Eagles Soar Past Spruce Kings

Thanks in large part to two shorthanded goals in the second period, the Surrey Eagles defeated the Prince George Spruce Kings 5-2 at the South Surrey Arena on Friday night. As a result, the Eagles finished the season series with a record of 4-4-0-0. Michael Santaguida made 32 saves for the win.

The Spruce Kings found the net first inside the opening five minutes of the hockey game when Jeremiah Luedtke picked up his own rebound and scored on Santaguida up high. But the Birds responded when Joel Gaudet rippled the mesh with a shot off the right wing just 14 seconds later to tie the game at 1-1. The Eagles took the lead in the last minute of the period when Adam Tambellini netted his 28th of the season on the power play after a great pass off the left boards from Brady Shaw.

Surrey got into penalty trouble in the second, giving the Spruce Kings four straight power plays, but the Birds came out ahead after killing all four man advantages and scoring twice while short handed. Captain Brett Mulcahy potted his 16th of the season after a good second effort when his first chance didn't find the back of the net, and blue liner Tommy Stipancik extended the Surrey lead when he was sprung on a partial breakaway as he came out of the penalty box and made a nice deke to the backhand, beating Prince George goaltender Kirk Thompson. Moments after Surrey's fourth goal, Thompson was pulled in favour of backup Liam McLeod after allowing four goals on 13 shots.

Prince George tried to fight back in the third, and the Spruce Kings pulled to within two goals when Coltyn Hansen completed a nice solo effort by tallying his 16th of the year. But that was as close as they would come. Shaw would complete the victory for the Birds by tucking the puck into an empty net as time expired to clinch Surrey's 29th victory of the season. The win was also a milestone for Head Coach and General Manager Matt Erhart as it marked his 100th victory as a Head Coach in the BCHL.

The Spruce Kings out shot the Eagles 34-32. Surrey went 1-for-4 on the man advantage while Prince George was 0-for-5.

Pro4 Sports 3 Stars:
1. Brady Shaw - Surrey
2. Tommy Stipancik - Surrey
3. Joel Gaudet - Surrey

My 3 Stars:
1. Brady Shaw - Surrey
2. Tommy Stipancik - Surrey
3. Joel Gaudet - Surrey

Pre-Game Report: Eagles vs. Spruce Kings

The Surrey Eagles will face division rivals the Prince George Spruce Kings for the eighth and final time in the regular season on Friday evening at the South Surrey Arena. The Spruce Kings have already clinched the season series with a record of 4-0-0-3 against the Birds this year.

Head-to-Head Breakdown

The Eagles became the first team in the Mainland Division to clinch a playoff spot last Saturday after they beat the Langley Rivermen 5-3 on home ice. Since then, the Chilliwack Chiefs have joined the Birds in the post-season, but Surrey remains five points ahead of Chilliwack for the division lead. Brady Shaw has been on fire offensively for the Birds of late. The 20-year-old was listed under honourable mentions for the CJHL's Three Stars of the Month for January after posting nine goals and seven assists in nine games.

Prince George, who defeated Surrey 4-1 in the last meeting between the teams on January 31st in PG, is coming off a 2-1 loss to the Nanaimo Clippers last Friday. The Spruce Kings sit in third in the Mainland Division but have a lot of room to move as nine of their final 11 regular season games will come against divisional opponents. Kirk Thompson continued his strong play against the Eagles in their last meeting. The Surrey native now has an impressive 1.38 goals-against-average and .959 save percentage in seven starts against the Birds this year.

Where: South Surrey Arena

When: 7:00pm

How to listen: Eagles Broadcast or on 88.7FM in the arena.

How to watch: Fast Hockey

The Matt Erhart Show: February 6, 2013

On this week's episode, the Head Coach and GM of the Eagles talks with Brendan Batchelor about last week's games against Prince George and Langley, clinching a playoff spot on Saturday and the upcoming match-ups with Prince George, Coquitlam and Langley this weekend.

Fred Page Cup Coming to Surrey

For immediate release: February 6, 2013

Surrey, BC - The Fred Page Cup is coming to Surrey this weekend as part of a league wide tour that the trophy will make ahead of the BCHL's Playoffs which begin in March. Fans will have the chance to get their picture taken with the Cup, meet players from the Surrey Eagles and win tickets to upcoming Eagles games.

The Eagles have won the coveted trophy, awarded to the BCHL's champions, three times -- in 1997, 1998 and 2005. 

