The Kings earned not only a weekend sweep, but also their 4th straight victory on the back of goals to Ross Hnidy, Brent Lashuk, Jonny Evans and an empty net buzzer beater from Liam Lawson for a 4-1 win over the Victoria Grizzlies to tie the season series up at 1-1.
- In the 2nd intermission, I was talking with the crew in the PA booth doing music and stats for the game. We were having real trouble coming up with 3 stars and an Energy Player of the Game. Why? No-one really stood out. Just about every player up and down the lineup played a solid team game and there were no amazing individual efforts to lock in a spot. In the 3rd period, we eventually settled on the final combination of Magnus, Coleshaw, Lashuk and Kamer, but many many others could have slid in there. I think this game more than most was a “team” game, and the Kings were boosted by a couple of Kurt Keats goal, or a Jacob Pritchard special…they had to find scoring elsewhere, from guys who don’t necessarily put the puck in the net game after game…and got it through Evans’ 2nd, Hnidy’s 2nd and Lawson’s 3rd (plus Lashuk’s 9th).
- We profiled special teams before the game, the league’s 1st and 5th ranked powerplays for the Grizzlies and Kings respectively going up against struggling penalty kills both sides. The Kings were perfect on the kill, giving Victoria very little on their powerplays. JJ Coleshaw was a key part of this throughout the night, and almost single handidly killed off a penalty in the 1st period by making two good clears and then jamming a puck in the Victoria corner for a good 10 seconds. The Captain was good all night, deserving of 2nd star honours despite being held off the scoresheet.
- On special teams, the Kings 0/3 on the powerplay, just the 5th time that’s been blanked this season.
- Brett Magnus continues to roll, now 6-1 in his last 7. His 32 saves tonight again showed a confident Magnus who controlled the crease and rebounds well. You saw him pointing out to guys, marshalling the skaters in front of him. The team defence and goaltending has been the biggest improvement on the season to date, and the Kings are now winning games because of it, instead of being forced to out gun an opposition 7-6 or 8-4. Obviously disappointing about the shutout attempt, could probably have 3 or 4 on the season if not for a late goal…but wins are the most important.
- The Kings again did a good job limiting opportunities for the Grizzlies top players. Dane Gibson was threatening from distance but anywhere near the net was quickly neutralised. Cole Pickup was not noticeable, Jay Mackie was in the same mold as Gibson. Pick of the bunch from Victoria was Garrett Forster who got the goal and on a line with Brett Gruber were the Grizzlies go-to offence on the night.
- Barring a mid-week scoring change, which is rare for Kings home games as the coaches go over the scoring immediately after, point streaks end for Jarid Lukosevicius and Jacob Pritchard at 6 games. Luko’s 2-9-11 and Pritchard’s 6-4-10 got the Kings over the line in many games over the last couple of weeks, but they weren’t needed tonight. Kurt Keats extends his to 7 with the Hnidy assist. He’s now 6-3-9 in his last 7, and has registered a point in 19 out of his last 20. You can also count the number of times he’s been held off the scoresheet this season on one hand, and still be able to give someone the peace sign.
- The Clippers and Bulldogs both held serve with wins last night, so the Kings don’t gain any ground on the Clippers and stay tied with the Bulldogs. Alberni is in Coquitlam today and burn their game in hand over the Kings, while Nanaimo is idle. Victoria hosts Trail and that’ll be their game in hand over the Kings too. At worst, the Kings sit 3rd come the end of the weekend, 2 back of Alberni, 5 back of Nanaimo and at least 3 up on Victoria.
Here’s what Brock Sawyer and guest Austin Kamer had to say in the post-game show:
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Three Stars of the Game
- Brett Magnus (Kings) – 32 saves, 10th win
- JJ Coleshaw (Kings)
- Brent Lashuk (Kings) – 1 goal
Fortis BC Energy Player of the Game: Austin Kamer
The Kings have a “college weekend” coming up, hosting the Cowichan Valley Capitals at the Hap Parker Arena on Friday and Saturday nights. It’s the first visit for Cowichan to Powell River this year and game times are 7:15 and 5:00pm on both nights.
