Spruce Kings Never Give Up

Mitch Gillam and Kirk Thompson took a little extra time
to congratulate each other at the end of the game

The Prince George Spruce Kings season came to an end Wednesday night in Chilliwack after suffering a 5-2 loss to the Chiefs just 24 hours after PG extended the series with an identical score in the Coliseum. Perhaps it was the short series highlighted by a quick turnaround from Game 4 in Prince George to Game 5 in Chilliwack with an eight hour bus ride to the Fraser Valley, but both teams had to do it. As much as it hurts to say it, the better team did win this series but not without having to earn it and both teams were better teams after the series than before the post season started.

Both teams started the game running on adrenaline but it was obvious to see that they had been playing on for the previous four games was missing. The plays were more calculated and more defensively minded as opposed to the hard hitting in your face style that we had witnessed in the games leading up to this fifth and deciding contest.

An early goal by Prince George send waves of excitement rippling through the Province as a future star with the Spruce Kings opened the scoring just 73 seconds into the game. Lyndon Martell and David Stephens hopped over the bench with Braiden Epp joining the pair for the trio's first shift of the game. The play started with a nice defensive stick by Martell who stole the puck away and tapped it up to Stephens. The hockey product from Whitehorse took off up the left wing with Epp jumping up through the middle creating a two-on-one rush for Prince George.

With David Stephens looking to feather a pass through to Braiden Epp, the Chilliwack Chiefs defenceman committed to taking away the pass and threw his body in the lane. Stephens took an extra step to the left that pulled Mitch Gillam into no man's land and then saucered a pass over to Epp in the slot. Committed to the Prince George Spruce Kings for the 2013-14 season, Epp took the pass on his forehand with Gillam overcommitting to get back to cover a one-timer from the youngster. Epp pulled the puck back to his back hand and lifted the puck over a vulnerable Gillam for his first BCHL goal.

The lead would hold up for only six minutes before the BCHL's Coastal Conference Rookie of the Year took matters into his own hands and led a Chiefs rush down the ice the other way. Luke Esposito showed his ability to turn on the jets on this play as he drove hard down the right side wall before letting a hard shot go from outside the faceoff circle. Kirk Thompson got all of the shot with his big pads but the rebound went right out to Josh Hansen who was coming down the middle and was able to corral the puck and move in on Thompson untouched. Hansen made no mistake going blocker side on Thompson to the tie the game at a goal a-piece.

The toll of the bus ride started to show on both teams as they didn't have the legs or the life in them as the period wore on. The opening twenty minutes would end in a 1-1 tie with Chilliwack posting 17 shots on Thompson and Spruce Kings getting 8 on Gillam. In stark contrast to previous games, the first period had no penalties to show for either team; which was as much an indication of how the game was being called as it was being played. The four man officiating crew let a few borderline calls that didn't have any malice to them go on both sides.

In the second period, the teams traded penalties with Cooper Rush getting called for the hold at 2:14 putting the Spruce Kings on the game's first powerplay of the game. The Spruce Kings were able to work the puck around quite nicely and kept the pressure in the offensive zone for almost a full minute before the Chiefs were able to relieve the pressure and send the puck down the ice. Eight players were able to change with only Mitch Eden left on the ice as he went to retrieve the puck from deep in his own zone. The Spruce Kings put more pressure on Chilliwack with their second unit but couldn't get anything past Gillam. Even after being on the ice for the full two minutes and a few extra seconds, Eden came off still looking as fresh as he did when the powerplay started.

Through the next few minutes the game took on a feel that the next goal was going to win the game even though there was lots of hockey still to be played. The teams were playing defensively cautious hockey and the offense wasn't looking to get caught in a situation that could lead to an odd-man rush for the other team. Both sides were playing this one close and safe and then Chilliwack got their first powerplay of the game with Trevor Esau was called for interference after not releasing a player off the wall after the puck came loose.

Fortunately the Chiefs first powerplay was also ineffective despite getting some good cross seam passes through. The one-timers were either wide or blocked and the ones that did get through from the peripheral, Thompson was able to stop. In what looked like the makings of the Studio Cuts Crowning Moment of the Game for Prince George, just seconds after Esau was released from the sin bin, the Chiefs captain was sent to sit for two or less on a cross checking call at 9:33 of the second.

