Newspapers Article Osoyoos Spurs Whalers

OSOYOOS TIMES-March 5, 2008

It’s time for the World Hockey Association to pack up their tents and leave Osoyoos.

Supporting a local hockey team seems like a given in a small Canadian town, especially when the closest NHL franchise is more than four hours away. Having the community come together over hot chocolates at a small, but cozy rink on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon almost seems effortless in many of Osoyoos’s neighbouring towns and villages across the province.

But since the organization set up shop here, the town has witnessed a pathetic excuse for a franchise.

In the past, the problems included paying the bills on time, or at all. Now the league is cancelling games because it still can’t get its act together.

And there are only six teams.

When an entire playoff series is thrown away and a season cut short because a visiting club is unable to make the trip, it’s clear little or no thought has been given to administering the league.

From all accounts, attendance at the games was virtually non-existent this season and asking anyone how the Whalers did on the weekend usually evoked the same response.

“There was a Whalers game on the weekend?”

Aside from a town losing out on what potentially could have been a mildly interesting playoff run, young hockey players here and in other towns have been forced to default on what one Osoyoos skater called a “frustrating” season due to all the cancelled games.

Many players came from great distances to be on this team and they paid large sums of money to do so, only to finish the year with little to show for their cash or their efforts on the ice.

What a shame that the Osoyoos Whalers team played hard all year only to have the season end not because of an opponent’s goal, but because of an opponent’s absence.

CEO W.R.Smith in Armstrong

His house looks empty as well So i guess it a game of hide and serve!!!!!!!!
http://www.barrheadriverkingshockey.com/

http://osoyoosspurs.blogspot.com/2008/03/oliver-jets-long-time-coming.html
FYI >>>>OSOYOOS AND SQUAMISH WILL NOT WANT THE SMITH CIRCUS BACK TO THEIR TOWNs & WITH THE RIVER KINGS NEW WEST FT VANCOUVER OSOYOOS SQUAMISH GONE >LEAVE WHO ?? 3 teams ??? Familys are ripped off and ? THAT LEAVEs ARMSTRONG SHARKS AND LUMBY ? BOTH TOWNS ARE PEEVED SO THE FUTURE IS ONTARIO I WILL BET RIGHT SAM
Smith has made a mockery out of minor hockey and now seems to be hiding his face and growing hair and I know thatSmith likes the shaved head look !So this is interesting . Will Smith Pay the employees and me as well./... make admends? Stay tuned and find out and see.
OLIVER IS QUESTIONABLE AT Best I HAVE SOME INTERESTING INFO HERE about Oliver STAY TUNED
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River Kings Booted !!!!!!!!!!!!!

The World Hockey Association made a shocking and unexpected move last week and ended the River Kings season.

“At this stage we are trying to get more information but right now we are bewildered, and we are frustrated,” said head coach Tony Fiorillo. “The team is not happy about it either, that’s for sure. The players are disappointed, angry, and feel betrayed.”
The fatal bomb was dropped last Tuesday, just when the River Kings were gearing up for the playoffs.

“We practiced the last two nights. So it’s not like we weren’t preparing and the team was on hold. Our last practice was last night (last Wednesday) when I informed the players, so fact is that we did want to keep going but instead we got this notification that the season is over.”

Fiorillo stressed this was not a decision the River Kings made but one the league forced on them. Reasons for the sudden cancellation have not yet been stated by the WHA. However, the inaugural season of the River Kings was fraught with problems.

“When we started off in this independent league, the World Hockey Association, we started off well and then all of the sudden we were experiencing some problems. So the regular season got cut short,” said an obviously upset Fiorillo.

Those problems have been well documented. Out of a 60-game schedule, the River Kings only played 32. Many of their opponents didn’t bother to show up for the games, citing reasons from bad weather to transportation problems. And that was a major source of frustration for the players, some of whom quit the team because they weren’t playing a full schedule. Fiorillo was quick to point out the River Kings made it to every one of their scheduled games in B.C.
“Right now, I guess I am out of a job. This was my full-time job. I have been with this organization for 13 years and the two gentlemen that own the team are two of the nicest and best people around,” said Fiorillo.


“And I know that this has not been a decision that they made. It was forced upon us and the players know that and we want to make sure that the community of Barrhead knows it too.

