Everything But a Winner

Karan Toor (10) lays out a heavy hit,
but it wasn't the heaviest hit of the game

In a game that featured literally everything, except a winner, the Prince George Spruce Kings extended their points in a game streak to eight games after settling for a 4-4 double overtime tie versus the Vernon Vipers. Chad Staley had a four point night picking up his second BCHL career hattrick and adding an assist, but that doesn't even compare to the exploding glass and fireworks late in the third period.

After a slow start to the game, everybody in the rink was commenting about how they had never seen a game with so much excitement and would have like to see this one go longer than it did. The first ten minutes of the game featured a single shot on goal by each team and no chances. To say this game was looking like a dud was an understatement as most of the play happened between the blue lines. During the BCHL timeout, somebody flicked a switch and the game immediately turned to one the fans and players won't soon forget.

A one-time member of the Prince George Spruce Kings, as a fifteen year old draft choice, provided the first real spark to the game. Tyler Povelofskie fired a shot into the Spruce Kings zone that bounced off the wall and came back at Alex Murray, bouncing through the goaltender that left the crease to play it. The puck landed in the crease and looked like an easy goal just waiting for Povelofskie to find, but Murray was able to dive back to the net and get a glove on it before that could happen. The Vernon Vipers forward fell on Murray and in the melee that followed, Skylar Pacheco received a two minute minor for high sticking.

The Vernon Vipers powerplay looked dangerous with cross crease passes and hard point shots, but Murray saw them all and stopped them all. The Vipers tallied five shots on goal during the powerplay and were looking for a sixth from the right point when Mark Hamilton (yes the player that hit Jake LeBrun) lost an edge and fell down unable to reach the puck. Chad Staley jumped on the loose puck and headed up the ice with only the linesman between him and the goaltender at the other end.

The official got caught in no-man's land and fortunately just froze in place about five feet from the boards. Staley took the outside lane to get around the official in front of the Vernon Vipers player's bench and then made his cut to net. The speed of Staley was too much for Austin Smith to handle and he couldn't get in good position as Staley found the top corner with a back hand flip. Staley's tenth goal of the season came with five seconds still remaining in Pacheco's penalty on just the second Prince George shot on goal at 14:27 of the opening period.

With the game now getting exciting to watch, the place was about to erupt. The Spruce Kings used that goal as a momentum shift and started on the attack again. On a play in the Vernon end, Braiden Epp lined up a defenceman against the back wall for a hit and did he hit him. The glass behind the net exploded leaving fragments of glass all over the ice behind the net and extending up four rows in the seats behind. The players were left with bits of glass in their equipment that had to be taken out.

This happened with 5:10 remaining in the opening period and at 7:30pm local time. It was thought that the delay would take about ten to fifteen minutes, leaving the players on the ice waiting to resume the play. Unfortunately it started to take a little longer than that to clean up the broken glass and then the wrong piece of glass came out. It was then decided that the players should go to the dressing room for an early first intermission break. In all the delay took just over an hour as the team's were brought back to resume play at 8:32pm.

The Spruce Kings would add two more shots in the last five minutes and the Vipers one in a period that took 90 minutes in all to play. In the second period, the Spruce Kings started to find their stride again and were getting some scoring chances that led to their first powerplay. Prince George controlled much of the man advantage and as they worked the puck around the perimeter and back to Karan Toor, it was the defenceman that took the big point shot only to have it blocked by his own guy. Chad Staley picked up the puck, looked at the net, saw the goaltender had gone down looking to make the save and fired into the top half of the net for his second goal of the game and eleventh of the game giving Prince George a 2-0 lead.

The Vernon Vipers would get that one back a few minutes later off a nice solo effort from Liam Coughlin who followed cut to the net from the left wall and outwaited Murray before lifting a back hander into the far top side corner. The goal gave the Vipers life and they started to come on leading to fluky goal from Povelofskie. Playing in his twentieth game of the season and in front of parents on parent's weekend in Vernon, Povelofskie drove hard to the net and had to retrieve the puck from below the goal line.

Looking to make a centring pass, he shot the puck out just as Spruce Kings defender Danny Kiraly dove feet first to block the pass. Unfortunately the puck would catch Kiraly's skate and was kicked towards the far side post where it just squeezed in over the line. There was a short conversation as to whether or not the puck actually crossed the line but it was counted, tieing the game at two goals a-piece. That's how the second period would end with Prince George credited with ten shots on goal for a two period total of 14 and Vernon getting eight more for a two period total of 16.

As all the other games in the BCHL were coming to a close, this one was just heading into the third period. Prince George would again put the pressure on the Vernon Vipers, hemming them in their own end. In a play that saw the puck roll along the dasher board from the corner to just before the glass ends at the Vipers bench, Jeremiah Luedtke grabbed it off the wall to keep the play alive. Luedtke was able to play the puck enough to get it to Chad Staley who came in and picked up the puck out of feet and then fed it across the ice to Christian Weidauer who came in off the right point untouched and fired in his fifth of the season giving the Spruce Kings back their lead.

The play would go back and forth with the Vernon Vipers getting the better of the chances, but again Alex Murray stood tall in net and would not give up that tying goal. The Spruce Kings would find themselves on their third powerplay of the game just past the midway mark of the third period. The Prince George powerplay looked impressive on this night and for 54 seconds Mitch Eden quarterbacked the man advantage from the top slot before finally getting the shot he wanted from the right point. The shot got through traffic and was laying in the paint between the feet of Staley who tapped it backwards between his feet and through the five hole of Smith to restore Prince George's two goal lead.

The Vernon Vipers would not go away and less than a minute later they had clawed their way back into this game with a shot that found its way through Murray at 13:07 to make it a 4-3 game. In everything that had gone on to this point in the game, the Studio Cuts Crowning Moment of the Game was just about to be played out.

Hit last night with a high elbow but able to play in tonight's game, Braiden Epp became the centre of attention again when he was reaching for the puck against the wall in his own zone and was hit from behind while in an awkward position. Matty Saharchuk leveled Epp leaving the Prince George forward on the ice. The players came together in a scrum and were pushing and shoving and jawing at each other. Christian Weidauer and TJ Dumonceaux came together and looked like they may go when Dumonceaux dropped his gloves and started trying to land a shot.

Ryan Dawson, one of the linesman came in to seperate the two players and as he did he was hit a first time by Dumonceaux. It looked like that was where it was going to end but the Vipers forward continued to try and get loose from the clutches of Dawson and then with another right, Dumonceaux connected but it was the face of Dawson that he hit sending the linesman crashing to the ice where he laid for over thirty seconds. Cam Smith, the Spruce Kings trainer who was already on the ice attending to Epp, went to the official to offer help. The official had been cut and there was blood on the ice as he got up holding a cloth to his face.

Thinking that Vipers would get a five minute major for the Saharchuk boarding call and a two minute instigator penalty to Dumonceaux for dropping the gloves and looking to start a fight, the referee surprised everybody and called just a single minor for the boarding, gave both Weidauer and Dumonceaux ten minute misconducts and a game misconduct to Dumonceaux for tagging the official. The strange interpretation of what happened left the Spruce Kings in disbelieve and provided a source of inspiration for the Vipers.

Prince George didn't get much of anything on the man advantage and as the penalty came to an end, it was the Vipers that went on the offensive and found the equalizer with three minutes still to play in regulation time. Neither team could score in the remaining time leading to overtime where both teams would again trade chances in end to end rushes combining for 17 shots on goal in total in the extra time. The Vernon Vipers finished with 9 shots through overtime for a game total of 41 and the Spruce Kings were credited with 8 shots for a game total of 28.

The single point extended the Spruce Kings points per game streak to eight games with five wins, and three overtime decisions including two 4-4 ties dating back to October 21st versus the Surrey Eagles. Prince George remains one point back of the Langley Rivermen for top spot in the Mainland Division and will now go looking to claim top spot with a win in Salmon Arm. It is the first meeting of the season with the Silverbacks who are coming off of a 3-2 come from behind win over the Trail Smoke Eaters Saturday night.

A Gift Goal Wins It

The Spruce Kings celebrate after Sean Landrey scores
the game's first goal en route to a 3-2 win

The Prince George Spruce Kings took the gift they were given and traded it in for two points in a 3-2 win over the visiting Cowichan Valley Capitals on Saturday night. Three highlight reel goals from Sean Landrey, Brogan O'Brien and Jeremiah Luedtke provided the Spruce Kings with their tenth win of the season and third in a row.

Although the game finished with fans holding on to the edge of their seats, the game certainly didn't start that way and was more of a yawner with no energy on the ice and no atmosphere in the stands. It took over five minutes for the first shot on goal to be registered by either team. Perhaps it was that first shot that turned the tide when Matt Painchaud worked his way underneath the Cowichan Valley Capitals defence and drove hard to the net looking to poke the puck in five-hole.

On the next shift, the Spruce Kings would get two more shots and that then seemed to ignite the road weary Capitals. The visitors applied the pressure and had good puck possession in the Spruce Kings end but were having difficulties finding the net firing pucks high and wide. Hemmed inside their own zone, things would change quickly for Prince George when Riley Hawes jumped on a loose puck at the top of the faceoff circle and spotted Sean Landrey breaking out of the zone.