The Spruce Kings power play that had looked so good earlier in the second period on their first chance came up empty and they spent very little time in the Chiefs zone with any kind of pressure or possession. In one foreshadowing play, the Spruce Kings struggled to get the puck into the offensive zone and had to circle back no less than three times and by then the team's second powerplay was over. To make matters worse, 14 seconds later Skylar Pacheco was called for high sticking while trying to wrap the puck around the back wall.

The Chiefs embraced their second powerplay that started at 11:47 and lasted 51 seconds before the BCHL Playoff Scoring Leader was credited with his seventh goal of the post season. In a flurry of action, Philip Zielonka received a pass from the left side wall to where he was standing at the bottom of the right side face off circle. Zielonka's shot hit Kirk Thompson and redirected across the ice into the left corner. Before I could finish extolling the greatness of that save, the puck was fired back to Zielonka who took one more shot towards the net.

In a flurry of movement in front of the net and beside it, Thompson was back in position and down on the ice to take away the high percentage shot coming from Zielonka. Good positioning by Thompson was trumped by better luck from Zielonka as his shot deflected off a defender at the side of the net and ended up fluttering over the reach of Thompson and landed on the ice just over the goal line. The goal spotted a the Chiefs their first lead of the game and marked the first time in the series that a team was able to erase a deficit in a game they trailed in.

As predicted the goal changed the tide and left the Spruce Kings to try and open things up looking for the equalizer that would never come. The second period ended as a 2-1 lead for the Chilliwack Chiefs despite being outshot 13-11 in that middle frame by a desperate Spruce Kings squad. Both teams had just the two powerplays in that middle frame to work with.

To start the third period, the Spruce Kings came at Chilliwack in waves who for just the second time this series seemed content to recede into a defensive shell. The only other time I saw that from the Chiefs was late in the first game after the Chiefs scored their first goal to take away Thompson's shutout. After scoring that goal, the Chiefs just carried the puck into their own end of the ice and waited for the clock to expire. The difference between game one and game five was that there were only four seconds on the clock in game one and still twenty minutes of hockey to be played in this deciding game.

Even when playing a defense-first style of game, when opportunities present themselves, you have to take them and that happened very early in the third period for Chilliwack when Spencer Graboski forced a turnover in his own zone and was able to go down the ice with Mathieu Tibbet. Although not an offensive threat in the regular season, Tibbet provided depth for Harvey Smyl's team and on this play would pick up his third goal of the post season and seventh point.

With the Chiefs now up 3-1, Zielonka and Esposito were noticeably absent as they sat on the bench resting in case they were needed later on in the period. It was instead a steady diet of Spencer Graboski, Autin Plevy and Mathieu Tibbet for the Spruce Kings to deal with. On one particular play Plevy dove for a loose puck and ended up falling face first onto Cameron Lawson's stick.

In noticeable discomfort, Plevy went straight to the bench and the trainer started working on him. It became quite apparent that Plevy had broken his nose as the trainer put it back into place and cleaned up the forward. No sooner was Plevy back in the game then he was on the scoresheet. Just moments after having his nose broke, Plevy was set up Graboski in front and whistled his fourth of the post season past Thompson at 7:26.

Just over two minutes later, the Spruce Kings were able to get on the board on a nice play that started with Jake LeBrun protecting the puck in the left side faceoff circle while playing keep-away from three defenders. LeBrun put the puck off the wall to Shayne Morrissey who was standing behind the Chiefs net. Morrissey faked one way and came out the other passing the puck through the top of the crease to Sean Landrey who was on the inside of the left face off circle.

Landrey didn't spend any time thinking of what shot to take, he just let instinct take over and knew that Gillam would be coming back to protect the short side so he fired top shelf far side beating Gillam's glove for his first of the post season. The goal gave the Spruce Kings bench some life as they now had 10:16 remaining in the third period to come up with two more goals to tie this game up.

Dreams of seeing this game go to overtime were not shared by Chilliwack who concentrated on their defensive game first and foremost leaving the Spruce Kings with very little to go on. As time ticked down on the Spruce Kings season and the tanks empty from the adrenaline laced game just one night prior in Prince George, it started to become apparent that this series was going to go to the home team.

