By: Dante De Caria
West Kelowna, BC – Thomas Wardle made 31-saves for his first career shutout, leading the Powell River Kings (14-14-1) to a 3-0 win over the West Kelowna Warriors (5-19-5) on Friday night at Royal LePage Place.
“It’s something I’ve been waiting for,” said Thomas Wardle about getting his first career shutout. “It’s a great feeling to get it out of the way. I felt good, I felt calm and I was moving pretty well. It always helps when your defence is playing really well, so overall it was a good night.”
The Kings received goals from Hunter McCoy, Jacob Badal and Nolan Krogfoss in their first win on the road since November 1st, moving to 5-9-1 on the road this season.
It was McCoy that opened the scoring, deflecting home a shot from Badal, extending his point-streak to seven games with his ninth of the season. The Kings improve to a BCHL best 12-0 when scoring first this season. After Badal made it 2-0 late in the second, Krogfoss took a pass from Michael Abgrall, and fired it past Johnny Derrick for his first goal this season, putting the game away late in the third.
That gave the Kings enough room to hold onto their second shutout win this season (all in November) as Thomas Wardle recorded his second win in a Kings uniform, while the Warriors’ Derrick got the loss, stopping 27 of 31.
Wardle added that this was one of the best defensive performances from the Kings this season, limiting their chances and going 4-for-4 on the penalty kill.
“Our team was really good defensively, and really limited all their chances. Any rebounds I kicked out, they were able to clear. Our guys also cleared out the front of the net, allowed me to see every puck, and won their battles.
Brett Roloson extended his point-streak to eight games (4G/7A) with an assist while Abgrall and Pennington extended their point-streak’s to three games, as they both added assists.
The Kings finish 6-3-1 in November, and back to .500 for the first time since October 11th.
The Powell River Kings finish their three game road trip, Sunday at 3:00 p.m., against the Prince George Spruce Kings (11-15-5). The Kings are back at home on Friday, December 6th at 7:00 p.m., against the Surrey Eagles for our annual Teddy Bear Toss.