Hawes fed a perfect pass through the middle that Landrey picked up on the fly. With a step on the defender, Landrey let go a snap shot that beat the Capitals goalie high to the blocker side. For Landrey it was his second goal of the season and second in as many games coming at 14:07 of the first period on the Spruce Kings fifth shot on goal. The goal would hold up as the only tally in the opening period and, for a while, looked like it was going to be the only goal of the second period too. Prince George headed to the dressing room leading 12-6 on the shot clock.

On Thursday night the Spruce Kings were put on their heels in the second period but they weren't about to let that happen to them on this night. Even with Karan Toor sitting in the penalty box with over three minutes remaining in a double minor, the Spruce Kings created chances. The best came off the stick of Chad Staley who stole the puck and was looking for the far side of the net before he was hauled down. Some fans in the building were wondering if a penalty shot would be awarded with a penalty shot again, but it was only called a two minute minor. The four on four situation only lasted for a short while before Justin Rai was called for an interference penalty giving the Capitals a 4-on-3 to work with and 12 seconds of 5-on-3.

Even with the extra ice and short two man advantage, the Cowichan Valley Capitals couldn't get anything on Alex Murray. The next three powerplays all went to the Spruce Kings, but they too struggled to get quality shots on goal with the man advantage despite controlling much of the play in the offensive zone. Before the end of the second period, the Cowichan Valley Capitals would get their third powerplay of the game and would make the most of it, scoring the tying goal at 19:10. Despite outshooting the visitors 14-8 in the middle frame, the Spruce Kings could not capitalize on any of their chances.

With the start of the third period it looked like the Capitals were on the verge of taking over the game's momentum and very well might have had it not been for a stunning play by the Spruce Kings youngest player. Coming around from behind his own net, Danny Kiraly spotted Brogan O'Brien the puck just inside the Prince George blue line. The sixteen year old took off with speed through the middle, shook off a couple of checks and stepped around two more defenders. As O'Brien made his way around the last guy, he lost his footing and fell to his knees but never gave up on the puck. From his knees, O'Brien was able to pull the puck from his backhand to his forehand and bury on Robin Gusse (pronounced goose) before sliding into the net himself.

The goal left the entire building in a buzz with people asking the same question all around the Coliseum - "did you see that?" Before the reality of the goal could sink in for the fans in the stands, the Cowichan Valley Capitals answered right back to again put the game into a tie. The tie would hold up for sixteen minutes as both teams traded chances. The Capitals had the best chance to score the go-ahead goal when Mitch Ball had the game on his stick and was robbed by a reach back glove hand save by Alex Murray.

Not a minute later a tense crowd would explode in a goal celebration that was tempered with more disbelief. In the Spruce Kings zone, the Capitals had complete control of the puck and were working it along the left side wall back to the point. The pass back got away from the defenceman and went the length of the ice. Gusse left the net and went into the corner to play it. Jeremiah Luedtke followed the puck into the Capitals end and then curled in towards the slot. Just as Luedtke was passing between the faceoff circles the unbelievable happened. In a bold maverick move to find the far side defenceman, Gusse passed the puck right to Luedtke who grabbed it and fired in to the empty net with 44 seconds remaining in the third period.

After the horror of the situation sunk in for Gusse and the Capitals, they would control the final seconds of play inside the Spruce Kings zone but couldn't find the equalizer before the final buzzer sounded. The Spruce Kings posted the 3-2 regulation time victory sending the hometown fans home happy and the visitors on the bus still shaking their heads on the one that got away on them. After the game, Alex Murray was given the hard hat after making 24 saves on the night including two huge saves in the third period.

Sean Landrey who played a strong game all night long was awarded the game's first star while Brogan O'Brien picked up the second star for his highlight reel goal and smart play all night long. With the three stars being selected a few minutes before the end of the game, the third star came as a bit of a surprise after it was awarded to the player that gave the puck away in the dying seconds of the game - Robin Gusse. Chad Staley and Jeremiah Luedtke were on the short list for Fortis BC Energy Player of the Game, but it would be Staley that picked up the honour after putting together another solid sixty minute effort.

On a side note, both Caleb Thompson and Jake LeBrun who have been out of the lineup for the most of the month of October, were both at the game. At this point it is unclear if either player will be able to travel with the team next weekend for their next set of games. The Spruce Kings will be in Surrey on November 1st and Langley November 2nd.

The Langley Rivermen maintained their two point cushion over the Spruce Kings in top spot in the Mainland Division with a 3-2 overtime win over the West Kelowna Warriors. The Spruce Kings are now four points up on the Coquitlam Express who were idle tonight. After losing 3-2 to the Chilliwack Chiefs, the Surrey Eagles sit seven points back of Prince George in fourth place and the Chiefs are stuck in the basement with nine points.

Staley's First Trick

Jesse Jenks and the Spruce Kings were undersiege in the
2nd and 3rd periods but came away with a 7-4 win

Although it is going to take a BCHL review of a goal, Chad Staley's hat trick proves to be too much for the Merritt Centennials to overcome as the Spruce Kings post a 7-4 win Thursday night in Prince George.

There is no video review during a game but afterwards the League can review all goals and make any necessary scoring changes. Staley will have to wait for this process to happen before he will be able to see his first official BCHL hat trick on the score sheet. In the meantime the entire team will get to enjoy a night off before getting back to it on Saturday night when they take on the Cowichan Valley Capitals.

On Thursday night, the Spruce Kings opened the scoring early in the first period on their first powerplay chance. Although they had some issues getting the 5-on-4 to work, it would be the top line of Staley, Jeremiah Luedtke and Brent Lashuk that figured it out before the man advantage ended. Staley carried the puck into the zone before passing it off to Luedtke who took the initial shot. The rebound came out to Lashuk who also had an attempt at the shot with the puck coming out to the slot for Staley to put behind Russell Sanderson.

The Spruce Kings would make a 2-0 game shortly afterwards on a broken play that was started by Donovan Law, the affiliate player called up earlier in the day. After it was determined following the morning skate that Riley Hawes would not be able to go for the evening, the call was made for Law to join the Spruce Kings for that night. Law is currently playing for the 100 Mile House Wranglers of the KIJHL and made the four hour drive to Prince George.

Playing on a line with Sean Landrey and Matt Painchaud, Law picked up the puck on the left wing and fired a pass to Landrey through centre ice. As Landrey went in to the offensive zone, his original shot was blocked and bounced towards the slot with Landrey following behind. With a quick slap at the puck it became a knuckler that flew past the glove side of Sanderson at 10:39 of the first period.

For the 3-0 goal, the Spruce Kings can thank Jesse Jenks for turning aside three big Merritt chances. With the Centennials battling for the puck in the Prince George end, Christian Weidauer was able to dig the puck out to Bryant Christian who took off down the ice with Brent Lashuk and Justin Rai on the rush. Christian chipped the puck off the wall to Lashuk who carried it in to the right side faceoff circle before centering the puck for Rai to bury his third of the season.

At 17:12 of the first period, the Spruce Kings stretched their lead over the visitors to four on a powerplay goal scored on their second man advantage of the game. The powerplay started with a shorthanded chance for the Merritt Centennials that was broken up by Skylar Pacheco. The three year veteran on the blue line was able to get the powerplay headed in the right direction and setup in the offensive zone. Brogan O'Brien found the puck on the right wall and skated around the perimeter before coming down the slot. The sixteen year old rookie's shot was stopped with the rebound going out to the left side to Pacheco who come down the wing and fired home his sixth of the season.

The first period was highlighted by some long stretches of play with few whistles and when the whistles did come they were either the result of goals or penalties; the BCHL time out never came until the 19 minute mark. The final minute saw the Spruce Kings with one more scoring chance when Brent Lashuk was sprung on the right side. After twenty minutes, the Spruce Kings had a 4-0 lead and led on the shot clock 11-9.

To start the second period, Devin Kero replaced Russell Sanderson between the pipes and the rest of the team took everything they could to the Prince George end of the ice firing shot after shot on Jesse Jenks. The pressure applied led to a couple of penalties that the Centennials were able to capitalize on to make the game close. The Spruce Kings seemed to be on their heels for a majority of that second period and were holding onto a 4-2 lead until the line of Staley, Luedtke and Lashuk fired up their engines again.

Late in that second period Staley would find the goal post on a hard shot from the right side. On their very next shift, on a play that Mitch Eden setup to spring the trio, Luedtke was able to get a weak shot on goal that fooled Kero. The shot was stopped by not covered and as Staley came around from behind the net he found the loose puck and lifted it over the glove of Kero. The goal was originally credited to another player but the video clearly shows it was Staley's sixth of the season.

The Spruce Kings went to the dressing room leading by three despite being outshot in the second period by a margin of 14-8 and 23-19 through forty minutes of play. Into the third period, the Centennials would pick up where they left off and be rewarded five minutes later with their third goal of the game and first one scored at even strength. The game would remain a 5-3 game for another nine minutes.

With the Spruce Kings trying to kill off another penalty, Chad Staley was sprung on a breakaway down the middle. Staley was caught by the Centennials defenceman who tried to take the shot away only to be called for interference leading to Staley being awarded a penalty shot. Staley took his time getting ready for his first ever penalty shot but as he picked up the puck at centre ice, the anticipation in the building grew. Staley came straight down the lane as he closed in the Centennials netminder, faked to his backhand before pulling it back to his forehand and sliding it past Kero.