In one last valiant effort to maybe find fumes, Dave Dupas pulled Kirk Thompson and sent Coltyn Hansen on the ice as an extra attacker. The gamble looked like it might actually pay off as the Spruce Kings used the artificial man advantage to create a couple of scoring chances but again Gillam was not going to be letting anything more in on this night. As if the time on the clock hadn't already sealed the deal, Austin Plevy made sure of it scoring an empty net goal with four seconds remaining on the clock. Prince George outshot Chilliwack 16-11 in that final frame but only the Landrey shot beat Gillam.

The two teams shook hands at centre ice taking a little extra time to congratulate different players on both squads. While watching the graduating players go through the line, it was clear to see that there was a lot of respect for what Kirk Thompson and Trevor Esau brought to the series. It is a strange feeling to know that a pair of rookies just three season ago that gave so much to the Spruce Kings and to the City of Prince George will no longer being wearing the Crown on the ice, but will always wear the Crown on their hearts.

With the season done, the team will return to Prince George to clean out their dressing room, hold exit interviews and present recognize individual achievements with the annual Player Awards Banquet on Saturday night. I will have a wrap up of those awards that feature two new ones this year to recognize areas of play in a game that are very important to Dave Dupas and his coaching staff. Perhaps the hardest trophy to find a single recipient for will be that of Playoff MVP with so many players elevating their game in the post season and showing the true character of what it means to be a Spruce King.

Series Is All Tied Up At One

Series Tied After a Parade to the Penalty Box

In the end it doesn't really matter what the score was as this series now shifts to Prince George and starts fresh as a best of three with the Spruce Kings having home ice advantage. To make it official though I will say that the Chilliwack Chiefs won big finishing with a total of ten goals to the Spruce Kings lone marker that came off the stick of Bryant Christian in the third period.

Perhaps there was some complacency issues early in the game but as the game progressed it got down right ugly with some not too pretty displays of unsportsmanlike behaviour from both sides. In my opinion, this is another area where the Chilliwack Chiefs were able to best the Spruce Kings and draw Prince George into a long series of penalties that started in the first period.

It isn't easy to pull out one moment in particular that can be considered the Studio Cuts Crowning Moment of the Game as everything seemed to favour the home team on this night. Some of those moments that stand out for me include the game's opening faceoff where Spencer Graboski and Chad Staley lined up against each other. Graboski had no intention of winning that faceoff and instead used his stick to push Staley down to the ice and held him there for a few extra seconds.

Credit where credit is due and the Chiefs are full value for forcing two early turnovers that both resulted in goals and swinging the momentum of the game for sure in favour of Chilliwack. The first turnover was some hard forecheck pressure that resulted in the Spruce Kings icing the puck and, with the new rules this year, unable to make any line changes.

Off the ensuing faceoff, Prince George did get possession of the puck but again an effective forecheck prevented them from getting the puck down the ice and caught two players in no-man's land trying to make a change. Luke Esposito came up with the puck and was able to feed it over to Austin Plevy on the weak side of the ice who let go a perfect shot from the far side of the left faceoff dot that beat Kirk Thompson. The Spruce Kings found themselves down 1-0 on just the Chiefs second shot and 3:03 into the game.

The next turnover came a minute later when Philip Zielonka closed off the lane twice and then took the puck away in the high slot. He too moved over to the left side and used a Spruce Kings defender as a screen getting the puck through both the defender and the goaltender to double Chilliwack's lead to 2-0 at 4:05 of the first period. Both those goals had to be perfect and they obviously were perfect and a sign of things to come.

Dave Dupas found himself using up his timeout after that second goal to try and calm the troops and get the Spruce Kings back on track. It seemed to worked as the Spruce Kings manufactured some chances and were getting shots on Mitch Gillam. In a reversal of the night before when the Spruce Kings kept the potent Chiefs offense to the outside and allowed Thompson to see everything, the Chiefs goaltender was having no difficulties tracking the puck and making the saves.

The physical play of the Chiefs started to become effective as the plays after the whistle and behind the play were allowed to go on. The officials did warn both benches that if the extra curricular activities continued they would start taking players out of the scrums and true to their word, they did. The first penalty was to Mark Begert who was called for roughing after the whistle after pushing back on a Chiefs player who was encroaching on Thompson's crease.

