential that coach Hartly was talking about. Just 1:31 into the first period the Flyers struck first as Jon Asher redirected a shot from Anthony Kendryna past the Polar Bears' goalie. With the early lead the Flyers continued to take it to Phoenix as they outshot them 17-5 in the first period. Brian Voogt had a chance to add to the lead in the last minute of the period as he was streaking towards the net on a breakaway, but he was hauled down by a Phoenix back checker. The ref didn't hesitate in awarding him a penalty shot and Voogt made good on his chance and gave the Flyers a 2-0 lead with just 52 seconds remaining in the period.

Phoenix regrouped and came battling back in the second period. They outshot Valencia 10-6 and got the only goal of the period as well. So with just 20 minutes left to play in game one the Flyers were holding on to a 2-1 lead. The third period was filled with intense back and forth action as both teams were gunning for the next goal. The Flyers would get the bounce they were looking for as Andrew Monesi would score off a pass from Steffan Buck to make it 3-1. The intensity would continue all the way to the end of the game and thanks to an empty net goal from Daniel Chang the Flyers won game one 4-1.

Game two would have a different tone. Phoenix came storming out of the gates and took it to Valencia the entire game. They got 5 goals in the first period, 3 while on the powerplay, and 2 more goals in the second. They outshot the Flyers 33-10 and really just controlled the whole game. The only goal for the Flyers belonged to Monesi who scored on a powerplay in the first period off a pass from Nic Calma.

So with the series tied at 1 game apiece, the teams rolled into Sunday's deciding game 3 looking for the victory. Phoenix would get the scoring going with a goal at 18:13 mark of the first period, but the Flyers would answer back with a powerplay goal from Casey Howard. Anthony Kendryna and Christian Starr had the assists. The tie wouldn't last long as Phoenix scored again to take a 2-1 lead into the second period.

That goal would prove to be the game winner as the Polar Bears would score six more goals and go on to win the game 8-1. The win gave Phoenix the Western Division Title and a trip to the league finals as well as to nationals.

The loss marked the end of the road for the Flyers' season. Although they fell one game short of reaching their goal of winning the division they did have a very successful season. They set franchise records for most wins in a season (32) and for highest placement in the regular season (second). They hosted their first ever home playoff series and they advanced to the second round of playoffs for the first time.

"We made a really good run at it this year. Our guys battled hard all season and should be proud of what they have accomplished" added coach Hartly. "It's not the final outcome that we were looking for, but it was definitely a success."

Flyers Help Fight Hunger

black296tuuk — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 00:35:00 GMT

The Valencia Flyers showed their softer side last week when they showed up in force to Feed the Children, formerly Hunger Defense Fund.

Feed the Children is a nonprofit humanitarian relief organization located in Santa Clarita, California and is dedicated to reaching out to needy children and their families here in the United States and around the world. Feed the Children responds to natural disasters here in the United States and around the world by providing food, clothing, personal hygiene items, water, blankets etc. to those in need. Feed the Children has a Distribution Center in Santa Clarita were they distribute food, clothing, personal hygiene items, vitamins, over the counter medicines, toys, diapers etc. each week to needy individuals and their families.

The Flyers players donated their time at the distribution center last Tuesday. They helped unload all the donations that came in and stocked the shelves of the warehouse with all the groceries that were donated by local stores.

Flyers Captain Andrew Monesi was behind the set up of the team outing. And when asked about the day he responded, "It's great to see the community and local grocery stores helping out the less fortunate."

Flyers Making History on Their March to the Cup

black296tuuk — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 20:42:00 GMT

The Valencia Flyers post-season has been full of firsts.To start with they were playing their first ever home playoff series. After finishing second in the regular season they were playing host to the San Diego Gulls (3^rd) in the first round of the WSHL (Western States Hockey League) playoffs at Ice Station Valencia.

After taking the regular season series 5-3-2, the Flyers were looking to open the series Friday night with more success but the Gulls had different plans. The Gulls scored the first two goals of the game and had an early lead until Nic Calma scored off a beautiful set up from Brain Voogt and Andy Jakiel with just 3:31 left in the first period. A short 37 seconds later Brand Butler would tie the game as he flew into San Diego's zone and let a slick wrist shot find the top corner of the net. Voogt and Rich Bebo added the assists as the Flyers headed into the second period with all the momentum.

Although the game kept up at an exhilarating pace the offense would slow down in the second as Nic Calma would add a powerplay goal with help from Andrew Monesi and again from Voogt and the Gulls would also only net one as the teams would head into the third period tied at three. San Diego would get the offense going again in the third period with a goal in the first minute, but it wouldn't take long for Christian Starr to answer back for the Flyers as he screamed a slap shot over the glove of the Gulls goaltender to tie the game at four just a few minutes later.

