Vees have great record when Bast is in the line-up
Gabe Bast has been out of the lineup so much the past two seasons that Penticton Vees fans probably don’t even know what they’ve missed.
Injuries have limited the smooth-skating 20-year-old defenceman to just 22 games, but the numbers don’t lie: The Vees, despite all their success, are even better with the Red Deer, Alta., native in the lineup.
The Vees are an incredible 21-0-1 over the last two seasons when Bast plays. In fact, Penticton was a perfect 20-0 with No. 4 on the roster sheet until losing in the dying seconds of overtime to the Surrey Eagles last Thursday.
In those 22 games, Bast tallied three goals and 14 points — great numbers for any defenceman, especially for one who has rarely been fully healthy at any point in the past two campaigns.
Bast did suit up for one playoff game last season, registering an assist, and the Vees won that one, too, over the Vernon Vipers.
In the one season Bast avoided the injury bug, 2014-15, the Vees won the BCHL championship and rolled all the way to the RBC Cup semifinals (where they lost in OT in controversial fashion) in Portage, Man., in May 2015.
Bast had a terrific rookie season, collecting nine goals and 40 points in 49 games. In the playoffs, he notched another two goals and 13 points in 22 games.
Last season, Bast finally appeared to be getting healthy and ready to return to help the Vees for what many expected to be a lengthy playoff run.
With generational players Tyson Jost, Dante Fabbro and Scott Conway, and sensational veteran goaltender Anthony Brodeur leading the Vees to a fantastic 50-7-1 regular season, it looked to be a case of the rich getting even richer for the post-season. Injuries, of course, changed everything. Brodeur sustained a serious knee injury, Jost was severely limited by a hand injury, Fabbro was also hampered by injury, and Bast suffered a setback after the first game of the playoffs and was lost for the season.
The Vees got past a mediocre Vernon team 4-1 and — despite the crushing run of key injuries — came within an unlucky break in Game 5 and some dreadful officiating in Game 6 of beating a West Kelowna team that went on to win the BCHL title and the RBC Cup.
Jost, Fabbro, Conway and Brodeur are of course no longer here, but Bast is back and — touch wood — as close to 100 per cent as he can be for the playoffs.
And if the Vees — coming off a sixth straight Interior Division pennant — are to seriously challenge for a BCHL title and an RBC Cup, they will lean significantly on the strength of their blue-line, led by Bast, as well as MVP finalist goaltender Mat Robson.
The defence, when healthy, is the best in the league. Top-four stalwarts Joe Leahy and wily veteran Mitch Meek are expected back from injury when the Vees finally get to participate in a post-season game March 17 at the SOEC.
Along with Bast, James Miller, Griffin Mendel, Kenny Johnson and rookie sensation Jonny Tychonick, the Vees are loaded on the back end. The return of Bast has already souped up the power play, while one-through-seven there is a great mix of size, toughness, skill, mobility and hard shooters.
The Vees are also covered in the event of injuries with veteran Greg Brydon and the imminent return of puck-moving rookie Sam Rossini.
The Vees don’t score a lot, but they have a group up front with size, speed and depth that plays a sound, structured two-way game. With Bast and the defence, and of course, Robson, they won’t be asked to play firewagon hockey and score six goals a game for the Vees to be successful in the post-season.
Another two weeks seems a long time to wait for a playoff game, but if it means a long BCHL post-season run, a Western Canada Cup title right here in Penticton and a chance to win the RBC Cup in Cobourg, Ont., in mid-May, I’m sure Vees fans will consider it will well worth it.
A healthy Bast would certainly be a great omen. Penticton simply does not lose when he plays.
PLAYOFF PICKS: Even though the Vees (and Vernon) get a first-round bye, I am still going to subject everyone to my highly dubious BCHL playoff picks:
Interior: Trail over Salmon Arm in five; upset special — Merritt over West Kelowna in six.
Mainland: Wenatchee over Prince George in five; upset special No. 2 — Langley over Chilliwack in seven.
Island: Victoria over Nanaimo in seven; Powell River over Cowichan Valley in five.
David Crompton is a sports reporter at the Penticton Herald. Email comments and sports scores to david.crompton@pentictonherald.ca.