The Chiefs extended their lead with just five seconds remaining in their first powerplay on a hard seeing eye shot from Alexander Perron-Fontaine from the high slot just under the blue line. It was the third goal in a row for the home team that just seemed to find the perfect line through an opening to find the back of the net.

The Spruce Kings would get their first powerplay of the game in a similar fashion after Coltyn Hansen tried to get to the a loose puck in front of Gillam. Hansen was given a shot and in the melee he and Philip Zielonka were both given roughing minors while Spencer Graboski picked up a roughing after the whistle penalty. The Spruce Kings were able to work the puck around but without much luck, coming up empty with their man advantage.

The second period started with the Chiefs players starting to key on certain Spruce Kings, in particular it seemed they were highly interested in Chad Staley and Kevin Guiltinan. Prior to the game Dave Dupas mentioned that having Guiltinan in the lineup is a benefit to the Spruce Kings as it keeps the other team wary of the NHL Central Scouting ranked defenceman.

To me it seems like there might be a hidden motive here to get Guiltinan out of the rest of the series. With the Junior A supplement there has been a two year crackdown on a number of specific type penalties including dangerous hits, blows to the head and accumulated fighting majors. Guiltinan is currently at his maximum allowed fights for the season and another one will result in additional game suspensions. If you would like to read more about the Junior A supplement and the rules around it, CLICK HERE.

Early in the middle frame, Kevin Guiltinan was assessed a two minute minor for slashing that didn't result in a powerplay as the Chiefs Josh Hansen was also assessed a two minute minor for unsportsmanlike conduct. While those two sat in the penalty box another turning point in the came when David Stephens was hit from behind into the corner. Not only was there no call on the play, but as the Chiefs headed up the ice the other way, all four officials followed the play with nobody looking back to see Stephens struggling to get off the ice on all fours.

To add insult to injury, Trevor Hills was able to snap a wrist shot off the glove of Kirk Thompson that fluttered into the back net while Stephens was still making his way to the bench. From there things just seemed to go from bad to worse for the Spruce Kings and it became hard to keep track of everything that was going on in the game itself.

The Chilliwack Chiefs did get the next two penalties, the first was to Ben Masella who stuck a knee out on Chad Staley up ending the forward but fortunately not seriously hurting him and the other was Ryan Donohoe who was called for charging after running Staley moments later. Frustration was setting in for the Spruce Kings and was very evident when David Stephens took another hit from behind from Austin Plevy while Prince George was on that Donohoe powerplay. Stephens went after Plevy and ended up getting a high sticking call against him.

The Chiefs would add one more goal to make it 5-0 forcing Dupas to pull the Spruce Kings number one goaltender from the game and insert the sixteen year old rookie, Liam McLeod. McLeod made a great glove save for his first save of the night in time for the BCHL timeout and when play resumed, the proverbial wheels on the bus fell off and things deteriorated with a parade to the penalty box.

It started with Spencer Schoech getting called for cross checking when he came into the fray late with his stick elevated. Shortly after that, the Spruce Kings assistant coach, Brad Rihela was ejected from the game followed by Kevin Guiltinan who was given a ten minute misconduct for something he may have said on the ice. The Chiefs would take a minor of their own before the end of the second period but would hold onto their 5-0 lead heading to the dressing room.

In the third period, Bryant Christian ended the shutout bid for Gillam with a nice shot of his own that found the far side of the net. Shortly after this Harvey Smyl decided to pull his number one goaltender, leaving people to read into that move as a precautionary measure with the game heading south in a hurry.

In the end there were a total of 34 minutes in penalties (12 minors and 2 fighting majors) 2 ten minute misconducts and 2 game misconducts in the third period alone. Nine of those minors, one major, both ten minutes misconducts and both game misconducts were assessed to the Prince George Spruce Kings. In all Prince George received 33 minutes in penalties, 3 ten minute misconducts and 3 game misconducts resulting in nine times the Spruce Kings were shorthanded and five powerplay goals for the Chilliwack Chiefs.

Although the score and the game got out of hand Saturday night, the end result is that this series is all tied up at a game a-piece making this Mainland Divisional Semi-Final a best of three with Prince George having home ice advantage. The next game is Monday March 18th with puck drop at 7pm in the Prince George Coliseum. There will also be a game Tuesday night March 19th at 7pm also in the Castle with a deciding game scheduled for Wednesday night in Chilliwack if necessary.