From there on it would be mostly Gulls as they would go on to score 4 more goals before the Flyers could get things back on track with another goal from Starr, this one assisted by Anthony Kendryna. Unfortunately it wouldn't be enough as the Gulls would win game one of the best of three series 8-5 and but the Flyers in a do-or-die situation.

So with their backs against the wall the Flyers headed into game two looking fired up and ready to go. And that's exactly how they played as they outshot the Gulls 47-28.

Jon Asher started the scoring for the Flyers with 11:45 to go in the first period on the powerplay after knocking in a rebound off of Starr point shot; Ryan Dyer had the other assist. And with 56 seconds to go in the period Starr would notch his third goal of the playoffs with another huge slap hot; again Dyer would get an assist. San Diego would score with 6:32 left to play in the second period to make it a one goal game, but again their momentum wouldn't last long as Kendryna would contribute the last goal of the game just over two minutes later. Calma and Steffan Buck would factor in on that goal as the Flyers would win game two 3-1 and force a game three on Sunday.

The Flyers would carry their offensive attack into Sunday's game as Kendryna would bury a rebound off another hard blast from Starr; Asher had the other assist. And with just under five minutes left in the first period Voogt would get a unassisted breakaway goal and send the Flyers into the first intermission up 2-0.

The score would stay the same until about the half way mark of the second when the Gulls would score on a powerplay to cut the Flyers lead in half. The Flyers wouldn't let the Gulls get anything else going in the second as Voogt gave his team a little breathing room with his second goal of the game. The powerplay goal was assisted by Butler and came at the 6:28 indicator of the second. They wouldn't be done there as they notched another last minute goal; this time it was Butler putting in the powerplay tally with help from Alex Brodetsky and Monesi with just 44 seconds left to go in the second.

So with a 4-1 lead the Flyers headed into the last period of the weekend looking to hold on to the game and win their first playoff series. But again San Diego had a different plan. They would get two goals and make it a one goal game with 11 minutes to play. And from there on in it was an exciting back and forth battle, as both teams were looking to grab the next goal of the game without giving up a solid chance either. There would be one more goal and again it would come in the last minute of the period. This one was scored with only 6 seconds left in the game and it came off the stick of Voogt. Daniel Chang grabbed a loose puck and feed it to Voogt who was able to send it half way across the ice and into the Gulls empty net. With that goal the Flyers won game 5-3, but more importantly they won their first playoff series in team history.

They will now be heading to Phoenix for their first ever trip to the WSHL Western Division Finals. The best of three series with the rival Polar Bears gets underway Friday at the Chandler, AZ arena and will continue Saturday and Sunday in Gilbert. The Flyers are looking to continue their string of firsts, with another series win this weekend they will have their first Division title, first WSHL Championship appearance and their first USA Junior Hockey National Championships birth as well.

Flyers Looking to Roust Gulls in Round 1

black296tuuk — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:09:00 GMT

The Valencia Flyers are set to do battle on their march to the Thorne Cup (WSHL Championship). Playoffs get going this Friday at Ice Station Valencia versus Southern California rivals, the San Diego Gulls. Valencia took the season series 5-3-2, but as anyone knows, the playoffs are a new year and it will all be on the line starting Friday night. Tickets for the first ever WSHL playoff series in Valencia will be available at the door for Friday's game.

If the season series is any indication, this will be one heck of a series with numerous games going to overtime, perhaps a blowout and some good, strong physical play. Most recently, the teams have split their last two games with the Flyers winning 6-2 and the Gulls winning 4-0. Both games were hard fought with the crowds in both arenas on the edge of their seats!

The playoff schedule is as follows:

WSHL Western Division Semi Finals
Valencia Flyers (2) vs. San Diego Gulls (3)

Game 1 - Friday, February 27, 2009 @ 7:45pm @ Ice Station Valencia
Game 2 - Saturday, February 28, 2009 @ 7:45pm @ Ice Station Valencia
Game 3 - Sunday, March 1, 2009 @ 12:00pm @ Ice Station Valencia*

For more information call (661)775-8686 ext 227

*If Necessary

Last Minute Journey to El Paso

black296tuuk — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 02:37:00 GMT

All was quiet around the Flyers office last Thursday until the phone rang. It was WSHL commissioner Ron White. He was calling to ask the Flyers to travel to El Paso to face the Rhinos for three games for that weekend. Not having any other league games that weekend the Flyers were happy to accept the offer and head to Texas.

"It is crazy to have a last minute trip like this pop up, but for us it was a no-brainer," exclaimed Flyers forward John dove. "We could have either stayed home and played some exhibition games and had some practices or we could travel to El Paso and play the top team in the league to get ready for playoffs."

So the Flyers scrambled to get as many of their players together as they could and they hit the road late Thursday night headed for El Paso.

As the two teams faced off Friday night it was apparent that the 14½ hour trip took its toll on the 18 players that were able to make the last minute trip. The Rhinos outshot the Flyers 40-26 and outscored them 9-0. "We knew it was going to be tough playing the Rhinos after such a long trip and missing some of our regular roster, but I don't want to take anything away from them (El Paso) they played a solid game," stated Flyers forward John Dove.

