The Morning Star from Vernon, British Columbia, Canada • 25

Friday, May 10, 1991 The Morning Star 25 LAKERS NEED TWO WINS TO REPEAT Host earn doubles up on Vernon, 6-3 by Frank De Palma Special to The Morning Star SUDBURY, Ont. The Vernon Lakers will square off against the Yorkton Terriers today to try to earn a spot in Saturday's Centennial Cup and a chance to repeat as national junior A hockey champions. The Lakers, who squeezed out a 5-4 overtime win over Yorkton in round-robin play earlier in the week, ended up in fourth place after dropping a 6-3 decision to host team Sudbury Cubs at the Sudbury Arena. The Halifax Molson Canadians, second-place finishers, will meet the third-place Cubs in the other semi-final game. The Thunder Bay Flyers, Central Region Champions, finished in last place with a 1-3 record and out of playoff round contention.

Three teams Vernon, Halifax and Sudbury, finished round-robin play with identical 2-2 records so cup officials employed a goals against average to determine the final standings. Vernon, which could have finished first with a win over Troy Becker scored Vernon's lone second-period goal, with assists going to Lome Kanigan and Rick Eremcnko. The Lakers were unable to make up the three-goal second-period deficit, as their two third-period tallies were matched by a pair of Sudbury goals. Vernon captain Terry Klapstein scored on a pass from Jason Elders late in the third period. Klapstein also a drew an assist on an earlier goal by game star Phil Esposito.

Trevor Forsythe also had an assist on the Esposito goal. Sudbury goalie Rock Chatel, coming off a shutout performance against Halifax a day earlier, came up with some spectacular saves to keep Vernon from mounting any comeback after the Cubs built up a three-goal lead. Caton was equally impressive during the early going as the Cubs outshot the Lakers 47-38. The Lakers, who racked up 42 minutes of penalties compared to the Cubs' 30 minutes, gave up a powerplay goal and failed to capitalize on a half-dozen powerplay opportunities of their own. Vernon also gave up a shorthanded goal in the third period.

Sudbury, came up with a flat performance a day after the exciting overtime win over Yorkton. A clearly disappointed Eddie Johnstone placed the blame squarely on his own "It's my fault. I didn't get them mentally prepared and I'll take the blame for this one," the Vernon coach told reporters after the Sudbury game. "We just stood around for most of the game and did nothing. And when you do that, anyone can beat you.

It was my job to make sure they weren't over confident and I didn't do it." Johnstone said he will work on regrouping his team in preparation for Yorkton and most of that will be mental work. "We have to play the way we can play. I don't think Yorkton will change much against us and we have to go with what got us here." After a scoreless first period Wednesday, the Cubs, facing elimination from the playoff round, poured in four goals during a 10-minute span in the second period and drove starting Vernon goalie Murray Caton out of the game. Caton was replaced by Todd Jones after the fourth Sudbury goal. Last season Vernon Lakers' veteran players Marcel Aubin (3) and goaltender Murray Caton came through with a clutch performance to capture the Centennial Cup Championship.

Botii players will be called upon to go to the well one more time today as they faceoff In the semifinals of this year's Centennial Cup Championships against the Yorkton, Sask. Terriors. Vernon must win its final two games to repeat as Canadian Junior Her one champions. Morning Star file photo ugoy gams nlMMill! Oil Beers fooos to For the past several years, rugby has been on the decline in the Vemon area. The sport is enjoying a resurgence of sorts this season as the Vernon Rugby Club is boasting 30 players on its practice roster to date.

Andrew Doyle, player and public relations officer for the club, says club officials are optimistic the sport is on the rebound due to the healthy turnout at practices so far in their young season. "We lost our opening game against Penticton on the road but we feel we're much more prepared for our upcoming home games," explained Doyle. "We're lacking in the experience department but what we lack there we make up in heart this team really has a lot of heart." Currently, 30 rugby enthusiasts are showing up on occasion at the club's practices with approximately 17-20 consistently taking to field for Vernon. "We lost our opening game against Penticton on the road but we feel we're much more prepared for our upcoming home games. We're lacking in the experience department but what we lack there we make up in heart this team really has a lot of heart.

Andrew Doyle. Another positive addition to this year's rugby team is trainer Shclagh McDonald. McDonald, from Van Meralomus, has helped the team through any injuries incurred along the way. "She is excellent," said Doyle adding, "She also supports us religiously at all of our practices and games." Coach Al Jones and assistant coach Gary Conway are counting on the maturation of their younger players to carry them to victory in their next home game, May 12 when they seek revenge against the Penticton Rugby club at the Kalamalka Junior Secondary School beginning at 1 p.m. Another home game is being scheduled for May 26 against Kelowna, with two more games to take place in June and July and one in August before returning to a full schedule of games in September.

"We need a little bit of size on this year's team," said Doyle. "Our forward play is very good, which has traditionally been our strong game." Doyle notes, if anyone is interested in joining the Vernon Rugby squad they should contact him at 546-6835. New players are welcomed to show up for practice at 6 p.m., Tuesday and Thursdays at VSS Secondary School. Scott A. Pattison Sports Editor The Chilliwack Chiefs have found their man.

Two weeks after former Kelowna Spartans head coach Eddy Beers resigned his position at the helm of the BCJHL Interior-Division team, Chiefs owner Al Brew was on the phone. "I've known Eddy (Beers) for about the last five years," said Brew who added, "My older son Richard played for Eddy in when he coached in Merritt for two years. I've always been impressed with him." Brew announced the appointment of Beers as head coach and General Manger of his BCJHL club at a news conference in Chilliwack earlier in the week, noting Beers' experience as a "teaching coach" as one of the main reasons for his hiring. "I wanted a teaching coach to take over the reigns. There's not enough teaching coaches in the league in my opinion," said Brew.

Beers, who replaces former coach Mike O'Brien and GM Larry Hayes, assumes total responsibility for the club's for- Eddy Bears the Interior Division the last three consecutive hockey seasons. "Chilliwack is a pretty good little hockey town," said Beers. "I signed a one-year contract there. In this business you only take one year at a time. I have 1 1 players returning so we have a pretty good nucleous.

I need a goal-tender but you always have to assess things when you go into a new job." For Brew, the news of Beers resignation from Kelowna was good news. "I told Eddy if he was available he was our man," explained Brew. "He wanted to take some time and consider all of his options before making a decision. I talked to two other former BCJHL coaches as well, but Eddy was my first choice." tunes over the 1991-92 season. The 31 -year-old Beers, will be starting his fifth year of coaching in the BCJHL when he begins his duties behind the Chiefs bench.

He previously coached for two years with the Merritt Centennials before moving to Kelowna where he coached the Spartans for another two seasons. His teams have finished in second spot in.