Spruce Kings Take Game One

Chad Staley (22) was able to stay in the game
after taking a blindside hit from Eric Roberts.

The Spruce Kings went in to Chilliwack and did what not very many people thought they could do ... take the first game in the Mainland Divisional Semi-Final best-of-five series. The final score was 3-1 for Prince George, but the shots told a much different story with Chilliwack outshooting their opponents 44-20. The game lived up to its billing of being a physical contest with some heavy hits, a couple of tilts and even the lights going out.

In a scoreless first period of play, with the Spruce Kings just starting to get their wits about them after being outshot 10-1 prior to the BCHL timeout, four lights went out in Prospera Centre above the Spruce Kings blue line. The outage happened just as Prince George was heading up the ice looking to cash in on some of the momentum that they had got to swing their way.

On the first shift after the BCHL timeout, Jeremiah Luedtke got the Spruce Kings first real shot on goal and first quality scoring chance after rifling a shot on goal that Mitch Gillam had difficulties containing and ended up watching slide just past the far post. On the very next shift Shayne Morrissey elected to go for the shot on a two-on-one, this time Gillam was square to the shooter but gave up a juicy rebound that just got away from Morrissey. On the next shift it was Karan Toor who danced through the top of the slot before firing a shot on Gillam.

With 3:52 remaining in a scoreless first period of play, the lights went out prompting the officials to send the teams to the dressing room for an early intermission. At the time of the early dismissal, the Chilliwack Chiefs were outshooting the Prince George Spruce Kings 15-5 and when the first period resumed, they added three more for a first period total of 18-5.

The games first penalty came in the second period to David Stephens who was called for tripping. The Spruce Kings, who had been working on their penalty kill, were successful in killing of the Chilliwack man advantage and tried to use that as leverage to get back in the game with some offense. The offense didn't come easy for the Spruce Kings on this night who found themselves being turned around at every corner and challenged to every puck. The difference was the stellar performance between the pipes of Kirk Thompson.

At the 15:31 of the second period, a bit of a scare was put into the Spruce Kings bench when Eric Roberts caught Chad Staley in an awkward position and checked him into the boards with a blindside hit. The referee's arm went up in the arm immediately. Jace Hennig took exception to the hit and went right after Roberts with the two dropping the gloves and trading a couple of blows. When the dust settled, the Spruce Kings ended up with their second man advantage of the game. Roberts received two minutes for boarding, two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct and a five minute major for fighting. Henning was assessed an instigating minor, fighting major and a ten minute misconduct. With the man advantage, Mark Begert was able to use some time and space from the left point to feed the puck to David Stephens standing in the left faceoff circle. Stephens shot the puck towards the net and had the puck deflect off of Cameron Lawson's skate and into the net. With very little dispute or discussion, the goal counted and the Spruce Kings found themselves up 1-0 at 16:43 of the second.

The Chiefs poured it on immediately after that looking for the equalizer and with time ticking down in the second period, everybody in the building was brought to the edge of their seat when Luke Esposito had a chance with a shot into a wide open net. The puck fluttered on Esposito and a Spruce Kings defender may have been able to get a stick on the shot as well, but either way the end result was the same with Esposito lifting the puck over the open net and firing off the glass on the back wall. The second period ended with the Spruce Kings leading the Chiefs 1-0.

The third period was a little more even with the difference coming at the 6:38 mark when David Stephens found Coltyn Hansen on the left wing. With his deceptively quick speed, Hansen found himself a stride ahead of the defender inside the Chiefs zone as he cut to the net. From the top of the blue ice and with an extra little push of the stick, Hansen was able to get the puck to go through Gillam, who had sprawled going for the poke check. After the goal Gillam was seen looking at his jersey and his equipment for a hole or at least an explanation as to how that puck got through him.

With plenty of time left in the game, the Chilliwack Chiefs sent out a steady diet of the top line trying to manufacture a goal from the combination of Luke Esposito, Austin Plevy and Philip Zielonka. The three would all have chances with Esposito actually finding the net but only after the puck was ruled to have been touched by the hand of another Chiefs player. As the time ticked away in the third period, the game remained a 2-0 lead for Prince George with Chilliwack looking to cut that lead in half. With 1:41 remaining in the third period, Gillam was pulled in favour of the extra attacker giving Prince George a chance at the empty net.