The Flyers looked to regroup and come out stronger in game two Saturday night; and the game started with a bang as Flyers' Captain Andrew Monesi wound up in a faux fight with hockey celebrity Steve Hanson (from the movie Slap Shot) during one of the pre-game ceremonial puck drops.

After giving up the first goal of the game the Flyers were able to level it back out as John Dove tipped in a goal off a Thomas Regan point shot with 11:18 to go in the first; Chris Victoria grabbed the other assist in the goal. Just a few minutes later the Flyer's would take the lead as Monesi would capitalize on a powerplay set up from Daniel Chang and Rich Bebo. The Rhinos would tie the game up before both teams would retire to their respected locker rooms to prepare for the second period.

Unfortunately for the Flyers, the Rhinos would come out a bit harder in the second period and would score four goals before the Flyers could answer back. Monesi again would tally a powerplay goal, this time the helpers would go Brandon Butler and Brain Voogt. So with the Rhinos up 6-3 the teams would head to the locker rooms again.

And again the Rhinos would come out with a purpose as they notched the first three goals of the third period. Down 9-3 the Flyers never gave up and kept working hard; and were rewarded for their efforts as TJ Cooper scored off a Voogt and Andy Jakiel passing play. The game would end 9-4 for El Paso but the Flyers would have plenty to take away from the game.

"We played some solid hockey tonight, just not enough of it," exclaimed Flyers' coach Chris Hartly. "We had a lot of chances that we missed on, but we gave up way to many chances and that's what costs us." The Flyers managed to rack up 35 shots on El Paso's net and set the record for the closest shot differential in a Rhinos game this season as the Rhinos had 47 shots on net on the way to their win.

Game three would be best showing for the Flyers on their long impromptu road trip.

Flyers' forward Butler would get things going in game three with a well placed wrist shot just 9:29 into the first period. Monesi and Jakiel would get the assists as they helped get the play started out of their own end and sent Butler in on his scoring break. The score would stay the same until late into the second period when Monesi would score on another fast break that was set up this time by Anthony Kendryna.

So with a 2-0 lead the Flyers headed into the third period with hopes of trying to hold on and end the weekend on a high note. But that wouldn't be the case as the Flyers' long trip would take its toll. The Flyers ran out of steam and weren't able to keep the Rhinos at bay as they would score four goals in the third period and would win the game 4-2.

"Considering all the adversity we faced making this trip I am pleased with what our boys were able to come here and do," added Coach Hartly. "We came here to get ready for playoffs next weekend and we definitely made strides towards that goal. We don't like losing the games but we know that under normal circumstances we can have different results."

The Flyers returned home Monday morning and started to prepare for their next game, which will be 8:30 Tuesday night (24^th) against the So-Cal Bombers at Ice Station Valencia.

February 8th Wrap-Up

black296tuuk — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 18:47:00 GMT

The Flyers took the road over the weekend looking to gain some ground on the first place Polar Bears. They would meet up the Phoenix in Arizona for three games.

The first game would get off to a rough start for the Flyers. They didn't score in either of the first two periods and gave up 6 goals as they were outshot 22-12. They were able to start connecting in the third period as they opened up the last 20 minutes of the game with two goals. Andrew Monesi scored the first goal unassisted and Steffan Buck scored the Flyers second goal on assists from Anthony Kendryna and Alex Brodetsky.

Regrettably, for the Flyers it would be their only offense on the night and they still wouldn't even win the period as Phoenix would add three more goals in the last frame to win the game 9-2. Nick Cimity started the game and after letting in the first four goals was replaced by Noble Tucker.

"We had a really bad outing tonight," said Flyers head coach Chris Hartly. "We gave up way too many chances and against a solid team like Phoenix that will cost you every time. We just have to learn from the mistakes we made tonight and come out tomorrow the way we can."

Game two, although located at a different rink in the area, would take on a lot of the characteristics that game one had. The Flyers would surrender the first goal of the game, they would get out shot in the game (34-27) and they would again give the Polar bears too many chances to score.

After going down by one in the first period, Monesi would score off a set up by Rich Bebo and Brian Voogt to tie the game. The Polar Bears would again take over the scoring in the second period, scoring two goals to make it a 3-1 game. Corey Dinwiddie and Kendryna would send John Dove in on a breakaway to help bring the game back to within one. But it wouldn't last long as the Bears would score two more in the period and go up 5-2 before Brandon Butler could get the last goal of the period thanks to Monesi and Voogt to help the Flyers cause.

The offense from both teams would continue into the third period as the teams combined for 5 more goals in the game. Two from Kendryna, assisted by Bebo on one and Brent McGill and Jon Asher on the other, and three from Phoenix.

So with the final score 8-5 in favor of the Polar Bears the Flyers again were left to think about how the let the game slip through their fingers as they were only outshot 35-31.