Before the end of the game, the visitors would get a lucky bounce as a dump in shot from the point would literally bounce past Jesse Jenks giving Merritt a renewed source of optimism. Shortly after the ensuing puck drop, the Centennials opted for an extra attacker and pulled the goaltender. After stopping the initial attack, Karan Toor carried the puck to the centre ice line and fired at the open net only to hit the base of the right side post.

In the final minute the Spruce Kings would again find themselves hemmed in their own zone. Again it was Toor that found a way to get the puck out of the zone and continued to chase it down the right side wall winning the battle for the puck. Toor got that shot away and watched as the puck slid over the goal line giving the defenceman his third goal of the season and the Spruce Kings a 7-4 win over the visiting Centennials.

It was the second time this season that the Spruce Kings scored seven goals against an opponent on home ice, it was also the first win this season against the Merritt Centennials. More importantly the win with seven goals provides the team in the dressing room a great deal of relief knowing that they can score goals despite the absence of Jake LeBrun who still remains sidelined with his concussion. Since Brent Lashuk has returned to the lineup, the Spruce Kings have scored 15 goals after being held to just four in the four games when both Lashuk and LeBrun were out of the lineup.

The Spruce Kings will be looking for that trend to continue as they take on the Cowichan Valley Capitals on Saturday night in the Coliseum.

Deja Vu All Over Again

Alex Murray and the Spruce Kings were under siege in the
third period but held on for the 3-2 win Saturday

The Prince George Spruce Kings did the unthinkable tonight in defeating the West Kelowna Warriors 3-2 in their own rink. Basically limping in to Royal LePage Place,  the Spruce Kings came in four players short including two of the top scorers.

Jake LeBrun (8G, 5A) missed his fourth consecutive game and linemate Brent Lashuk (2G, 8A) missed his fifth. Defenceman Caleb Thompson missed all three games and Mitch Barker played Thursday in Merritt but was a scratch for the other two games this weekend.

After losing the first two games to the third place team (4-1 Merritt Centennials) and the second place team (2-0 Penticton Vees), the odds did not favour the Spruce Kings as they faced off against the West Kelowna Warriors,  the number one team in the Interior Division and the BCHL. The Warriors were riding a 9-0-0-1 record in their last ten games and were undefeated on home ice to start the season.

A similar scenario had played out a year ago when the Spruce Kings came in missing seven players, but were able to sneak out with a 4-3 win. In that game, Justin Rai was one of the scratches leaving Chad Staley and Jeremiah Luedtke with a stranger on the wing. Staley and Luedtke used that game as their breakout game annoucing their arrival in the BCHL with a highlight reel goal that stood up as the game winner.

With the team struggling to find offence, coach Dave Dupas used the memory of that game to change up his forward lines moving Rai up to play with Bryant Christian and Colin Chmelka. Brogan O'Brien was moved onto the wing with Staley and Luedtke to try and add a spark for those two,

As it played out, it was Justin Rai that provided the spark for the Prince George Spruce Kings, setting up the game's first goal and then scoring his second of the season less than twenty seconds later. As the game approached the midway mark of the first period, Mitch Eden started a play inside his own zone spotting Bryant Christian at centre ice. Christian took a hit to make a play getting the puck up to Rai who continued into the Warriors end. As the defender approached, Rai got the puck back to Skylar Pacheco who quickly fired a shot from the top of the faceoff circle that beat the West Kelowna netminder.

Off the ensuing faceoff,  the trio went right back to work in the offensive zone creating an odd man rush. Once again it was Christian finding Rai with a pass to the left side and the highly motivated second year forward took it from there. Rai moved in and wired the perfect shot short side above the blocker, giving the Spruce Kings their 2-0 lead and stunning the home crowd into an eerie silence.

The West Kelowna Warriors used the BCHL timeout to settle down their players and it seemed to work. They would get the next scoring chance when Jason Cotton came down the left wing, threw the brakes on and in one movement looked off the defender and goaltender while whipping a wrister that rang off the crossbar. A few shifts later, the Warriors were back on the attack led by Liam Blackburn and Seb Lloyd. In a broken play that saw two PG defenders get crossed up and fall to the ice, the puck deflected back against the flow of play to a wide open Lloyd who made no mistake, firing a shot into a wide open net to close the gap to one goal.

Instead of gaining momentum, the wheels came off the bus for the West Kelowna Warriors with a parade a players making a trip to the penalty box. Earlier in the period, Ambrose Frickus blocked a Pacheco point shot and spent a long time on the ice unable to move. He ended up being helped off the ice and was taken immediately to the dressing room for observation and repairs. Firkus did return, but appeared to be tenative and ended up taking a lazy penalty as he turned his back to a rushing Justin Rai and stuck his leg out tripping him up.

Thrty seconds later the Warriors were called for another violation, this time it was Matt Anholt for a slash putting the Spruce Kings on a two man advantage for 1:22. This whole series became the Studio Cuts Crowning Moment of the Game as the Spruce Kings would find the back of the net 40 seconds later. From the right side wall Luedtke fed the puck back to the right point where Pacheco set up a one-timer for Christian Weidauer.  The Spruce Kings leading offensive defenceman let go a blast from the left point that got through everyone restoring Prince George's two goal lead at 3-1.

Thats how the first period would end with the Spruce Kings out shooting the home team 14-5. The teams would trade chances in the second but again the Spruce Kings would limit the Warriors to just five shots on goal. The highlight of the second period would be the continued parade to the penalty box, five of the seven penalties going to the Warriors. While the Spruce Kings weren't completely innocent, it did appear that the officials were less inclined to make the calls against the visiting team.

In the third period it certainly looked like the blown chances in the middle frame were going to come back and bite the Spruce Kings. Not content with their limited shots in the first two periods, the Warriors pulled out everything they could looking to get back in the game. At one point both teams would trade breakaway chances on back-to-back plays. Brogan O'Brien would get the first one as he was fed a stretch pass and sprung from centre ice. On the very next play Carl Hesler slipped between a pair of Spruce Kings on the blue line to bust in on Alex Murray who came up with the save of the game.

Unfortunately for Prince George, the rebound would make its way back to Hesler who snapped home the puck pulling the Warriors to within one at 6:12. The Warriors kept up the pressure forcing turnovers in the offensive zone and keeping Prince George hemmed up in their own end. With eleven minutes still to play in regulation time, Dave Dupas called his timeout to calm his players down and remind them not to panic and stay aggressive instead of sitting back.

The Spruce Kings did just that and although they never really got anymore chances, they certainly minimized chances for the Warriors by clogging up the nuetral zone, keeping them to the outside, blocking shots and winning battles along the walls. That continued for almost the entire final ten minutes of the third period with the intensity rising as the clock ticked down. The Warriors pulled their goalie with 90 seconds remaining but still couldn't manage anything of consequence on net.

As the final seconds ticked down, Chad Staley made the last big defensive play diving in front of a point shot and then slapping the loose puck out over the blue line to kill off the clock. It truly did turn into deja vu all over again as the Spruce Kings came in against all odds to pull off an improbable victory. The win puts Prince George back above .500 with a record of 7-6-0-1, good for third place in the Mainland Division, one point back of the Coquitlam Express and four back of the front running Langley Rivermen.

Justin Rai was by far the best player, for either team in the first period and his play through the remaining forty minutes earned the second year player first star honours. Skylar Pacheco also factored in the three star selection as could a host of players including Chad Staley, Christian Weidauer, Mitch Eden, Karan Toor and Alex Murray. For the twenty year old goalie, who made a number of key saves especially in the third period, he was considered the FortisBC Energy Player of the Game and given the "hat" in the dressing room by his team mates.

The Spruce Kings return home for the remainder of the Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend,  they will get two days of practice time before heading back out on the road for another three game weekend. Prince George will play twice in Surrey and will be looking to use those games to put even more distance between themselves and the Eagles. The other game in the three game set will be against the Langley Rivermen.

Unlikely Hero Emerges Tonight

Defensively the Spruce Kings were solid and were
rewarded by the play of one blueliner

The Spruce Kings started a three game weekend with a come-from-behind win over the Coquitlam Express with Karan Toor getting his first BCHL career goal to seal the victory.

Ask anybody cheering for the Spruce Kings on this night what Toor's goal looked like and I'm sure they'll all remember being a bar-down snipe. In reality it was more a case of the hockey gods smiling on one of the hardest working defenceman in the BCHL, crowning Toor the hero on a play that started with a gamble and finished with a scramble at the side of the net.

Early in the game, both teams traded chances and were being stymied by a pair of goaltenders that were able to see almost everything coming there way. Two of the best chances for Prince George to open the scoring in the first period came off a pair of rushes from Bryant Christian and the AP call up, Brogan O'Brien.

Just past the midway mark of the first period, Christian was sprung from his own blue line on a break away. As he closed the gap on the Coquitlam goaltender, Christian though he saw a little daylight on the glove hand side. Gordie Defiel had other thoughts and quickly snared that shot with the big mitt.

A few shifts later it was the Cariboo Cougars call up and future Spruce Kings player, Brogan O'Brien that started a play inside his own zone after muscling the puck away from the opponent. O'Brien carried the puck down the wall and cut to the middle of the ice in the deep slot before attempting a shot. That shot snuck wide after he took a slash from the defender.

The Spruce Kings would come up empty on the ensuing powerplay; in fact both teams were 0 for with the man advantage. The Spruce Kings had just two powerplays to work with in the game while the Express ended up with four on the night.