Coltyn Hansen would get two attempts to put this game out of reach and wouldn't miss on his second try. Taking a bit of a gamble by taking the shot from the Spruce Kings side of centre ice, Hansen watched as the puck bounced into the open cage with 16 seconds remaining in regulation time giving Prince George a 3-0 lead. On the ensuing faceoff, the Chiefs forced a turnover from below the goal line where Brodyn Nielsen fed the puck to an open Matthiew Tibbet in the slot. Thompson was caught out of position with the traffic in his crease giving Tibbet the easy tap in ruining the shutout bid of Thompson.

With their loan goal coming with less than 4 seconds remaining in the game, the Chilliwack Chiefs seemed content in knowing that they had found a way to beat Thompson and score on the Spruce Kings, they didn't even bother looking for another offensive chance. The win was Kirk Thompson's first post season win and something that had eluded him in his Junior A career.

The Spruce Kings went into the game with the mantra of having "attention to detail" and although they picked up the win, they know there is still room for improvement in their game. Mitch Eden was given a ten minute misconduct for not having his jersey tie down secured, which became apparent early in the second period when he was partially jerseyed in an altercation. Jace Hennig was also given a ten minute misconduct for instigating a fight after Chad Staley was hit in the boards and in the third period Kevin Guiltinan ended up with a two minute minor for checking from behind and a game misconduct for the penalty. There should be no further discipline for that call, despite what I said on the broadcast, because the penalty was only a minor and not a major.

The Spruce Kings will get a chance now to double up their lead on Chilliwack and take a stranglehold in this short series with game two on Saturday night. Certainly the Chiefs will have something to say about that as their goal will be to get a split on home ice and force a game four in Prince George. Faceoff for game two tonight is set for 7pm from Prospera Centre with the game broadcast live on 93.1 CFIS-FM as well as online from the Spruce Kings MIXLR.com channel and pay-per-view broadcast on FASTHOCKEY.com.

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).

Silverbacks Claw Past Spruce Kings in Regular Season Finale

Derek Bulmer (26) and Riley Hawes (24) were emergency callups
from Midget Tier I Cougars saw a lot ice in their first BCHL games

The Prince George Spruce Kings fell behind early and couldn't recover in their regular season finale on Saturday night at a sold out Coliseum.

The Salmon Arm Silverbacks spoiled the party for the hosts and the 2,116 fans who packed the Castle building a 3-0 lead in the first 6 1/2 minutes and hanging on for a 5-3 win.

With six regulars out of the lineup due to illness and injury, the Spruce Kings called three affiliate players - including two making their BCHL debut.

Reece Forman took a regular shift on the blue-line, while local products Riley Hawes and Derek Bulmer played up front. Often paired together, Hawes and Bulmer generated a handful of scoring chances, with Bulmer ringing one off the cross-bar in the first.

Salmon Arm, riding high after clinching a playoff spot in Merritt on Friday night, stormed out to a three-goal lead just 6:22 into the game. First Steven Iacobellis wristed a shot over Kirk Thompson's right shoulder at 3:59; then Josh Bowes took a feed from Brayden Sherbinin, cut to the front of the net and slid one under Thompson at 5:36;then Harlan Orr lifted a rebound over Thompson's pad at 6:22.

The third goal prompted Spruce Kings head coach Dave Dupas to use his timeout and settle his team. The tactic seemed to work as a couple of shifts later Coltyn Hansen found Shayne Morrissey in front and he fired the puck past Silverbacks' goalie Angus Redmond as a pair of graduating Spruce Kings players connected at 8:17.

That score held through the rest of the first and the entire second, but it was Prince George who was beginning to take control of more and more of the play as the game went on.

Hansen got the home side within one at 13:13 of the third when he tipped home Chad Staley's shot for the prettiest goal of the game. Lyndon Martell got the play started, finding Staley with a nice pass in the high slot.

Salmon Arm snuffed any budding momentum with a goal a couple minutes later on the power play. Jordan Levesque's harmless looking point shot hit a Spruce Kings' player in front and fooled Thompson as the visitors resorted their two-goal lead.

Prince George battled back one more time, with Martell snipping a laser of a shot past Redmond at 15:58. Bryant Christian and Hansen picked up the helpers.

