Which Leaf team will show up against Castlegar?
By The Nelson Daily Sports
Which Nelson Leafs team will show up Wednesday when the club hosts a rare mid-week Kootenay International Junior Hockey League game.
Will it be the team that totally rocked Murdoch rival Castlegar Rebels 9-zip last week?
Or will it be the so-called heavyweights of the division that played like, well, lightweights in giving up four third period goals en route to losing 5-2 to Grand Forks?
Nelson gets a chance to right the wrong of Saturday night against the Bruins when the Leafs host Castlegar at 7 p.m. in the NDCC Arena Wednesday.
Nelson, which has not lost to the Rebels this season, boasts the KIJHL’s leading scorer after Jamie Vlanich rang up seven points in two games to shoot past Nick Josephs of Kelowna and into the lead.
Vlanich, 20, has 30 goals and 51 assists for 81 points and a six-point lead over Josephs.
Nelson is scheduled to be without the services of captain Darnel St. Pierre, serving his second game of a suspension for an accumulation of hit-to-the-head penalties.
The game is important to the Leafs if the Green and White has any intentions of overtaking the Beaver Valley Nitehawks for the Murdoch Division title.
The Hawks, leading the Leafs by a single point, have a game in hand on Nelson.
The Rebels, on a four-game winless streak, are in danger of falling out of the playoffs as Castlegar now only leads Spokane by one point in division standings and seven ahead of Grand Forks.
During the skid Castlegar has been out scored 21-5, and has been shutout twice.
Castlegar has played three more games than Grand Forks.
