Suns, Moose collide
this weekend
At Snow King Center
The Sun Valley Suns men’s hockey team
heads to Jackson Hole, Wyo. this coming weekend with one thing in mind when they
collide with arch-rival Jackson Hole Moose.
"We plan on going over and sweeping," said
Suns player/coach Chris Benson. "We’re just as deep and solid as we were last
year. And we should have a full bench over there."
Missing because of injuries will be Jamie
Ellison, John Miller, Mike Selhay and Ben Stauffer, while Perry Smiley and Kris
Webster won’t make the Wyoming trip Friday.
Jackson Hole entertains Sun Valley Friday
and Saturday, Feb. 21-22 for two 7:30 p.m. games at Snow King Center. The house
will be packed and feelings will be running high for the big battle.
The Moose (16-5-1) are coming off a big
weekend sweep of the Boston Hockey Club. In fact the Moose have won four
straight games and nine of their last 10 behind the goaltending of former Suns
player Marc Morningstar (10-5-1 with a 3.67 goals against).
Jackson Hole breezed 12-6 in Friday’s game
behind four goals by top scorer Joe Casey (27 goals and 16 assists for 43
points). Saturday night the Moose dug a 6-3 hole but rallied for a 7-7 tie after
regulation. In the overtime shootout Morningstar stopped all five shots and the
Moose won 8-7.
Sun Valley (11-3) didn’t play last weekend
but the Suns are coming off of two good efforts against the Trail Smoke Eaters
and Minneapolis Green Mill. Luke Smith (12-14 for 26 points) is the top Suns
scorer.
Last year the teams split four
games—dividing each home-and-home series.
The 5-4 victory in last March’s Saturday
night game snapped an eight-game Suns winless skid at Snow King Center dating
back to 1997. Sun Valley had been outscored 57-29 in that long drought.
Overall the Moose lead 12-7-1 in the
five-year rivalry. Jackson Hole was 21-9 overall last season and is 107-50-4 in
its six-year hockey history. The Suns are 461-172-28 in their 28-year history.