WARRIORS HOST MAMMOTH: This will be the first of three matchups this season between the Vancouver Warriors and Colorado Mammoth, as these two Western Division rivals will be battling for playoff positioning beginning tonight at Rogers Arena, despite the slow starts from each side. The Warriors have been at the finish line in their past three games, only to fall agonizingly short at the end, while the Mammoth play their fifth game of their season tonight, but their first game on the road, opening with just one win in their first four games at home. Nine of Colorado’s final 14 games will be on foreign turf, which makes this game versus Vancouver all that more important. The Mammoth and Warriors will next face each other in a rare back to back doubleheader in late March, with the opening game here in Vancouver on March 22, with the back end in Denver one night later.
MAKE NO BONES ABOUT JONES: Warriors forward Mitch Jones has surged to the top of the scoring leaderboard for the Warriors and now is T10 in NLL scoring along with teammate Logan Schuss. Jones lit up the San Diego Seals with four goals and three assists for a seven-point night in last Saturday’s 11-10 setback to the Seals and had nearly had his fifth goal as the ball spun right and past the post in the dying seconds. Jones now leads the Warriors with 12 goals.
SCHUSS WEAPONIZED WARRIOR: Logan Schuss is currently tied for 10th in NLL scoring with 27 points (6 goals and 21 assists). Schuss has a nine-point night on the road in Calgary during the season opener on December 15 and had a hand in all five goals scored in the 4th quarter comeback against Calgary en route to the Warriors 14-13 overtime win.
PENNEY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS: Vancouver Warriors goalie Eric Penney put forth a stellar relief effort, backstopping the Warriors in their 14-10 loss at home to Saskatchewan on January 12th. Penney came in Vancouver down 4-0 five minutes into the first quarter and shut the door, allowing his mates to climb back into the game and tie the score 8-8 in the third quarter before the rally fell short. Penney is now 4rd in the NLL with a 10.73 GAA.
WARRIORS RECORD WHEN:
Leading after 1st.. 0-0 Tied at Halftime 0-1 Trailing after 3rd 1-3
Leading at halftime 0-1 Tied after 3rd 0-0 Outshoot opponent 0-3
Leading after 3rd 0-2 Trailing after 1st 0-5 Outshot by opponent 1-2
Tied after 1st 1-0 Trailing at Halftime 1-3 Shots tied 0-0
IT’S IN THE FAMILY: The Warriors have two sets of family members playing for them. Zack and Colton Porter are lacrosse playing brothers from Chilliwack BC while Dallas and Nate Wade are cousins from Victoria BC.
IN THE WATER: The Vancouver Warriors have all but three players now living in the Province of BC permanently. Five players currently reside in New Westminster, while three are in Victoria.
NEXT UP: The Warriors hit the road for a two-game road trip beginning next week in Calgary against the Roughnecks. This will be the rubber match in the season series, with each team winning on the road (Warriors 14-13 OTW on December 15, Riggers 14-8 win on December 21). Game time is at 6 PM PST and can be heard online on Sportsnet 650 (www.sportsnet.ca/650) and seen online at B/R Live (https://live.bleacherreport.com/welcome).