“It is a sad day for the organization, the community and more importantly, it’s a sad day for the players.”

Currently the River King's ownership group is doing their due diligence in gathering all the necessary information as to the reasons for this decision. Once assembled, the River Kings look forward to releasing all information and addressing all questions from the community of Barrhead which deserves the truth.


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Oliver Jets a long time coming

Well the Oliver team I envisioned and fought to get for the town are flying high! The Oliver Jets are now soaring into the finals against the Armstrong Sharks and look to have a big chance to take it all in a season that has been not all that it could of been ! But the Jets have been leading the WHA from start almost. BUT >>>
The Oliver Jets were a long time coming >>>>
It all started in October 2006 driving through Oliver in a car with NHL great Brad Park and WHA CEO R.Smith and telling them about my town and their loyalty to their sports teams. Which I witnessed watching/broadcasting minor hockey at the Oliver Arena and Basketball games at SOSS(high school.*(Spare you all the details from car)
Brad Park stated that it sounded alot like US towns and that made alot of sense and was a good idea and if you knew Brad that was a big compliment and the CEO was thinking it over and listening and would discuss more with at a later time. But i said wqell why dont I call the Director of Parks N rec on my cell phone and you just speak to him and so I did the convo was good and that was a start in my moind for my ultimate goal a Oliver Hockey team .. So I worked on getting the CEO more interested in Oliver and Osoyoos rivarly over the next 2 months I finally got him to agred to a special event game well then it came a matter of getting ice in Oliver to play and time was running out but I was able to get ice with only 10 days before I had to move a team(New West Whalers) to play as the home team in Oliver and Osoyoos Spurs had to be the away team It was decided by me that the top team that year Garry Unger's New West Whalers would be the Oliver team and so I arranged the movement of a reg. season game from New West to Oliver (WHA Trivia there )
I ran around town and started the promotion of a regular season game between the New West. Whalers and Osoyoos Spurs to be played in Dec 10 2006* in Oliver(see my archives) Well it worked as there where close to 600 people attendance that Sunday Afternoon...

The following Spring I had to appear and present for the WHA to Oliver Parks and Recreation Society and await their word if they would consider my presentation of a WHA hockey club playing out of the Arena. That took a few weeks and then I got the word..it was good news for the WHA and me too. Then myself and Mr Bob Grant the director of Oliver Parks and Rec got down to hammering out an agreement to get a team placed in Oliver as the season fast approached We neogiated for over 2 months before an agreement was reached. The team was to be called the Roadrunners (*I wanted Jets or Crusaders) Then the CEO decided after it was announced to change to the Jets . Fine with me. There is alot more story but its just to give you an idea.
But it was a great experience.

That was nearly 1.5 years ago. There are persons involved now with the club that have no idea of that history of what had to get done to land this team here. I am only giving the bare essentials here. But it happened and that is the main point here. I see the sign on the side of the arena that I worked a deal for with Outreach Neon looks really nice that is the great work by Outreach Neon!
Since my contract and Ken Laws were never fullfilled I left at the begining of the season after the 2nd game in October and Mr Law left abit after me.
Back to the current team ...
The players chosen by the previous coach Ken Law have prevailed without him and that is due to the players hard work on the ice. Credit should be given to the asst coach >now Head Coach Mike McCarthy and his Asst coach Guy Descheletes along with Chris Pond the Trainer*(He comes to Oliver via Summerland)for all their efforts to bring the team to where it is today ! I am sure the volunteers know what a great impact they have on the team and the sponsors as well. The fans must know...that the players appreciate all your support. The Billets are real champs in this story like VanessaMclean who saved the day for Cody Deadmarsh when I landed her as a billet and many other as well. Thanks to all Billets...
Well I will predict a sweep for the Jets in the finals and the WHA league championship will belong to the high flying speedsters the Oliver Jets
Go Jets Go !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Too bad Ricky Smith is such a fucking putz




All content, programming, graphics and design for all information and domains are protected by Canada & International Copyright Laws and International treaties and may not be reproduced or copied without the express written permission from this blog, which reserves all rights. Unauthorized use of any copyrighted materials is strictly prohibited and all violators will be aggressively prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.Please mail tvchannel18@gmail.com for information about this blog and it's contents.