Before the first period ended, the Coquitlam Express capitalized on a forced turnover in the neutral zone when Adam Rockwell stopped the Spruce Kings breakout attempt and then found Joey Santucci on the the right wing. Santucci came in to the top of the faceoff circle before snapping home a shot that fluttered over the glove of Jesse Jenks.

The Express kept the pressure on to start the second period and four minutes in would be rewarded with a second goal when Bo Pieper strode in on the left wing before zinging a shot to the far side high glove on Jenks.

The Spruce Kings wouldn't take much time to respond and were able to get that one back 78 seconds later when the top line of Brent Lashuk, Jake LeBrun and Bryant Christian came up with the puck and took it to the Coquitlam net. Christian's first shot was stopped but the rebound came right back to the captain who bunted in his second of the season off the side of goaltender.

There would be no more scoring in the middle frame, but the score keepers would be kept busy with a succession of six penalties starting with a quick tilt at centre ice. With Chad Staley busting into the offensive zone, Riley Hawes and Adam Smith dropped their gloves on the Coquitlam Express logo where they quickly exchanged blows before both went down heavily on the frozen canvas. Both would have to go to their respective dressing rooms for repairs.

The rest of the penalties were mostly the result of players crashing the net after saves. One such play resulted in a two minute minor to Bryant Christian for goaltender after he bumped the netminder playing the puck out of the crease area. That penalty would extend into the third period which the Spruce Kings were able to kill off.

At the 5:20 mark the Spruce Kings would tie up the game on a goal mouth scramble that saw the puck come out to the top of the crease for Brent Lashuk to pot his second of the season. On the very next shift, that top line of Lashuk, LeBrun and Christian would stay out and get in on top of the crease again. Cruising through the lower portion of the ice, Christian again bumped the goaltender drawing a second minor for goaltender interference and an automatic game misconduct for the Spruce Kings captain.

With the game tied, the penalty setup the framework for the Studio Cuts Crowning Moment of the Game. If the Coquitlam Express score a powerplay tally it would give them back their lead, but if the Spruce Kings kill it off that should lead to a momentum shift. Sure enough the Spruce Kings would kill it off with big thanks to Jesse Jenks and also Karan Toor who was blocking shots and taking away the down low options.

In a season and a bit, Toor has been one of the most consistent players night in and night out; always battling for puck possession and not giving up position to a puck carrier. In an uncharacteristic gamble, Toor read the play and showed his faith with his team mates on the ice. Toor saw Brent Lashuk challenge the rush and stepped up on the play with Lashuk chipping the puck off the wall. Toor picked up the puck and slid it over to Jake LeBrun as the two turned up the ice on an odd man break.

LeBrun fired the puck on net with the rebound coming over to Toor who looked to be giving the puck back but instead caught just enough of it to put it along the goal line. With a second effort, Toor got another touch on it and watched as the puck crossed the goal line for the defenceman's first BCHL tally in seventy games.

The Spruce Kings bench erupted for the veteran's first goal and Eden was the first to go over and make sure the puck ended up on the Prince George bench. The coaching staff left Toor out there and were rewarded with his tenacious style at protecting the puck as the Express poured it on looking for an equalizer. That even up goal would not come on this evening setting the stage for the Spruce Kings full come-from-behind win, putting the team in a three way tie for second in the Mainland Division.

Jesse Jenks was named the game's first star with Jake LeBrun picking up the honours in second place, but really Karan Toor's name should have been slotted in there. Riley Hawes earned the nod for the FortisBC Energy Player of the Game.

The Spruce Kings will now look to follow this win tonight up with another one Saturday night against a very well rested Chilliwack Chiefs squad. Surprisingly the Chiefs haven't played a game since the double header in Prince George back on September 13th and 14th. The game Saturday night will be the Chiefs home opener and only their fifth game of the season whereas the Spruce Kings will be suiting up for their eighth of the season.

Saturday's game will be the first Prince George Motors Spruce Kings Game of the Month on 99.3 the Drive. Ron St. Clair will have the call of the game with Ron Gallo sliding into the colour commentary role for the big game. The game will also be on Fasthockey.com and the Spruce Kings Mixlr channel.

Shots, Shots, Shots

The Prince George Spruce Kings couldn't convert shots into goals on Saturday night, dropping a 2-1 decision to the Chilliwack Chiefs in overtime at the Coliseum.

Veteran defenceman Kiefer McNaughton got the game winner just 55 seconds into the four-on-four extra session blasting a point shot into the top corner and past Spruce Kings goaltender Alex Murray. McNaugton, who began his BCHL career with Quesnel Millionaires, was in on both Chiefs goals as Chillwack earned its first win of the young season.

The Spruce Kings still came out of the weekend with three points after defeating the Chiefs 7-1 on Friday night.

Despite outshooting the Chiefs 43-22, the Spruce Kings weren't able to light lamp often enough to get the win on Saturday.

The Chiefs limited the number of second-chance opportunities the Spruce Kings had and Prince George didn't generate the same amount of traffic in front of Chiefs goalie Lyndon Stanwood as they did on Friday night.

The Spruce Kings got into penalty trouble in the second half of the game but the penalty killing unit did its job and then some, negating eight Chilliwack power-play opportunities.

With the game knotted at one goal apiece, the Chiefs did generate some good chances in the third, but Murray was up to the task. His biggest stop came midway through the period when he kicked out his pad to deny Jacob Hand from point-blank range. Chiefs defenceman Carter Cochrane opened the scoring at 16:55 of the first when he banged home a rebound of a McNaughton shot while the Chiefs had an extra attacker on due to a pair of delayed penalties against the Spruce Kings. The goal came on just the Chiefs third shot of the opening period.

The Spruce Kings drew even at 17:58 of the second on Bryant Christian's first goal of the year. Christian drove hard to the net and re-directed a beautiful feed from Brent Lashuk into the back of the net.

Austin Plevy had a bevy of chances for the Chiefs. The team's leading scorer from last season appeared poised to take a feed in the slot in the first, but a great backchecking effort by Mitch Eden spoiled that opportunity.

Plevy broke in a breakaway in the second, but Alex Murray waited him out and made a nice save to keep the Spruce Kings within on at the time.

His best chances came in the final minute of the third when Karan Toor and Skylar Pacheco both cleared the puck off the goal line after it got past Murray.

Stanwood had a busy weekend, the Spruce Kings directed 53 shots his way in Friday night's 7-1 win and his effort Saturday earned him first star honours.

Toor was named the game's second star and Christian garnered the third star award. Spruce Kings forward Sean Landrey was named the FortisBC Energy player of the game.

The Spruce Kings are back on home ice next weekend with Penticton visiting the castle on Friday night and Trail making the trip north on Saturday.

Regular Season Leaders

Coltyn Hansen (10) finished the season as the team's
leading scorer hitting the 50 point plateau

At this time of the year the stats keepers are quick to release information regarding how players fared during the regular season. I guess that makes me no difference because the Spruce Kings have their statistical leaders in all those common categories too. Perhaps the best test is to compare some of those numbers around the League and through the years. I'll look a little more in depth into those numbers but for now here are those common numbers.

Coltyn Hansen finished the season as the team's leading scorer with 21 goals and 29 assists reaching the 50 point plateau. With skates a-flash, Hansen used his speed on many occasion to create scoring chances for himself and the Prince George Spruce Kings. His speed can be attributed to more than just a handful of his goals this season.

That 21 goal performance was tied by Cameron Lawson who counted 7 powerplay goals, 2 short handed goals and 5 game winning goals in that number as well. Unfortunately for Lawson, a late season injury prevented him from maybe passing his roommate and taking over sole possession of that particular stat.

Honorable mention has to go out to a pair of Spruce Kings in defenceman Mitch Eden and forward Shayne Morrissey in this category. For much of the first half of the season, Eden was the team's leading scorer contributing with setup plays from the blue line that were often initiated by him carrying the puck from coast to coast. Speaking of going from coast to coast, Shayne Morrissey came out west from St. John's, Newfoundland at the beginning of October. Even though he missed out on the eight games in September, Morrissey came to within one goal of a three way tie for goals scored and finished one point behind Mitch Eden for total points.

Being able to play a full season is no easy feat, especially this year when the team battled the flu and normal winter colds leaving the team short benched for a few games. Two of the three players were rookies this year which is sometimes its own hurdle in getting in a full compliment of games. Bryant Christian and Chad Staley were the two rookies that managed to suit up for all 56 games and play through it all this season. The other player to strike up an iron man streak in 2012-13 is Skylar Pacheco who is actually up to 71 games dating back to February 3, 2012.

There are a few stats that are kept but not listed on the BCHL website that coaches like to have at their disposal to measure some of the intangibles of a player's on-ice performance. Blocked shots and plus/minus can be huge to determine how effective a player is when he's on the ice even when there aren't necessarily any points to show for it on the scoresheet. Coltyn Hansen won the plus/minus title finishing with a plus 16 followed by Justin Rai and Skylar Pacheco.

Blocked shots is interesting stat and one that just doesn't get enough recognition. When a team is having difficulties finding a lane and getting shots through, it is because of these players that are sacrificing themselves for the team. The undisputed fearless leader for 2012-13 is Trevor Esau who blocked a total of 254 shots in 51 games. Coming in second in this category was the rookie defenceman, Karan Toor with a season total of 202 blocked shots. The entire Spruce Kings lineup all contributed to an overall team total of 1369 blocked shots, 998 among defenceman.

