The Kings earned a weekend split on Sunday afternoon with a 3-2 victory over the Nanaimo Clippers, rebounding from a 2-1 loss during Saturday’s home opener.
- You could tell there were a bunch of nerves on both sides of the puck on Saturday night, in one of the messiest games of recent memory. Neither club looked comfortable, neither team looked crisp in their play and neither team really established dominance for any length periods.
- A great start from the Kings though with Mitchell Hawes, Hunter Findlater and Austin Kamer on the first shift of the game as Findlater found Hawes in front, and Hawes got a great shot away but was denied by a better save from Nanaimo goaltender Jonathan Reinhart. Overall, the Kings can be pretty happy with the majority of the 1st period. I felt the tide began to turn around the 13-14 minute mark as Nanaimo established themselves in the game, narrowing the shot totals from 7-1 to 7-6 towards the end of the frame.
- Tristan Mullin gets the honour of the season’s first goal, a goal-mouth scramble. Mullin found a lane to net along the right goal line, eyeing off Clippers defenceman Jordan Low up the wall. He stretched out Reinhart and on a 3rd or 4th try was able to tuck it home.
- From there the Kings really failed to execute in a number of ways, with the Clippers scoring twice in the 2nd period. They were hungrier and controlled more of the play than the Kings.
- Tempers flared at the end of the 1st and into the 2nd as well, but not surprisingly most of the players were veterans stemming likely from the playoffs last season and a highly competitive series between the two clubs. I thought the Kings did well not to get too involved in these scrums and often ended up on the better side of it and resuming action on the powerplay.
- On that note, 1/9 on the powerplay on Saturday night isn’t great, but it’s a starting point. The powerplay suffered the same fate as the Kings did even strength, a lack of organization and fluidity. This isn’t the fault of the players…it’s game 1, and as Tristan Mullin mentioned in the post-game show it’s something the team has worked a lot on in the last couple of weeks. The powerplay will come together, there’s too much talent and depth for it not to, but it’s something that can take time.
Three Stars of the Game:
- Jonathan Reinhart (Clippers) – 36 saves, 1st win
- DJ Petruzzelli (Clippers) – 1 goal, game winning goal
- Tristan Mullin (Kings) – 1 goal
On Sunday, Tristan Mullin scored a pair but it was Rylan with a 3rd period game winner as the Kings earned a weekend split over the Clippers at the Hap Parker Arena.
- Much better top to bottom for the Kings who looked more organized and cohesive as a unit. There were fewer failed outs, fewer breakdowns in neutral ice and more offensive zone pressure.
- I really liked the physicality that the Kings bought Sunday afternoon. Jack Long have a couple of nice checks, as did Andy Stevens on the back end. Up front, the forecheck was led maybe surprisingly by two guys without a ton of size in Chris Protopoulos and Gavin Rauser. Both were relentless especially early in the game and laid a couple of big hits on bigger Nanaimo players.
- Here’s a full breakdown on the post-game show as I chatted with both Rylan Ball and Tristan Mullin.
Three Stars of the Game
- Tristan Mullin (Kings) – 2 goals
- Jeremy LeClerc (Kings) – 2 assists
- Rylan Ball (Kings) – 1 goal, game winning goal
The Kings have a full week of practice ahead before heading to Vancouver Island on Friday to start 3 games in 2 and a half days in Duncan against the Cowichan Valley Capitals.