Ryan Schwalbe iced the game with an empty-net goal at 19:13 of the third.

The loss had no impact on the Spruce Kings final standing as they finish the regular season third in the Mainland Division and will play the second-place Chilliwack Chiefs in the first round. The best-of-five series begins Friday and Saturday in Chilliwack, with Game 3 coming back to Prince George on Monday March 18.

The Graduates

This Saturday marks the final game of the regular season for the Prince George Spruce Kings and the final regular season game of four players on the team. All four have made an impact on the city of Prince George and all admit that they will carry with them memories of the city, the fans, the team and the building they have called home.

For two of those players, the Coliseum has been home to their entire Junior A career while two others were brought in for their final season of junior hockey. From a couple of trade acquisitions to a pair of three year vets - all four have wore the crown with pride and brought the home town fans to their edge of the seats and off them.

Although he is the oldest of the four players, Shayne Morrissey's time in Prince George is the shortest. Acquired in an early season trade, Morrissey brought with him an impressive resume that included 190 Junior A games played with 102 goals and 130 assists. Playing with the Prince George Spruce Kings, Morrissey has been climbing the leader board and has found himself in the team's top four with 19 goals and 16 assists.

Morrissey's is a community minded player and has given much of his time to helping minor hockey teams in Prince George.

Coltyn Hansen was an off-season acquistion from the Victoria Grizzlies and has proven to be a huge asset for the Prince George Spruce Kings. Hansen has used his speed to his advantage throughtout the season; it is not uncommon to see #10 flying down the wing on a breakaway chance. Currently the leading points getter for the team with 20 goals and 27 assists this season, Hansen also has 19 goals and 17 assists from his previous year in the BCHL.

Knocking on wood as I count Saturday's game in the stats, Hansen has only missed out on one game this season versus the West Kelowna Warriors when a number of players were out with the flu.

The next two players both come from the Lower Mainland and came to the Prince George Spruce Kings to try their luck at making the lineup through the team's training camps. Both players have been leaders both on the ice and in the dressing room, but only one wears a letter.

The unanimous choice for the captiancy this year was Trevor Esau who has embraced the role and taken the job to heart leading by example on the ice. Although he doesn't lay claim to being the most offensive player on the team, Esau leads the team in many other categories including a few of the coach's favourites.

Coach Dave Dupas will be one of the first to sing the praises of Esau especially when it comes to the contributions on the ice in the area of blocked shots. All season long the Spruce Kings have kept track of this stat and have watched as Esau has taken away scoring chances with over 250 shots going off his shin pads or elsewhere in his equipment.

One player who appreciates that sacrifice is the Spruce Kings goaltender Kirk Thompson who has had an exceptional season between the pipes. This year Thompson has set a four team records including 2747 minutes played in a single season, 6646 career minutes played for the Spruce Kings, 24 wins in a single season and 46 franchise wins. Thompson will also finish in the top ten for both single season and franchise records for goals against average and save percentage.

It has been a treat watching all four of these players this season and especially watching the evolution of Trevor Esau and Kirk Thompson. From a pair of young rookies getting their break in the BCHL to becoming fan favourites around the league, these two players become focal points for other team's coaches and players. I, for one, certainly wish our graduating players all the best in their future hockey careers and thank them for all they have done for the Prince George Spruce Kings.

Spruce Kings Clinch Third With Win Over Rivermen

This unassisted tally from Coltyn Hansen (10) was the Studio Cuts
Crowning Moment taking the wind out of the sails of the Rivermen

Write it in stone, the Prince George Spruce Kings will play the Chilliwack Chiefs in the first round of the BCHL Mainland Division playoffs later this month.

The Spruce Kings locked up third place in the division on Saturday night with a 4-1 win over the Langley Rivermen at the Coliseum.

Shayne Morrissey scored once and set up another one as the Spruce Kings took the first of a weekend double header against their division rivals.

With Prince George leading 3-1 early in the third period, Morrissey drove to the net and tried a nifty shot between his legs. Rivermen goaltender James Barr was able to make the first save but Chad Staley crashed the net and cashed in the rebound at 2:29 to give the home side a comfortable cushion. Morrissey and Justin Rai picked up the assists.