Between the pipes there is no question as to the contributions of Kirk Thompson who found himself in 50 of the team's 56 games for a franchise record of 2806 minutes played in a single season. Thompson also set the single season franchise record for wins at 24 with both stats helping him lay claim to the franchise record for career minutes played (6705) and career wins (46).

Spruce Kings Chill the Chiefs

Mark Begert (2), Karan Toor (4), Coltyn Hansen (10) and
Bryant Christian (11) congratulate Kirk Thompson (1) after a 3-1 win

It took almost a full sixty minutes before anybody could comfortably say that the Spruce Kings had defeated the Chilliwack Chiefs, but they did just that with an empty net goal securing a 3-1 victory on Saturday night. Kirk Thompson was stellar again in net for Prince George turning aside 44 high calibre shots and almost as many scoring chances from a very potent and relentless Chiefs squad.

Prince George received goals from Bryant Christian (7), Coltyn Hansen (17) and Mark Begert (3) in a game they never trailed but also never felt they had a comfortable lead in. The game's first goal came after the Chilliwack Chiefs had already peppered Thompson with seven shots of their own while keeping Prince George from getting anything of consequence on Mitch Gilliam. The first shot was a long distance affair that Gilliam saw clearly but it was the second shot that upset that the goaltender the most and resulted in an officials only discussion.

After Cameron Lawson took a shot on net, the puck bounced into the air where Bryant Christian, who was just on the edge of the blue paint, gloved it down to the ice and was able to just get a stick on the puck before it crossed the line. With the play happening to the right and slightly behind Gilliam, the Chiefs netminder knew the PG forward had gloved the puck and argued that it was gloved into the net. Although the video replay is not of any use in making an official ruling, it clearly showed that the puck had been touched by Christian's stick before crossing the line and was never shown on the big screen again. The officials discussed what they had seen and made the right call with the referee signalling "good goal" and pointed to centre ice for play to resume.

That one goal lead would hold up for over 26 minutes before Chilliwack was able to tie up the game, during that 26 minutes there were five powerplays, four for Chilliwack and one for Prince George, with both teams getting a five minute major powerplay to work with. In the first period Kevin Guiltinan was assessed a five minute major for a check from behind and an automatic game misconduct after riding Mathieu Tibbet out of the play in the back corner. Tibbet did go down but was able to get up and head back to the Chiefs bench under his own power. After missing the remainder of the first period, Tibbet did return to the game in the second period.

In the second period the Chilliwack Chiefs Ryan Donohoe was given a five minute major for boarding and a game misconduct after a much more vicious and dangerous hit that saw Jeremiah Luedtke hit from behind and driven head first into the wall where he lay for some time without moving. Without hesitation or even regard for the play on the ice at the time, the Chilliwack Chiefs trainer was the first one to get to Luedtke who worked with the Prince George forward to ensure that everything was alright. After a few moments, Luedtke was up on his knees and then his skates and left the ice under his own power but was immediately taken to the Chiefs doctor and then the hospital where he was cleared to return home with the team. Luedtke may miss a few games with an obvious sore neck and few other bumps and bruises from the collision with the wall, but we can all be grateful that he will be able to return to full form soon.

Back to the game, which other than the score, was a lopsided affair with Chilliwack outshooting Prince George 21-10 after the first period and 6-1 to that point in the second period. On their five minute major, the Spruce Kings were able to get some shots through on Gilliam but the Chiefs number one goaltender wasn't letting anything through. The penalty kill turned into a four-on-four situation after a goal mouth scrimmage that resulted in Lyndon Martell being given a minor for roughing. A tactic that the Chiefs seem to be able to execute to the limit without crossing the line - crashing the net and getting in on the goaltender - saw the Spruce Kings penalized for an almost identical play. That penalty was killed off and then another to the Spruce Kings, but those two powerplays seemed to shift the momentum that Prince George had been building.

Shortly after killing off their fifth penalty, the Spruce Kings found themselves hemmed inside their own zone with the Chiefs top line pressing down low. In a play that had to be perfect to execute, Austin Plevey, from deep inside the Spruce Kings zone spotted Luke Esposito on the far side of the crease with a bullet pass that Esposito was able to power tip into the net behind Thompson. The Chiefs kept up the pressure looking for a go-ahead goal that would never come thanks to the sensational play of Thompson in net for Prince George.

Five and a half minutes after the Chilliwack top line tied the game, the top line for Prince George executed an equally impressive play that gave the Spruce Kings the all important lead back. With the play in the neutral zone, Lyndon Martell was able to get around a couple of forecheckers and lobe a floater deep into the Chilliwack zone that David Stephens picked up behind the net. With a fake to the left that Gilliam bit on, Stephens dished the puck up the opposite side into the slot for Coltyn Hansen to bury with a quick one-timer. Hansen had been having all kinds of chances in the game and was sprung on more than one break-away chance but this goal was his reward for the hard work and perseverance that had been showing all weekend.

The Spruce Kings started the third period with that slim 2-1 lead and found themselves inside their own zone for much of the first ten minutes of the final period of regulation with the Chiefs firing shots from all angles looking to tie the game for a second time. Prince George was able to quell the storm a little bit after Shay Laurent took the Chiefs third penalty of the game. After the penalty kill, the Chiefs were right back on the attack and it started to feel like January 11th all over again when the Spruce Kings had a 2-1 lead late in the third period only to be given a penalty with less than two minutes to go that resulted in the tying goal and then another penalty in overtime that led to the game winner.

With less than 90 seconds to go in the game, Mitch Gilliam was called to the bench for the extra Chilliwack attacker and the full court press was on. In the final minute of play another goal mouth scramble led to a Prince George penalty with Shayne Morrissey called for roughing. There was a little over 47 seconds left in the game and everybody was on their seats with baited breath. On the ensuing faceoff, the Chilliwack Chiefs top powerplay unit on the ice firing pucks at will on Kirk Thompson, the Spruce Kings veteran netminder turned aside sure goals from both Zielonka and Esposito. And then a defenceman who had played perhaps his best game on this night found the puck on his stick with the time to lift a riser up and out of the zone and down the ice. With the precious of a championship punter, Mark Begert split the goal posts with a perfect shot and gave the Spruce Kings a two goal lead with the shorthanded shot into the empty net with 16 seconds showing on the clock.

Those final seconds ticked off the clock with Karan Toor protecting the puck in his own zone and the Spruce Kings left the ice with a small congratulatory celebration. Coltyn Hansen was given third star honours for all his chances and eventual game winning goal, Mitch Gilliam was given the game's second star for keeping this one closer than it might otherwise have been even with the fewer shots that he faced of 27. Not a single person in Prospera Centre could argue who was the game's first star, turning aside 44 of 45 quality shots while playing in front of representatives from his future team - the AIC Yellowjackets - Kirk Thompson came out onto the ice to a round of applause.

After the game, Spruce Kings rookie netminder Liam McLeod tweeted that the game's Crowning Moment came when Chilliwack decided to make it Country night complete with bails of hay, a live band playing rockin' country tunes, cowboy hats and the works. "(You're) not going to beat @Kirkers29 when there is Shania playing #garanteedwin." Next up for the Prince George Spruce Kings is a double header in the Coliseum with the Langley Rivermen on Thursday and Friday. Thursday night will be Ladies Night with ladies receiving flowers and a chance to win a private shopping spree at Butterfly Threads with thanks to Tourism Prince George.

Spruce Kings Grounded by the Eagles

Liam McLeod (35) robs Jordan Klimek in the third period

The Prince George Spruce Kings suffered their worst loss of the regular season to the Surrey Eagles on Friday night after the Birds handed the royal ones a 5-2 decision. It was the eighth and final meeting of the two teams and the Eagles were in no mood to let the Spruce Kings leave with even a single point this time. In the previous seven meetings, Prince George held a 4-0-0-3 record but couldn't keep that trend going on this night.

It started early for the Surrey Eagles, but as it had been in the previous seven meetings, Kirk Thompson was finding ways to turn aside the Eagles allowing Prince George to open the scoring. Jeremiah Luedtke picked up the puck from Chad Staley at the side of the net and pulled it to the slot before roofing a snapshot above the shoulder of Michael Santaguida. For Luedtke it was his seventh goal of the season, bur for the Spruce Kings it was a short lived lead.

On the ensuing faceoff at centre ice, the puck made its way into the Spruce Kings zone and a strong forecheck force a turnover that Joel Gaudet jumped all over. With the puck on his stick at the top of the faceoff circle, Gaudet wasted no time directing the puck on goal and he too found the top shelf to tie the game 14 seconds after Luedtke's goal.

From there special teams would be the undoing of the Spruce Kings as they gave the Surrey Eagles three powerplays to work with in the first period. The third man advantage would lead to a spectacular goal in the final minute of the first period. After dodging the full force of a Kevin Guiltinan hit in front of the Spruce Kings bench, Brady Shaw slid into the offensive zone and was able to fire a pass from his knees across the ice to Adam Tambellini. The newest member of the Eagles tapped in his 28th of the season to give Surrey a 2-1 lead heading to the dressing room.

To start the second period the Spruce Kings came hard at the Eagles and were outshooting them 5-0 through the first seven minutes of the middle frame before things changed in a dramatic fashion. On their second powerplay of the game, the Spruce Kings saw Brent Mulcahy find the puck and head in on Kirk Thompson on a shorthanded break away. Thompson was able to make the initial save with the paddle of his stick, directing the puck behind the net. Mulcahy stayed with the puck and recovered it from behind the goal line, brought it out front and then banked it into the net off a defender's skate.