"Again, we made too many mistakes, took too many penalties and didn't make the most out of our chances," reasoned Flyers' Captain Andrew Monesi. "Overall we had a solid game, certainly a lot better than yesterday. We still have to work on playing better defense. We scored 5 goals and hit the post or just missed on at least 5 other chances. If we can manage that kind of offense we should be getting better results."

So with those sentiments in mind the Flyers headed into game three looking for some redemption.

And they would jump out of the gates ready to deliver as Andy Jakiel racked up the first goal of the game assisted by Kendryna and Thomas Regan. The Flyers' first lead of the weekend wouldn't last long as Phoenix would score with just under five minutes left in the open stanza to tie the game. The second period was full of end to end action from start to finish, but it wouldn't be until the last half of it that anybody would get some results.

Phoenix would get the first goal of the period with 7:48 left to go and it looked like it might end that way until Daniel Chang would slam the puck into the net off a feed from McGill and Regan. And right when it looked like things wouldn't get decided until the third period Phoenix would score with just 31 seconds left in the period to take a 3-2 lead.

The tone was set for the third period right away as just three seconds into the period there was a fight. And as both teams continued to battle it out for the remainder of the game it wouldn't net either team any more success. So with the final score 3-2 the Flyers would drop their fourth game in a row and for the first time all season get swept in a weekend series.

"We didn't really show up this weekend and play the way we can at all," said Hartly. "We definitely had our best outing of the weekend today, but we still didn't come close to our potential. So we have a few weeks to correct some things and to get the guys on the right page because we can afford to have another weekend like this one."

With the loss the Flyers record moved to 31-15-3 and they have a strong 12 point lead on third place. The Flyers also have just one more regular season game left to get ready for the playoffs when they take on the So-cal Bombers February 24^th at Ice Station Valencia.

February 1st Wrap-Up

black296tuuk — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 18:45:00 GMT

The Flyers welcomed the last place So-cal Bombers to town for a two game series starting Friday.

The game would mark the tenth meeting of the season for these two teams. And the Bombers would be looking to salvage a win as they come in 1-8 against the Flyers so far.

Unfortunately for the Bombers, Flyers' Assistant Captain Anthony Kendryna started the scoring with an unassisted goal at the 14:29 mark of the first period. It wouldn't take the Bombers long to even it back out as they would scoop up the puck from the next face-off bring it down the ice and slide it past Noble Tucker just ten seconds later. From there on out it was pretty much all Flyers. The Bombers would get one more goal in the game but it wouldn't compare to the other 9 that the Flyers would get.

Getting the other goals for the Flyers were: Jon Asher (powerplay), Brian Voogt, Casey Howard, Christian Starr, Brent McGill (3, one on the powerplay), Chris Victoria (powerplay), and Thomas Regan. Ringing in with the assists on the night were: Howard, Nic Calma (3), Andrew Monesi (2), Voogt (2), Rich Bebo (2), Jon Asher (2), Nick Miner, Brandon Butler and John Dove.

Noble Tucker made 17 saves as he helped the Flyers not only to a win but to a season record of 30-11-3.

In game two versus the Bombers on the weekend the Flyers would come up a bit short of matching their offensive quota from game one.

It would be the Flyers who would get the first game of the game again as Brian Voogt made good on a played served up by Daniel Chang and Andrew Monesi. And also like game one the Bombers would answer right back with a goal just over a minute later. The Flyers would score once more in the opening frame as Christian Starr and Casey Howard would deliver the puck to Jon Asher for the bury.

The second period would yield no goals and has the teams went into the third it still looked like the game could go either way. But like the night before the period would belong to the Flyers as they would tally four goals in the last 20 minutes and go on to win 6-1. Goals in the third were provided by Brent McGill, Starr, Jon Dove and Alex Jaeger. And the set up men for the period were Nic Calma (2), Anthony Kendryna, Asher, Jaeger and Nick Miner (2).

The Flyers were in control of the game from start to finish as they outshot the Bombers 48-20. Noble Tucker was in net for the Flyers as he improved to 13-4-1 on the season.

Sunday the Flyers would try to extend their four game winning streak as they journeyed down to San Diego to take on the Gulls. The game would be the last meeting of the regular season for the two teams as the Flyers held a slight advantage 5 games to 3.

It was a hard fought battle that saw the two teams almost draw even for shots on goal, 46-45 Flyers. But the scoreboard wouldn't be as even. San Diego scored the only goal of the first period, the only two goals in the second period and the only goal in the third as they shutout the Flyers 4-0. Nick Cimity played between the pipes for the Flyers and let in the four goals on 34 shots.

"It's too bad we didn't score today," said Flyers captain Andrew Monesi. "We had a slow start to the game and by the time we got things going we couldn't find the net."

