Langely Rivermen sweep Express

The Langley Rivermen are rolling through the pre-season thus far, following their home-and-home sweep of the Coquitlam Express last weekend.

The Rivermen and Express met last Friday and Saturday night, with the ’Men coming away with 8-3 victories both nights.

“Lots of positives to take from the two games,” Rivermen head coach and general manager Bobby Henderson said. “Some of the young guys [who] we expected to play well rose to the occasion. All in all, there weren’t too many guys who didn’t contribute over the course of the two games.”

The Rivermen used both their goaltenders, with Darren Martin playing Friday night and newly acquired Bo Didur starting on Saturday night.

“Both were good when they had to be, especially early on,” said Henderson. “They both showed what they’re capable of and we’re very happy with what we saw out of both guys.”

After missing most of last season, Evan Anderson looked to be back to form, finding the back of the net early in Saturday’s game.

“It was good to see Evan get on the scoresheet,” Henderson said. “Matthew Graham and Zac Masson were also very solid. They displayed great work ethic, were strong on pucks, and created a lot of chances.”

The coaching staff will have some tough decisions to make as they continue to narrow down the active roster to the 22 player league maximum before the regular season opens Sept. 19.

The Rivermen play twice more before their regular season gets underway.

The ’Men’s next exhibition game is this Friday, Sept. 12, when they visit the Surrey Eagles.

Langley wraps up its pre-season at home on Sunday, Sept. 14, as the ’Men host Powell River.

Game time is 2 p.m. at the Langley Events Centre.