The trophy will be at the following locations this weekend:

Saturday, February 9th - Guildford Town Centre from 10am-3pm.

Sunday, February 10th - Safeway Peninsula Village from 11am-2pm.

Monday, February 11th - Surrey Eagles vs. Langley Rivermen at the South Surrey Arena from 1pm-5pm.

For more information, contact the Eagles office at 604-531-GOAL (4625).

Peter Schaefer on TEAM1040

Eagles Assistant Coach Peter Schaefer joined Matt Sekeres on TEAM1040 radio in Vancouver on Tuesday morning. Hear the interview here:

Eagles Sink Rivermen

On a night when the Surrey Eagles officially clinched a playoff spot, the Birds skated to a 5-3 win over the Langley Rivermen at the South Surrey Arena. Brady Shaw, Michael Stenerson and Trevor Cameron each had two points in the victory while Michael Santaguida made 34 saves between the pipes.

Santaguida was called upon to make a number of big saves in the opening frame. His most notable stop came off Matt Ustaski as he pounced on the rebound of a Evan Anderson shot, but the Surrey goalie dove across to the right post to keep the biscuit out of the basket. The Rivermen opened the scoring after the midway mark of the period when Ustaski buried his ninth of the year, but Surrey tied the game just 18 seconds later when Nic Pierog scored with a quick shot from the high slot. The Birds took the lead before the end of the stanza as Stenerson deftly deflected a pass from Shaw between Langley net minder James Barr's legs to put Surrey up 2-1.

Shaw had a great chance to extend the Eagles' lead early in the second period when he dangled into the slot but shot wide of the net. The Ottawa native wouldn't be denied though as he netted his team leading 28th goal of the year at 9:10 to put Surrey ahead 3-1. Langley fought back to even the score with a pair of goals from Mitch McLain and Austin Azurdia, but the Birds responded quickly again as Brett Mulcahy gave Surrey the 4-3 lead 33 seconds after Azurdia's tying goal.

Langley came out hard in the third looking for an equalizer, and the Rivermen had a number of good chances. James Robinson missed the net from in close before McLain was denied what he felt to be a goal when he was tripped up on the rush and slid into Santaguida with the puck ending up in the net. After consulting with his linesmen, referee Mark Pearce ruled no goal, but Langley did get a man advantage as a result of the play. On the ensuing power play, Santaguida made another huge save, robbing the BCHL's leading scorer Mario Puskarich to preserve the Surrey lead. Trevor Cameron would provide the insurance marker when he scored into an empty net late in game to clinch the win.

The Eagles went 0-for-3 on the power play while the Rivermen were 0-for-2. Langley out shot Surrey 37-36 in the hockey game. 

The Birds officially locked up a playoff berth on Saturday after the Coquitlam Express lost in Penticton. Surrey also extended its lead atop the Mainland Division to five points, due to the fact that the Chilliwack Chiefs lost to West Kelowna. The Eagles will return to action on Friday, February 8th when they host Prince George. For tickets, call 604-531-GOAL (4625.)

Official 3 Stars:

1. Brady Shaw - Surrey

2. Michael Stenerson - Surrey

3. Austin Azurdia - Langley

My 3 Stars:

1. Brady Shaw - Surrey

2. Michael Santaguida - Surrey

3. Mitch McLain - Langley

Pre-Game Report: Eagles vs. Rivermen

The Surrey Eagles will return to action on Saturday evening as they play host to the Langley Rivermen at the South Surrey Arena. The game will mark the seventh meeting between the two clubs this season. The Birds have already clinched the season series with a record of 5-1-0-0.

The Birds, who sit in first in the Mainland Division with 59 points on the season, can clinch a playoff spot this evening with at least a single point. Surrey is coming off a 4-1 loss to the Prince George Spruce Kings on Thursday evening in PG. Brady Shaw returned to the line-up in that game. The 20-year-old forward missed two games after taking a heavy hit from Chilliwack Chiefs captain David Thompson on January 25th.

Langley sits in the driver's seat in the race for the final playoff spot in the Mainland Division. While the Rivermen are only three points ahead of the last place Coquitlam Express, Langley has four games in hand. Forward Mario Puskarich leads the BCHL in goals and points, but the native of Fort Walton Beach, Florida was held off the score sheet the last time these two teams met -- a 3-1 win for the Eagles on January 26th.

Where: South Surrey Arena

When: 7:00pm

How to listen: Langley Broadcast **Please note that there will be no Eagles broadcast for tonight's game.

How to watch: Fast Hockey