Their slow start was apparent as they only got out shot in the first period by the Gulls and went to out shoot the Gulls almost 2-1 in the last two periods. "I hate to see our guys showing up for a game after it has already started," added coach Hartly. "Especially at this point in the season when we are suppose to be getting ready for playoffs. But we did out play them once we got going, so we can at least come away from the loss without feeling too beat."

The loss would even out the season series against the Gulls at 5 apiece and it would give the Flyers a 31-12-3 overall record.

The Flyers will be looking to add three more wins to their record when they travel to Arizona to take on first place Phoenix for their last meetings of the regular season next weekend.

January 25th Wrap-up

black296tuuk — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 18:43:00 GMT

The atmosphere was electric as the second place Flyers (27-10-3) were hosting the first place Phoenix Polar Bears (30-4-0) at Ice Station Valencia. The weekend was expected to be a crowd pleaser as the two teams had already fought to a 3-3 season series record.

Friday's game wouldn't disappoint as the first period would see the two teams wind up scoreless as the Polar Bears outshot the Flyers 12-8 in a very physical and tough contest. The second period would also end in a tie after each team would get on the scoreboard. Brian Voogt would get the first goal of the game for the Flyers as Andy Jakiel and Andrew Monesi would set him up at 9:22. And the Polar Bears would even it back out with just 23 seconds left in the middle frame.

The Polar bears would maintain their offense as they got goals at the 16:34 and 5:48 marks of the third period. But the Flyers weren't done, with time running out the Flyers would keep the fans on the edge of their seats by adding a goal and bringing the game to within one; as Anthony Kendryna would score on the powerplay off a Ryan Dyer pass.

Unfortunately for the Flyers they couldn't manage another goal and would lose game one of the weekend 3-2. Nick Cimity was in net and made 35 saves as the Flyers were outshot 38-28.

Game two would be even more exciting for all the fans at Ice Station and watching over the internet as the Flyers would leave everything they had on the ice in an effort to save their season and weekend series against Phoenix.

The Flyers would prove to be up for the challenge as they jump started the game with two powerplay goals in the first period. Alex Brodetsky set up Jon Asher for the first and Daniel Chang and Ryan Dyer set up Brian Voogt for the second. The Polar Bears again would get out of the period with a last minute goal and head into break down 2-1. Phoenix would get the only goal of the second period and the teams would head into the last 20 minutes of regulation tied at 2.

And the excitement would continue throughout the third period as well. Phoenix took their first lead of the game with 12:45 left to go in regulation. But it wouldn't last long as Voogt would get his second goal of the game on an unassisted tally just 2:31 later. The rest of regulation time wouldn't settle anything and the game would head to overtime. With 2:52 left to go in overtime Voogt would get his hat trick (3 goals in a game) and the game winner as the Flyers won 4-3.

The Flyers outshot the Polar Bears 40-38 as Cimity got credit for another big win.

Game three of the weekend would turn out to be even more exciting for the home fans in Valencia.

The Flyers would strike first as Nic Calma buried the puck 7:37 into the first period after being set up by Andrew Monesi and Andy Jakiel. The even strength goal would stand alone as the only tally in the first. The Flyers would add to their lead in the second period as Andrew Monesi would capitalize on a powerplay goal that was served up by Calma and Brain Voogt 12 minutes into the period. Voogt would get the flyers third goal of the game shorthanded with 2:47 left to go in the second off a nice take away and pass by Daniel Chang.

So with a 3-0 lead going into the third the Flyers would continue to take to it Phoenix for the last 20 minutes. They would add two more power play goals; one from Thomas Regan (from Christian Starr, Alex Jaeger) and the other from Brent McGill (from Andy Jakiel and Kyle Freeman). And just to add one for good measure Starr would blast one past the Polar Bears goalie thanks to a nice set up pass by Regan as the Flyers would go on to beat Phoenix 6-0.

Noble Tucker made 43 saves on his way to the shutout as the Flyers were barely outshot 43-41. The win not only helped the Flyers to take the 3 game set 2-1 but it also helped push their season series record against the Polar Bears to 5-4 in favor of Valencia.

These teams will face-off against each other again in a few weeks when the Flyers travel to Arizona the first weekend of February. Until then the Flyers will have to start preparing for the Bombers who will be stopping by Ice Station for two games next weekend.

January 17th Wrap-Up

black296tuuk — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 18:38:00 GMT

The Flyers opened up a three game weekend Thursday against San Diego with two home games at Ice Station Valencia. Game one was a low scoring defensive battle.

"We are really striving to play better defense as a team," exclaimed Flyers coach Chris Hartly. "Our biggest focus right now is to only allow a few goals against per game. And we definitely did that tonight; I just wish our offense did a bit more as well."

The Flyers went down 1-0 when the Gulls scored on a two man advantage at the 14:37 mark of the first period. That goal would be the only one for the next 20 minutes of hockey. Then at the 14:29 mark of the second period Andrew Monesi deflected in a shot from Rich Bebo to tie the game at one; Ryan Dyer also tallied an assist on the play. It would only stay for another 12 minutes as San Diego would score with just over 2 minutes to play in the second period.

