Now, the moment we've all been waiting for. The playoffs have arrived for the Anchorage Armada, as they play the Vancouver Whalers in what is sure to be a thrilling series. Vancouver have won all 5 regular season games against the Boats, and will feel full of confidence heading into the series. As for the Armada, they will feel a big point needs to be proven, and as such will likely give a huge effort to prove doubters wrong.



Vancouver came in 3rd this season, with a record of 30-17-3. This is a massive improvement on last season, where they came in 8th with 11 fewer points. The eloquently-named star player Borromini Cannellini finished tied for the league lead in points, as he put up a very impressive tally of 48. Forward Aaron Wilson has also had a very productive season, scoring 40 points. Rookie defenceman Kaspars Claude had a very steady debut season, looking assured on defence while also putting up 17 assists. Jimmy Slothface, acquired as a rental from underperforming Halifax for a sizeable package, will also be relied on to play a huge role in the playoffs. He had 33 points in 38 games with Halifax, before putting up 5 in 11 in Vancouver.


As for the young and energetic Armada, this season was rather mild, but encouraging. With a 26-20-4 record, the Boats came in 6th place, just about getting a bye from the first round of the playoffs. They finished in a worse position than last season, but actually put up one more point. That's very impressive considering the mass exodus of players to SHL call-ups they had to endure last summer. The big surprise of the season was 5th-year veteran Xena, who put up a 44-point season, to lead Anchorage and come 10th in SMJHL scoring. Captain Olivier Cloutier finished 12th in scoring, in a season where him and Xena were the talk of the town, meshing together very nicely. Xena became the all-time leader in points for the Armada franchise this season, in what was a fantastic accomplishment for her. The 9 rookies the Armada fielded were largely impressive, as almost all of them integrated quite well into the league.


Whalers were tied with Montreal for the second-highest goal output in the league, averaging 3.22 goals a game. Anchorage, meanwhile, sat at 2.90 GPG, putting them 7th, .32 behind Vancouver. The Whalers also sported the second-best defence in the league, as their average of 2.7 goals conceded per game was just behind St. Louis' numbers. Anchorage is one place behind Vancouver's numbers, with a 2.88 average goals allowed. Both teams are rather clean in general, as their respective PIMs per game fall around 0.7 PIM under the league average. Face-offs are an area where both teams have a load of disparity, as Vancouver's average percentage is 51.1%, while the Armada's is about a while 3% lower on average. Onto special teams now, where both teams are rather evenly-matched. On the powerplay, Vancouver's percentage edges Anchorage's by a mere .06%, with rhw two sides being respectively 3rd and 4th with 20.79% and 20.73% success ratios. As for the penalty kill, both teams are 1st and 2nd in that department, with the Armada having a very impressive 85.06 kill percentage, while Vancouver fall short at 84.3%. Anchorage win out in some statistical departments, but for the most part, Vancouver holds the upper hand across the stat board.

Now, without further ado, let's do my last S47 Armada Recap!


1st Period: Vancouver looked the livelier of the two sides in the opening period of game 1, but Anchorage would score the first goal, when Tony Ford used some wide open space at the point to fire one past Casimir Stevens. The shots were 9-5 in favor of the Whalers, but after 20 it would be the Armada who lead.

2nd Period: Anchorage stepped up the energy in this period, but Vancouver stepped up as well. Jimmy Slothface scored off a great individual drive into the zone to tie up the game, as the Whalers would finally break the deadlock. Later on, with 18 seconds to go in the period, Dale Miller tipped home an Aaron Wilson shot to give Vancouver their first lead of the game, a lead they would carry into the 3rd period.

3rd Period: Both teams came out ready to win this game in the final 20 minutes, but Anchorage put in probably their hardest shift of the season. Topping their total shots over the first two periods by 5 (18 in one period!), they would get the only goal of the period on the man advantage, when Georgian-born rookie Raphael d'Alcott tipped in a low shot from Spencer MacLean to tie the game. That goal would be the one to force overtime, following a thrilling 30-shot period. Not long after the goal, rookie Stavros Halkias (ANC) felt he had a score to settle with Wilson, and dropped the gloves with him. Feisty series!

Overtime: This overtime period didn't last for awfully long. Just under three minutes into the period, an attempted risky stretch pass from Cloutier was cut off for an odd-man rush for Vancouver, resulting in Igor Volkov finding the rookie Bobby Bobcalf, who scored a memorable GWG to take game 1 for the Whalers. Heartbreaking loss for the Armada after a hard-fought game. (Vancouver leads series 1-0)


1st Period: A very sluggish pace from both teams in the first period, as they're maybe feeling the effects of a hard-fought first game. With 11 shots in total over the game, Vancouver got the only goal of the period on one of their six shots. A point shot from star blueliner Jax Duggan got deflected in by Cannellini, who gets his first point of the series with the tip-in. Not much else for action in the period, as that's how it would end.

2nd Period: The period started off perfectly for the Armada, as after Gabe Johnson started a rush with a great interception, Alekski Leskinen found Elijah Jones, the temporary signee, who potted the puck in on a wraparound after his initial shot went wide. That should do well for his stock for the coming SMJHL draft! Around 10 minutes later, the Armada struck again, as captain Cloutier sniped home a snapshot on the man advantage to take the lead for Anchorage. A very productive period for the Boats, who got 19 shots over the 20 minutes, and are rewarded with a lead.