The goal gave the Surrey Eagles a 3-1 lead but weren't done there. Minutes later the Surrey Eagles found themselves two men when Tommy Stipancik was called for boarding and then less than a minute later Michael Santaguida was called for delay of game after clearing the puck over the glass. The Eagles not only killed off those penalties but stuck a dagger into the heart of the Spruce Kings. As Stipancik's penalty expired the puck was cleared out to the neutral zone and found the released player who went in on Thompson. Stipancik went forehand backhand and snuck one through the Spruce Kings veteran netminder.

In an effort to spark the bench, Kirk Thompson was pulled bringing in the youngster - Liam McLeod. It didn't take long before McLeod was being tested and it was Tambellini that tried first only to be denied by the glove hand of the rookie netminder. McLeod would end up turning aside all 18 shots that he faced in relief earning himself the DQ Player of the Game.

Karan Toor had the best chance of the second period for the Spruce Kings jumping up on a rush with David Stephens and Lyndon Martell who fed the rookie defenceman the puck who found himself all alone on top of the crease but was turned aside by a sprawling Santaguida. The second period would end with the Surrey Eagles leading 4-1 and the Spruce Kings wondering what they needed to do to claw back into this one.

Coltyn Hansen was able to solve the riddle between the pipes for Surrey but scoring with 6:49 remaining proved to be too little too late. The Surrey Eagles solidified their win with an empty net goal from Brady Shaw. A player who has gambled and been rewarded is Shaw who once again waited in the neutral zone behind the Spruce Kings defender and was given the puck by Trevor Cameron who lobbed it up and over all the players on the ice. The empty net goal came a split second before the final buzzer giving the Surrey Eagles the lopesided win on the scoresheet and relief in the dressing room that they had excised the demon that was the Spruce Kings this season.

Prince George will now look to do the same thing to the Chilliwack Chiefs on Saturday night. In six meetings so far this season, the Spruce Kings have picked up only a single point in an overtime loss to the Chiefs. Chilliwack has a six point edge on the Spruce Kings and will be looking to spread that out some more while Prince George will be looking to pull away from the Langley Rivermen who have closed to within six after defeating the Victoria Grizzlies 6-3 on Friday night.

Spruce Kings' OT Woes Continue Against Express

Liam McLeod was at his best in the second period
when Coquitlam was forcing much of the play

The Spruce Kings got a great effort from a trio of rookies, but it wasn't enough on Sunday afternoon as they fell 4-3 in double overtime to the Coquitlam Express.

Former Spruce King defenceman Brad Ryan was the hero for the visitors, converting a 2-on-1 in the second overtime period to give the Express their first win against the Spruce Kings in six starts. Prince George had now dropped six straight overtime games after winning three of their first five to start the year.

Ryan's goal was set up by Adam Rossignol and came at 3:09 of the second OT session, with the two teams playing three-on-three.

Despite the loss, first-year netminder Liam McLeod was strong in net for Prince George. He turned aside 35 shots, including 18 in the second period, and was named the Treasure Cove Casino first star. Fellow rookie Jake LeBrun added two goals and affiliate player Kody Disher had a solid game and was named the Fortis Energy player of the game.

McLeod's counterpart Cole Huggins made 41 saves, with 17 coming in the third period, and was named second star. Spruce Kings defenceman Karan Toor picked up third star honours.

Dairy Queen player of the game Jace Hennig also scored for Prince George, getting a goal against his former team. Rossignol, Justin Georgeson and Ben Israel replied for the Express. Georgeson finished with a goal and two assists.

Disher, called up from Junior B as an affiliate player due to the absence of forwards Sean Landrey and Tyson Witala, made his presence felt early with a scoring chance on his first shift, a big hit on his second and a fight with Israel in the second period. Disher even earned ice time in the final minute of regulation with the score tied.

The Express got on the board first in what turned into a wild first period, when Rossignol beat McLeod with a shot to the five-hole at 9:04. Georgeson and Malcolm McKinney got the helpers seconds after a Trevor Esau penalty expired.

The Spruce Kings drew even on LeBrun's first of the night, the rookie took a feed from Shayne Morrissey and quickly released a wrist shot past Huggins. Cameron Lawson also picked up an assist at 11:39.

Hennig gave the home side its first lead of the game at 12:53 on a goal set up by Coltyn Hansen. After scoring a hat trick Saturday night, Hansen weaved through a pair of Express defenders right in front of the net, but couldn't get a good shot off. Instead he slid the puck back through the crease where Hennig banged it home. David Stephens also got an assist on the play.

The lead was short-lived as the Express drew even when Georgeson capitalized on a penalty shot. Using a dangling move made famous by Peter Forsberg, Georgeson drew McLeod to the goalie's left and at the last second reached around and slid the puck in on the right side at 13:32.

LeBrun put the Spruce Kings back in front at 17:03, tipping a Morrissey shot past Huggins moments after an Express penalty expired. Skylar Pacheco also got a helper. Israel had the lone goal of the second period, collecting his own rebound and lifting a shot over McLeod's shoulder. His power-play goal was assisted by Georgeson and Zack Pryzbek.

The Spruce Kings continue their homestand on Thursday night when they host the Surrey Eagles at the Castle.

Weekend Sweep Pushes Spruce Kings Up Standings

Kirk Thompson (1) with one of his many sensational saves

The Prince George Spruce Kings officially have their mojo back.

After a five-game losing skid saw them dip as low as fourth place in the Mainland Division, the Spruce Kings completed a perfect weekend with a 4-1 win over the Coquitlam Express on Sunday afternoon at the Coliseum. It was the team's third win in as many days for the Spruce Kings and second straight over their divisional rivals.

The three wins, combined with some losses by others in the Mainland Division, have pushed the Spruce Kings into a second-place tie with the Surrey Eagles. Both teams are four points back of division-leading Chilliwack.

It didn't take long for the Spruce Kings to carry over the momentum from Saturday night's 6-4 win over the Express. Just 25 seconds into the game Sean Landrey finished off a play set up by Bryant Christian and Jake LeBrun.

Two goals just over a minute apart midway through the second period by the team's top goal scorers, gave the Spruce Kings a 3-0 lead and control of the game. First Cameron Lawson came streaking down the right wing and fired a shot passed Express starter Cole Huggins at 8:25, with Kevin Guiltinan and Skylar Pacheco picking up the helpers. Just 64 seconds later Mark Begert found Tyson Witala with a stretch pass down the left wing and he lifted a shot over Huggins shoulder. Witala's tally allowed him to retake the team goal-scoring lead from Lawson; Witala has 14 on the year to Lawson's 13.

That was it for Huggins, who was replaced by Daniel Urbani after giving up three goals on 20 shots.

The Express did get one back in the second period as Philip Zielonka had a couple of whacks at a rebound, before finally beating Kirk Thompson on the third attempt. John Siemer picked up the only assist.

Thompson, the Treasure Trove Casino first star, excelled for the Spruce Kings making 39 saves including many of the spectacular variety. With the Spruce Kings leading 1-0 early in the second period, Thompson made his save of the game coming across the crease to rob Justin Georgeson who had a one-timer all set up. In the third he made an acrobatic save off a second-chance attempt by Zielonka, somehow stretching to get his leg on the puck.

Thompson also got some help from his defencemen, with Trevor Esau sliding to break up a 3-on-1 late in the second period. Esau, along with defence partner Karan Toor, were tasked with shutting down the Express' top line and did a marvelous job. Toor was rewarded with the Dairy Queen player of the game award.

The Shayne Morrissey-Coltyn Hansen-Jace Hennig line generated some great chances in the first period, but were held off the score sheet until the third when Hansen skated behind the net, found Morrissey stationed at the side of the net and the sniper buried his 11th of the year. Hennig also picked up an assist on the goal which came at 8:25 and restored the three-goal advantage.

Hennig was named the game's second star an Christian was the third star. Landrey was named the Fortis Energy player of the game.

It was the only goal the Spruce Kings scored on Urbani, who made 19 saves in relief of Huggins.

After the game, fans took to the ice for the skate with the Spruce Kings promotion at the Coliseum.

The Spruce Kings now have eight straight road games ahead of them spread out over the next five weeks, including stops next weekend in Victoria, Cowichan Valley and Surrey, the team's final three games before the Christmas break. The Spruce Kings aren't back in the Castle until Jan. 18, when Chilliwack comes north for a pair.

Morrissey, Staley lead Spruce Kings past Express

Jace Hennig (19) had a big game against his former team

It was fourth time the charm for the Prince George Spruce Kings on Saturday night.

The Spruce Kings proved capable of building a lead against the visiting Coquitlam Express, but for the first 21 minutes or so had a hard time making it stick. It wasn't until Shayne Morrissey broke a 3-3 tie that gave the Spruce Kings their fourth lead of the game that the home side was able to solidify it and skate away with a 6-4 win.

Morrissey, who scored twice in the second period, was named the Treasure Trove Casino second star. He had a few chances to complete the hat trick, missing the net on one play midway through the third and getting stopped by Coquitlam goalie Cole Huggins on a backhand attempt later in the same shift.