The two teams would continue to battle it out for the remainder of regulation without giving up a goal. As the final buzzer sounded Andrew Lux would rack up 38 saves on his effort in net as the Flyers would only mustard up 24 shots on the Gulls net.

"It's sad to see the guys play so well defensively and still come up short," added Hartly. "We still have to make some changes in our overall game but if we can come out every night with this kind of effort on defense, we are going to win a lot more games than we will lose."

With the loss the season series against the Gulls would move to 4-2-1. And the Flyers would have to look to the next night to try and even out their home stand.

Friday's game would have a lot more offense than the first game of the weekend and would be a tight battle all the way to the end.

Again San Diego would start the scoring as they slid one past Jackson Winkler early in the opening frame. But the Flyers would come storming back as Steffan Buck and Nic Calma would set up Kyle Freeman for a powerplay goal at the 10:56 in the first. The Flyers would keep it going the very next shift as Brent McGill would notch a goal off a feed from Corey Dinwiddie 35 seconds later to take a 2-1 lead.

The second period would start off with more Flyers offense as Dinwiddie would make it a two goal game with the helper going to Buck just 2:41 into the period. The Gulls would start to even it out on a powerplay goal with 6:18 left in the second. And again the teams would go scoreless for a while as they pressed each other through the rest of the second and most of the third period without gaining any ground.

Then with 4:19 left to go in regulation the Gulls would tally another powerplay goal and push the game into overtime. So with each securing one point for the regulation tie they would be headed to overtime to vie for an extra point. The 5 minutes of overtime wouldn't decide anything and the teams would go head-to head in a shootout. Nic Calma would get the only goal in the shootout for the Flyers as San Diego would score two and go on to get the extra point that was up for grabs.

The Flyers outshot the Gulls 44-27 as Nick Cimity would get credit for the ot loss as he replaced Winkler in net part way through the game. And with their second non-win in a row against the Gulls the Flyers would head to San Diego to try and salvage more than one point on the weekend.

Saturday night's game would prove to be the closest game on the ice and in shots, 42-35 for the Flyers, but the most lopsided game on the scoreboard for the weekend.

The visiting Flyers would open up the scoring 2:56 into the first period as Cameron Noland would score with a line mates Ryan Dyer and Christian Starr contributing the assists. Valencia would make it a 2 goal league lead with 5:03 left in the second with a goal from Jon Asher. Casey Howard and Nic Calma would each grab the assists on the powerplay goal from Asher. Just as the Flyers were thinking about heading into intermission up by two the Gulls wouldn't let it be. They would score two goals before the end of the first and the teams would leave the ice tied at two.

The second period wouldn't be as even, as the Flyers retook the lead off an Alex Jaeger goal at 13:07. Dyer would get his second assist of the game and Brent McGill would chime in with one as well as they set up Jaeger. The Flyers would keep the momentum going as they would add two more goals, both on the powerplay, before the end of the period. Dyer and Daniel Chang would set up Andrew Monesi for the first one and Howard and Nic Calma would get it to Kyle Freeman for the second. The third period would only see one goal as the Flyers would notch another powerplay goal, their 4^th on the night, as Brandon Butler and Jaeger would set up Brent McGill.

In his second game in a Flyers' uniform Nick Cimity would get credit for the win as the Flyers took down the Gulls 6-2. The win would advance the Flyers' record to 27-11-3 and keep them securely in second place as they would get ready to face off against the first place Polar Bears the next weekend at Ice Station.

January 11th Wrap-Up

black296tuuk — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 19:13:00 GMT

The Flyers opened up another three game weekend at Ice Station Valencia against the San Diego Gulls on Friday night. San Diego came into town looking to build on their 15-13-4 overall record as the Flyers were looking to boost up their 3-2 record against the Gulls.

Valencia would open up the scoring as Ryan Dyer scored a powerplay goal from the point in his debut as a Flyer. The goal came at the 15:41 mark of the first period on an assist from Andrew Monesi. It was another powerplay goal that allowed the Gulls to square the game at one just a few minutes later. But with less than five minutes to go in the first period, the Flyers would start their march towards securing win number four in the season series on Dyer's second goal of the game; this time the assists went to Rich Bebo and Alex Jaeger. Brian Voogt would add another powerplay goal to the mix on a nice feed from Andy Jakiel and Corey Dinwiddie and the first period would end with the Flyers up 3-1.

The second period was filled with exciting back and forth action but, if it wasn't for the thirteenth minute of the period there would have been no scoring. Daniel Chang scored 13:20 into the period off a feed from Brandon Butler. And then just 38 seconds later Brent McGill would put one on the board with help from Ryan Dyer and TJ Cooper to make it 5-1 for the Flyers.