3rd Period: This period, entirely dominated by the Whalers, went quite favorably for Vancouver. Bobcalf got his second goal of the series just over halfway in after a good play by Cannellini to find him. Late on in the period, Anchorage retook the lead, when Xena grabbed a loose puck and shelved it for 3-2 with under 2 minutes to go. However, this wouldn't be the last goal of the period, as Vancouver took advantage of a late penalty taken by Tony Ford Trophy 3rd place runner-up Tony Ford. Slothface picked the puck up in the corner and centered it to an open Miller, who one-timed it past Peter Larson for a dramatic equalizer with just 17 seconds left in regulation. Much to the disappointment of the Anchorage players, it will once again take sudden death to decide the match.

Overtime: Just like in game 1, it didn't take long for this match to be settled in extra time. After Miller knocked a puck to the slot from the boards, Slothface, who's been great this series, snapped it under the arm of Larson to win game two for the Whalers. Absolutely devastating for the Armada, who have battled very hard this series, yet find themselves down 2-0 in the series heading back to Anchorage. (Vancouver leads series 2-0)


Period 1: Anchorage had a lot of energy going into this game back home, but it ended up being a bad period for them. The problems started early, with Slothface once again netting a goal to make it 1-0 around 4 minutes in. 10 minutes later in the period, Petr Mikulak scored a rebound off of a wide shot from Cullen Gray in order to raise the advantage to two goals for the Whalers. Despite leading the period in shots 10-8, the Armada find themselves two goals down after 20 minutes.

Period 2: Anchorage enjoyed a much better second period, as around halfway through the period, as d'Alcott netted his second goal of the series off of a wired shot from the top of the circle. That's the only notable action in a second period that saw Vancouver lead the shots this time, by a tally of 11-10.

Period 3: This was a period that was essentially series-defining for Anchorage going into it, but it couldn't have gone any worse for them. The problems started early, when Gray potted in a loose puck for 3-1 just under three minutes in. Then, some smooth play in the Armada zone ended with a close range tap-in from Theo Morgan to extend the score to 4-1 with under 7 minutes remaining. And finally, Vancouver put the game to bed when star man Cannellini put his snap shot under the arm of Larson to make it 5-1, the final score of the game. After two close games in Ancouver that saw them lose in overtime, the Armada clearly weren't in the right mental space for this one, as they lost rather decisively. (Vancouver leads series 3-0)



Period 1: This period was very unremarkable. Both teams were very sluggish, managing a mere 8 shots between them (5-3 for Anchorage). Not a single penalty was taken either, as their was a major lack of intensity through the first 20 minutes. Vancouver aren't looking like a team making that final push for a sweep, while Anchorage aren't looking like a team making that final push to avoid a sweep.

Period 2: Another scoreless period, but one where Anchorage were beginning to show a bit of a lack of discipline, as Xena, Johnny Sins and Joe Kerr all served minor penalties. The penalties were fortunately killed by the Armada's penalty killers, but with only 11 shots through two periods now, the Armada are struggling to get themselves going in this elimination game.

Period 3: The period had a nightmare start for the Armada, as just 44 seconds in the Whalers opened the scoring goal through a nice quick play off a face-off finished by Theo Morgan. Anchorage fought back a little bit with their lives on the line (figuratively, although who knows what @Acsolap has in store for them if they're swept), but Vancouver would net the next goal at 13:42, as after a shot by Sami Rieder went off the iron and out, Cannellini retrieved the puck and slotted it home for a 2-0 Whalers lead. This goal really seemed to drain the life out of the young Armada, who just seemed to cruise through the rest of the game, unsure of how to get back in it. The game would finish 2-0, as Vancouver sweeps Anchorage, who begin their long summer wondering where it all went wrong. (Vancouver wins series 4-0)


Anchorage won't help but angered and disappointed with how the playoffs turned out for them. After a huge effort was needed to secure a bye from the first round, it ultimately didn't amount to anything, as they lost in the fastest manner possible. The first two games of the series were particularly crushing, as both were settled in overtime after a very evenly-contested 60 minutes. Game 2 was especially demoralizing, as the Whalers goal that sent the game to overtime in the first place was scored with just 17 seconds left in regulation. With Vancouver going on to win in overtime, Anchorage just seemed out of it for the final two games. It's an age-old belief in hockey that veteran presence and experience is a necessity in the playoffs, and with the Armada having lost a lot of that to their SHL call-ups, this series is potential evidence to such being the case.


The Armada can hold their heads high, as the youngest team in the league enjoyed a very respectable regular season ahead of being swept. Their rookies showed good poise and will be ready to come back ready to make a significant impact. With there being swirling rumours that captain Olivier Cloutier will remain with the team next season as well despite all signs pointing to a call-up, they will be looking at a much improved overall squad. However, they will be hurt by the loss of top line winger Eko van Otter to SHL team New England, as well as all-time franchise point leader Xena, who's played her 5th and final SMJHL season. The Boats have been sucked, but the shipyards in Anchorage will be hard at work to ensure next season's Armada will be far stronger than the last. So long!

-gwdjohnson

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