Chad Staley, the first star, also had a pair of goals as the Spruce Kings won back-to-back games for the first time since the end of October. The victory gives them a three-point cushion over the Express in the battle for third in the Mainland Division and it also keeps the Spruce Kings in touch with the soaring second-place Surrey Eagles. With two wins already this weekend, Prince George is only two points behind Surrey.

Morrissey notched his first 80 seconds into the second period assisted by Jace Hennig, who recorded his first point in just his second game with the Spruce Kings after being acquired in a trade from the Express. Hennig was named the Dairy Queen player of the game.

Morrissey's second came at 12:43 just after an Express penalty expired. Skylar Pacheco got the play started with a point shot and Coltyn Hansen poked the rebound to Morrissey who deposited the puck into the yawning cage at 12:43.

Staley gave the Spruce Kings a three-goal lead at 5:29 of the third. Mitch Eden charged into the zone, shot and collected his own rebound behind the net. Eden fed Jeremiah Luedtke at the side of the net, Luedtke waited for Staley to get open at the far post and found his linemate.

Philip Zielonka made it a two-goal game at 11:45, assisted by Mitch Fyffe and John Siemer and the were some tense moments for the Spruce Kings in the final minutes as Mitch Eden was whistled for interference and the Express pulled Huggins for a 6-on-4 advantage. Kirk Thompson held strong, making a handful of his 31saves to pick up his 13th win in net. Huggins made 36 saves in a losing effort.

The Spruce Kings took the lead three times in a wild first period, only to see the Express come back each time to tie the score. Both team connected for three goals on 11 shots in the opening 20 minutes.

Mark Begert got things started - and unleashed an avalanche of socks, toques and other donations for the St. Vincent de Paul Society - with a power-play tally at 5:39. Begert's first goal of the season, scored against his former teammates no less, was a point shot which hit a body on it's way past Huggins. Tanner Fjellstrom and Karan Toor picked up the assists.

Will Cook got the Express back on even terms at 8:09, jamming a wrap around past Thompson at 8:09 with assists going to Brandon Morley and Justin Georgeson.

With Shayne Morrissey in the box for slashing, the Spruce Kings struck with a short-handed tally at 9:34. Bryant Christian got control of the puck in the neutral zone, fed Tyson Witala and the Spruce Kings forward gained the line, skated across the high lot and wired a shot passed Huggins.

Fans didn't have a chance to digest that goal, before the Express found the equalizer. Just 16 seconds later on the same power play, Zack Pryzbek took a feed from Cook and beat Thompson.

The prettiest goal of the first came next as the Spruce Kings broke in 3-on-2, with defenceman Mitch Eden leading the way. Eden passed it to Justin Rai on the wing and Rai patiently waited for Staley, the fourth man on the rush to gain the zone. Staley had all day to pick his spot and made no mistake, scoring at 13:27. Rai was named the Fortis BC Energy player of the game.

Mark Biega's seeing-eye point shot at 17:07 beat Thompson and sent the teams tied 3-3 heading into the locker rooms. Travis Stephens and Adam Rockwood got the helpers. Stephens was named the game's third star.

The two teams meet again Sunday at 3 p.m. as the Spruce Kings close out their seven-game homestand - through the first six games they've picked up six points. After this weekend, the Spruce Kings won't be back at the Castle until Jan. 18 when Chilliwack comes for another two-game visit.

Spruce Kings down Capitals to Snap Skid

Tanner Fjellstrom (17) scores the eventual game winner

It's only one game in, but December already appears to be much more friendly to the Prince George Spruce Kings.

Tanner Fjellstrom's second period power-play goal held up as the game winner as the Spruce Kings downed the visiting Cowichan Valley Capitals 3-1 on Friday night to snap a five-game losing skid. The win, the 13th of the year in 28 starts, gives the Spruce Kings 32 points and sole possession of third place in the Mainland Division heading into a crucial showdown with the Coquitlam Express later this season.

After a strong start to the game, the Spruce Kings were unable to generate much offence in the first period as both teams felt each other out during their first meeting of the year.

Once the puck dropped in the second period it didn't take long for the Spruce Kings to strike. At just 1:26 of the middle stanza, Jeremiah Luedtke took a feed from Chad Staley and beat Derek Dun to open the scoring. The Staley-Luedtke-Justin Rai line was the best the Spruce Kings had to offer Friday as they controlled the play whenever they were on the ice.

Staley was rewarded with the Treasure Trove Casino first star honour, while Luedtke was named the second star. Although he wasn't honoured with a post-game award, Rai played a very strong game as he returned from injury.

Fjellstrom doubled the Spruce Kings lead at 7:31 of the second using his reach to bang in a rebound. Tyson Witala and Karan Toor picked up the assists.

The power-play tally ended an 0-for-18 dry spell for the Spruce Kings on the man advantage. Although it was the only power-play goal of the game for the home side, the Spruce Kings showed some good puck movement while up a man which could lead to more goals down the road.

Thanks to three straight power plays, the Spruce Kings dominated the game during the early and middle stages of the second, but the Capitals came on strong in the latter stages.

After a turnover at the Cowichan Valley blue-line, Capitals forward Luke Gordon took a stretch pass, stepped over the Spruce Kings blue-line and wired a shot over the shoulder of Prince George goalie Kirk Thompson to cut the lead in half. Troy Paterson and Tyler Mueller got the assists and Gordon got third-star honours.

The Spruce Kings took the 2-1 lead into the second intermission and played strong defensively in the third, limiting the Capitals ability to come back.

Coltyn Hansen added an empty net goal late for an insurance marker.

Dun was the busier of the two goaltenders, making 31 saves. Thompson made 22 stops to get the win.

Spruce Kings forward Bryant Christian was named the Fortis BC Energy player of the game, while Sean Landrey took home Dairy Queen player of the game honours.

Jace Hennig, making his debut in the lineup for the Spruce Kings, was used in all situations - power play, penalty kill and even strength - and had a strong two-way game.

The Express are in town for back-to-back games on Saturday (7:30 p.m.) and Sunday (3 p.m.) as the Spruce Kings wrap up a seven-game homestand and look put more distance between themselves and Coquitlam in the battle for third place.

Game Day - Langley Rivermen

Spruce Kings defeat the Merritt Centennials 4-1
in a game that featured some physical play from both teams

The Prince George Spruce Kings have started the season on a winning note with a 4-1 victory over the Merritt Centennials in the first game of the season. Playing in the Prospera Centre in Chilliwack at the BCHL Showcase, the Spruce Kings lined up against the team that ended their season on March 20th. As Dave Dupas said in the pregame interview, that particular piece of history would fall on deaf ears with the new players on the squad so motivation would have to come from a different source.

Many of the players that played prominent roles for the Spruce Kings weren't even in the lineup at the end of the season. Coltyn Hansen, Cameron Lawson and Lyndon Martell led the way with three of the four goals while Tyson Witala had the other. Other play makers that made a difference in the game included Mitch Eden along with Trevor Esau and Skylar Pacheco.

The Spruce Kings created many scoring chances throughout the game but didn't really cash in until the third period with three goals unanswered goals. One scoring chance early in the first period belonged to Lyndon Martell who was setup by a good penalty kill forecheck from Cameron Lawson who sprung the pair on a two on one. After getting the puck from Lawson, Martell was able to come straight in on Tyler Steel pulling the puck from his backhand to his forehand. Steel was able to get a piece of the puck with his skate sending the puck just past the post.

A few minutes later it was Skylar Pacheco that was able to get the Spruce Kings moving in the right direction. Under a little pressure from the Centennials forwards, Pacheco used the back of the net to get away and find some open ice in the corner before using the wall to get the puck up to Cameron Lawson. From there Lawson found Coltyn Hansen through the middle and Hansen used his speed to get around a defenceman before cutting to the net. Hansen cruised through the top of the crease and just waited for Steel to commit before depositing his first of the season into the back of the net at 7:12 of the first period.

That's how the first period would end even though the Spruce Kings trailed 8-6 in the shots on goal stat. In the second period the Spruce Kings again created chances but were unable to capitalize on any of them. On an icing call in the middle of the second period both teams got a chance to regroup during the BCHL time out but it would be the Merritt Centennials that would eventually benefit from the break.

After winning the ensuing faceoff, the Centennials found themselves with a scoring chance. The puck was fired wide off the back boards where it was picked up by Brandon Bruce who just shoveled it towards the front of the net where it found Kirk Thompson's pads and ended up in front of the goal line against the goal post. Trevor Esau rode Bruce out of the play with a heavy check against the boards that drew the attention of Dylan Chanter who immediately dropped the gloves and went after Esau.

In the same stoppage of play, Karan Toor and Payton Schaefer also got into it with Toor getting the early edge in the fight before being tackled to the ice by Schaefer. Meanwhile Esau and Chanter had a pretty spirited battle of their own. When the dust settled, Esau was given two minutes for cross checking, two minutes for roughing and five minutes for fighting. Chanter was charged with an instigator to go along with his five minute major and Toor and Schaefer were both given five minutes for fighting and game misconducts.

The net result put the Centennials on the powerplay and would make short order of the Spruce Kings with the man advantage. Less than a minute after the scuffle, Sean Maktaak was able to find a loose puck and force it home past a down and out Kirk Thompson who thought he had it covered. The goal put the teams back to even tied at a goal a-piece and that's how the second would end.