The strong offensive prowess of the game wouldn't hold up during the third period. Andrew Monesi would get the Flyers' 6 goal of the game off a pass from Bebo and the Gulls would add a goal to bring their total to 2. Andrew Lux would make 35 saves to add another win to his and the Flyers' totals.

In games two and three of the weekend the Flyers would play host to the visiting So-Cal Bombers (8-25-4). The first game was all Flyers.

There were three goals in the first period. Andrew Jakiel got the scoring going with a powerplay goal thanks to assists from Alex Brodetsky and Andrew Monesi. Then Brain Voogt would score with some help from Jakiel and Ryan Dyer. And less than a minute later Voogt would get his second goal of the night off a set up from Monesi and Brodetsky.

The Flyers offense would slow to a simmer for the rest of the game with one goal coming in both of the remaining periods. John dove would get the goal in the second thanks to assists from Voogt and Monesi. And then Monesi would have his turn putting the puck in the net in the third with Corey Dinwiddie and Voogt chipping in with the assists.

Andrew Lux would turn away all 19 shots faced while the Flyers were able to put five behind the Bombers goalie on 41 shots. The shutout win would raise the Flyers season record to 25-10-2 and put them in position to sweep their three game weekend.

Sunday would be the closest contest on the weekend for the Flyers, at least on the scoreboard.

The Bombers would get the only goal in the first period despite being outshot 16-3 by the Flyers. They would also open up the second period with a goal and take a 2-0 lead. Then with just about half the game gone by the Flyers would finally get on the board thanks to a goal from Andrew Monesi (Brian Voogt and Nic Calma got the assists). A few ticks later Daniel Chang would even out the score with a powerplay goal set up by Nic Calma and Steffan Buck. The Bombers would take back the lead with 5:04 left in the second period and then with 2:12 left John Dove would tie the game back up with some help from Cameron Noland and Buck.

The excitement would continue as the Bombers would take their third lead of the game with 11:57 left in regulation with their second powerplay goal of the game. The Flyers would again answer back as Corey Dinwiddie and Alex Brodetsky supplied Alex Jaeger with the puck as he wristed the puck into the net. The teams would continue to battle it out until with just 1:09 left on the clock Andrew Monesi would give the flyers their first lead of the game off a feed from Ryan Dyer. And as time would run out the Flyers would register the fifth straight win and remain undefeated in 2009.

Andrew Lux played between the pipes as the Flyers severely outshot the Bombers 64-21 in the game.

"I'm glad to see our guys rewarded with the win on this one," exclaimed Flyers coach Chris Hartly. "We were all over them today; we just had problems finishing our chances and the few that we gave up costs us."

With the win the Flyers improved to 26-10-2 on the season and remained in second place. they would try and hold onto that spot as they would be taking on the third place Gulls the following weekend twice at Ice station Valencia and once in Escondido.

January 4th Wrap-Up

black296tuuk — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:10:00 GMT

The Flyers kicked off the New Year with a big two game sweep of the Capital Thunder at Ice Station Valencia. The Thunder rolled into town with a 2-8 record against the Flyers and a 10-25 record overall. The Thunder's two wins against the Flyers came the last weekend that these two teams met. And the Flyers came out hungry to add to their wins column and to derail any momentum that the Thunder might have had from their last meeting.

As the Flyers outshot the Thunder 47-25 it was Flyers' captain Andrew Monesi who would get the scoring going at the 8:26 mark of the first period. He was set up by assists from defenseman Nic Calma and line mate Andy Jakiel, who was playing in his first game as a Flyer. Also in his first game, Flyers' new forward Brent McGill would notch the second goal of the game for the Flyers on assists from Brandon Butler and TJ Cooper. The Thunder would battle back with a goal in the dying minutes of the first period and with a tying goal 1:52 into the second period.

The two teams would continue to battle it in an action filled second period where the shots on net were 14-13 in favor of the Thunder. But it would be Monesi and Jakiel setting up Brian Voogt for a goal at the 9:38 mark of the second that would finally break the tie. The Flyers persisted to pour on the offense in the second with goals from Christian Starr (assisted by Anthony Kendryna and Daniel Chang) and Jakiel (assisted by Alex Brodetsky and Monesi). Again the Thunder would answer back on a late period goal as they tallied a powerplay goal with 27 seconds left in the second to make it a 5-3 Flyers' lead going into the third.

The third period would be all Flyers as Cameron Noland (assisted by John Dove) and Anthony Kendryna (assisted by Daniel Chang) would each add a goal as the flyers would go on to win 7-3.

Noble Tucker made 22 saves in the game to secure the win and help the Flyers to welcome in the New Year with a victory.

It would be a tougher battle on Sunday as the Thunder came storming out of the gates looking to even out the weekend doubleheader.

They outshot the Flyers 12-6 and would leave the ice with a 2-0 lead after the first period with one of the goals coming on a powerplay. They were able to keep their momentum going in the second period as they outshot the flyers 12-10 in the second and again managed to put together two goals this time with one of them coming on a penalty shot. The Flyers finally started to show signs of life a little over half way through the second period as Jon Asher scored with some help from John Dove and Nic Calma.

That goal would be the turning point for the Flyers as Casey Howard would add two more goals and cut the Thunder lead to 4-3 by the end of the second period. Christian Starr assisted on both of Howard's goals while Brent McGill added an assist on his second one. The Flyers continued to take over the game in the third period as Brian Voogt would get a hat trick, three goals, and lead his team to a 6-4 victory. Andrew Monesi (2), Andy Jakiel and Corey Dinwiddie helped in the effort with assists on Voogt's goals. And after giving up a goal on a penalty shot Andrew Lux blanked the Thunder the rest of the game. He also received credit for the win after replacing Jackson Winkler in net after the Thunder's third goal. The final shots on net would slightly favor the Flyers 34-32 after a very productive third period in which they outshot the Thunder 18-8.

With the win, the Flyers would move to a 23-10-2 overall record and a 9-2 record over the Thunder.

WSHL Showcase Wrap-Up

black296tuuk — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 19:08:00 GMT

As the first half of the season came to an end the Flyers managed to put together a solid weekend winning two of four at the WSHL Showcase in Las Vegas.

The Flyers started the weekend with a big 7-1 win over the San Antonio Diablos Friday morning.

"I think that we played one of our most complete games as a team to date," said team captain Andy Monesi. "We played great on both sides of the puck and really worked well out there together."

The team unity that day was apparent from the scoresheet, where 14 of the 18 skaters for the Flyers tallied at least one point. The top scorers of the game were defensemen Alex Brodetsky and Steffan Buck and forward Andrew Monesi who each had a goal and an assist. Noble Tucker started the game and was perfect stopping all 21 shots he faced before getting replaced by Andrew Lux who let in 1 goal off of 10 shots.

In their second game of the showcase and on the day, the Flyers would surrender two points to the Mid-West Division leading El Paso Rhinos in what would be their weakest showing of the weekend.

The Flyers got out shot 50 to 21 on the way to a 5-1 loss.

"There's not a lot to say after a performance like that," stated Flyers' assistant coach Bo Williams. "We didn't have a lot of guys show up for this game. And it's sad because if we would have played like we did earlier today it would have been a lot different game."

Brian Voogt scored the only goal of the game for the Flyers and Jackson Winkler stopped 45 of the 50 shots he faced.

The Flyers were able to rebound from their tough outing against the Rhinos with another big win. This time the Flyers were able to take it to the Texas Renegades in an 8-2 victory.

"It's good to see our guys rebound like that and get back to playing the way they can," exclaimed Flyers' head coach Chris Hartly. "I keep trying to convince our players that they are good enough to show up and beat any team, it's just a matter of them showing every night and doing it."

Anthony Kendryna lead the way offensively with two goals, one on the power play, and one assist. Daniel Chang and Brain Voogt also had three points on the night with a goal and two assists apiece. Others getting multiple points were Brandon Butler and Andy Monesi, each had a goal and an assist, and Mickey Allison who had two assists. The offensive didn't stop there as TJ Cooper and John Dove added goals and Alex Brodetsky, Nic Calma, Corey Dinwiddie, Alex Jaeger, Nick Miner and Chris Victoria all chipped in with assists. Jackson Winkler started the game and after letting in 2 goals on 9 shots was replaced by Noble tucker who continued his perfect streak on the weekend stopping all 8 shots that he faced.

In their final game of the showcase and of the first half of the season the Flyers would come up short in a 4-3 loss to the Tulsa Rampage. With the shots practically tied, 31 for Tulsa and 30 for the Flyers, and the play going back and forth all game it really was a heartbreaking way to end the weekend.

"We played another really strong game today," said coach Hartly. "We were able to battle it out almost all game long and had several chances to win the game that we missed on. I am not upset with our effort or how we played at all, just disappointed in the final outcome."

The first half of the game was filled with exciting back and forth action. After giving up a powerplay goal early in the half, the Flyers tied the game at the half way point of the half on a goal from Brian Voogt. The Rampage would retake the lead with 3:40 left in the half, but their lead wouldn't last long. With 1:50 left in the half Andrew Monesi would get his second assist in the game while setting up Voogt for his second goal of the game. Casey Howard would keep the momentum going and give the Flyers their first lead of the game with 24 seconds left in the half on a goal that was set up by John Dove. The Flyers wouldn't be able to keep the momentum going in the second half as Tulsa would score two goals and go on to win 4-3. Andrew Lux put forth a great effort in net and was able to turn away 28 shots.

The loss would bring an end to the showcase weekend and the first half of the season for the Flyers. "I am very pleased with how our guys did out there this weekend. We played three really good games but the most important part is that the guys did a really good job and caught the attention of several of the scouts that were there," stated coach Hartly. The Flyers ended the first half of the season with a strong hold on second place with a 21-10-2 record.