The Spruce Kings found a new gear in the third period and were buzzing early again creating scoring chances. Even while inside their own zone, a good work ethic shone through and at 7:07 of the third period the Spruce Kings would take the lead for good as a result of the no quit attitude on the ice. From inside his own zone, Mitch Eden fought to get the puck out of the defensive zone including a last ditch dive and poke at the puck that setup Coltyn Hansen and the rest of the top line.

Hansen carried the puck through the middle and was able to get a shot on goal that left Tyler Steel looking for the bouncer. Both Lyndon Martell and Cameron Lawson got a crack it before Lawson got the last touch and was able to lob it up and over Steel to make it a 2-1 game.

Lyndon Martell for one wasn't done there and would get himself on the board a couple of shifts later and seemingly harmless looking play. After a D-to-D pass inside their own zone, Mitch Eden and Skylar Pacheco were able to get the puck to Martell cruising through the middle. At the tail end of their shift, Martell step over the blue line and instead of dumping it in decided to take a shot on goal that fooled Steel as it sailed in over his glove. The insurance goal was scored at the 14:37 mark of the third period putting the Centennials into desperation mode.

A line that has been working hard at developing some chemistry came together for the Spruce Kings fourth goal at 18:06 after Tyson Witala finished another one of those no quit type plays. Again it was just good solid work at trying to get the puck down low that resulted in the goal by both Bryant Christian, Liam Board and Tyson Witala all had a touch on the puck in the left corner before Witala was able to come out front and bury his first of the season.

The Spruce Kings did a great job in capitalizing on chances especially in the third period and if they can continue on the path they have set for themselves, could become a team that others will be forced to bring their 'A' game to play against. One area that the coaching staff will want to take a closer look at is the powerplay that came up empty on five chances. Although the penalty kill did allow one goal against, that special team did an effective job on the night.

The attention will now shift to the team that currently sits in top spot in the Mainland Division by way of their four goal victory over the Alberni Valley Bulldogs on Friday night. The Langley Rivermen are a much different team than they were last season when they finished with a disappointing 19-35-1-5 record last season.

The Rivermen did keep nine of their players from last season and also acquired Jakob Reichert from the Merritt Centennials in a two for one deal. For Langley, their strength looks like it will come by committee with a couple of rookies leading the way out of the gate. Ben Butcher (2 goals) and Matt Ustaski (2 assists) combined on two of Rivermen's seven goals. Scott Moyer was the only other multiple point player with a goal and an assist.

The Langley Rivermen have the longest break between games at the BCHL Showcase after opening the tournament format on Friday afternoon and will now play in the last game of the weekend. Game time is 6pm from the main rink in Prospera Centre Chilliwack. Something will give in this game and depending on two earlier games, the winner of this one could come out of the weekend with sole possession of first place in the Mainland Division.

All five teams have two points only difference is that the Chilliwack Chiefs have played both of their games. The Coquitlam Express will face the Cowichan Valley Captials at 2pm and the Surrey Eagles will play the West Kelowna Warriors at 5:30pm. The Express picked up their two points in a 1-0 overtime win over the Victoria Grizzlies and the Surrey Eagles needed overtime as well to claim their two points in a 3-2 decision over the Powell River Kings.

The Spruce Kings and Langley Rivermen game will be available on 93.1 CFIS-FM which can also be found online as an audio feed from the radio station's website or as a Pay-Per-View full broadcast on Fasthockey.com.

Preseason Game Preview: Spruce Kings vs Smoke Eaters

The Spruce Kings go into tonight's preseason game with one win under the belt and looking to double that up on the Trail Smoke Eaters with the back half of the neutral site double header tonight at 7pm. Last night it was the Smokies that opened the scoring with the Spruce Kings tying up the game in the first period on a two man power play advantage. The game remained tied until the late stages of the third when Jeremiah Luedtke was able to knock in a loose puck for the 2-1 victory.

There will be some player changes tonight on both sides of the ice as the teams will opt to go with a little more of an experienced lineup. For the Spruce Kings the notable insertions will be Latrell Charleson who is back from the Moose Jaw Warriors training camp and Lyndon Martell who has opted to leave the Regina Pats for the Prince George Spruce Kings.

Also coming into the lineup for Prince George tonight are Karan Toor who played a handful of games last season as an AP with the Spruce Kings, Coltyn Hansen the twenty year old acquired from the Victoria Grizzlies, Brad Ryan the big tall twenty year old defenceman and local hockey product Sean Landrey. Kirk Thompson will get the start tonight giving the sixteen year old Liam McLeod a much deserved break after a big win for the youngster last night.

The Trail Smoke Eaters will also go with a few new bodies in their lineup with expectations being that Anthony Conti will be in after finishing up at the Calgary Hitmen training camp and Braden Krogfoss from the Kamloops Blazers camp. The Smokies are expected to dress a few more twenty year olds led by Tyler Berkholtz, Djordje Leposavic, Brent Baltus, Garrett McMullen and Alex Holland.

Last night's win by the Spruce Kings didn't come easy as they fought through a 1-1 tie for much of the game. I would suspect that the coaching staff was happy with the overall performance both defensively and offensively but would like to see the Spruce Kings bury more of the chances they created. Tonight however the Trail Smoke Eaters will be looking at tightening up defensively and eliminated that many chances from happening.

If all goes well in the broadcast booth, there will be a solo Spruce Kings broadcast available as Chris Wahl (voice of the Trail Smoke Eaters) will have his own internet connection and broadcast feed. Look for the video to start approximately an hour before the game on the Spruce Kings Ustream Channel or follow the link from the Spruce Kings twitter feed (@SpruceKings) or my twitter (@ron_gallo).

BCHL Preseason Game
Prince George Spruce Kings vs Trail Smoke Eaters
7:00pm from the Art Holden Memorial Arena in Chase, BC
Broadcast Link: Spruce Kings Ustream Channel

Training Camp Day 1

Skylar Pacheo scores on this shot for Team White

The Prince George Spruce Kings opened their training camp today at the Coliseum with a total of 38 players (4 goaltenders, 12 defenceman and 22 forwards) in attendance. The numbers this year are a little lower than in past years but that has allowed for the camp to be broke into two teams immediately and pit the teams against each other in three intra-squad game.

After a first look at the players in team specific practices, the two teams reconvened at the Prince George Coliseum for the first of those intra-squad games. Early on Team Blue imposed their way keeping Team White pinned in their own end. Shots on goal prior to the first goal were 7-1 for Team Blue. Kirk Thompson got the start for Team White showing good positioning with the opposition getting some good shots.

Alex Bartel was the first to solve Thompson getting Team Blue on the board at 11:12 of the first period after he found the rebound off a Mitch Eden point shot. Team Blue would go up 2-0 five minutes later when Bryant Christian (yes the younger brother of Spruce Kings alumni Jordy Christian) converted on a play set up by Lydon Martell and Jake LeBrun. That's how the first period would end with Team Blue leading 2-0 on the scoreboard and 17-6 on the shot clock.

Already with three penalties in the first period including one that spilled over into the second, Team White found themselves down in that stat category as well but did a perfect job on the penalty kill. That perfect job went one step farther when Team White found themselves short handed again. Skylar Pacheco was given a gift tip into the neutral zone and wasted no time turning it into a break away. Looking once into the middle for some help and finding none, Pacheco took the shot beating Liam McLeod with the unassisted short handed goal at 5:24.

Before the midway mark of the second period Cameron Lawson made his presence noticed in the game turning on the jets a couple of times. At 9:50 Lawson broke in untouched and snapped a quick wrister that fooled Thompson sneaking in under the goaltenders arm. It was a sour note to end on, but that goal marked the goalie change bringing in Jeremy Matte for Team White and Adam Griffith for Team Blue.

As if the dirty little wrister wasn't enough, Lawson danced around a couple of defenders deep inside the zone and dangled out in front of the net. A quick pull of the puck slid just into the toe of Matte and no further. Matte looked good for his time behind the pipes and was beaten only once by arguably the best line on the ice especially for Team Blue.

Karan Toor got the play started with a point shot from the left side that ended up on the stick of Bryant Christian. Christian was stopped but a juicy rebound in the slot with Lyndon Martell cruising through quickly found the back of the net making it a 4-1 lead for Team Blue.

The third period seemed to be a little more intense with a few big hits and some extended gatherings around the net, but not much on the scoreclock. Chad Staley was the only one to register a goal in the final frame but perhaps it was too little too late as Team White just couldn't seem to fully recover offensively. Staley's goal (assists to David London and Liam Board) would come with 1:38 remaining in the third period and that's how the game would end with Team Blue winning 4-2.

Final shots on goal were 39-30 for Team Blue. Kirk Thompson made 20 saves and Jeremy Matte stopped 15 shots in the loss, Liam McLeod had 11 and Adam Griffith turned aside 17 of 18 shots. Team White was penalized four times while Team Blue received two minor infractions. Neither team was able to capitalize on the man advantage but Team White did have that short handed marker.

The officials went with the four man system, Brendon Creyke and Bill Hudyma wore the red stripes while Nick Albinati and Ritchie Rodgers worked the lines. The officials introduced the full set of BCHL rules into the intra-squad game including the no change icing and no change for clearing the puck out of play from the defensive zone.

Tomorrow morning the players will report back to the Coliseum for team practices where they will go over some of the things the coaching and scouting staff picked up in the first game. After the practices, the teams will head over to the Factory Hockey Training facility for some off-ice fitness testing. After the dinner break, the teams will drop the puck for their second intra-squad game beginning at 8pm in the Prince George Coliseum.