Kirk Thompson authored another brilliant performance between the pipes for Prince George, with his signature save coming in the third period off Evan Campbell. The Prince George keeper slid post-to-post then flashed the leather to make the stop on the one-timer. Thompson finished with 33 saves, while Barr stopped 25 pucks.

Despite the win, the Spruce Kings can no longer catch Chilliwack for second place and home ice advantage in the playoffs. The Chiefs were 3-0 winners against Cowichan Valley on Saturday and clinched second place. The Rivermen were unable to clinch a playoff berth Saturday, keeping the Coquitlam Express alive for the fourth and final spot in the division.

The Spruce Kings came out flying to start the game, opening up an 11-2 lead on the shot counter and a 2-0 advantage on the scoreboard in the opening minutes. Mark Begert opened the scoring when his point shot snuck through traffic in front of Barr and found the back of the net.

David Stephens and Lyndon Martell picked up the helpers at 3:06. Just over five minutes later the Spruce Kings added to their lead on the power play. After breaking into the zone on a three-on-two, Cameron Lawson found Morrissey on the right wing and there was just enough room for Morrissey's sharp-angle shot to get past Barr at 8:25. Skylar Pacheco also picked up an assist.

Thompson wasn't tested much in the opening 20 minutes, but did stop Langley sniper Mario Puskarich from point blank range.

Puskarich didn't waste any time in the second period, burying a shot over Thompson's shoulder for his 39th goal of the season at 1:45. Evan Campbell and Turner Popoff picked up the assists.

The Rivermen came within inches of tying the game on a late-second period power play when Tanner Johnson rung a point shot off the post. Thompson had to be aware to cover up the rebound in the blue paint.

The Spruce Kings' goalie made a great save later in that same penalty kill off a hot shot from the slot by James Robinson.

Prince George also generated its own short-handed scoring chance when Morrissey and Coltyn Hansen broke in two-on-one, but Hansen's saucer pass bounced as Morrissey tried to bat it into the net. On his very next shift Hansen elected to shoot rather than pass on an odd-man rush and beat Barr with a nifty shot at 18:25. Hansen stripped a Langley player of the puck at the Prince George blue-line to start the rush on his unassisted goal.

Playing without Sean Landry (injury) and Jeremiah Luedtke (injury), the Spruce Kings were forced to use a pair of defencemen as forwards on the fourth line. Mitch Eden, who often acts like a fourth forward due to his puck-carrying abilities, didn't look out of place up front and neither did Spencer Schoech. Eden moved back to his traditional spot on the blue line for the third period.

The Spruce Kings and Rivermen complete their nine-game season series at the Castle on Sunday afternoon with a 3 p.m. matinee. There will be a fan skating opportunity after the game.

Vipers Slither Past Spruce Kings In 2OT

Liam Board (28) came back to the Coliseum and led
the Vernon Vipers to a 5-4 win over PG in overtime

The Prince George Spruce Kings entered the final homestand of the regular season seeking consistency heading into the playoffs, but Friday it was inconsistency that was their undoing in a 5-4 double overtime loss to the Vernon Vipers.

The extra session hasn't been friendly to the Spruce Kings all season and they got bitten again Friday at the Coliseum when Brendan Persley converted at 4:23 of the second OT session to give the desperate a Vipers a win. After Bryant Christian charged to the net for the Spruce Kings but was unable to score, Persley led a 3-on-1 rush the other way for Vernon. He faked a pass which froze Spruce Kings goaltender Kirk Thompson and then fired home the game winner.

Although Vernon had the lead three times during regulation, it was Prince George who carried the play much of the game. Yet the home side wasn't able to capitalize on its chances, including a power play in the first overtime period, and lost for the third time in four games to a team who will likely finish the season outside of the playoffs.

Former Spruce King Liam Board, the game's first star, step up the first goal with a strong forecheck in the first period. His work along the boards led to Andrew Tegeler getting the puck alone in front and Tegeler was able to beat Thompson with a quick shot at 4:20.

The Spruce Kings evened the score with a power-play tally at 9:59. Cameron Lawson used speed to gain the zone and set up Justin Rai and Jake LeBrun in front. After a couple of whacks at it, Rai was credited with the goal after knocking the puck up and over Vipers' starter Austin Smith.

The score was tied for less than a shift as Vernon came right back. Board took advantage of a defensive zone break down in the Prince George end and fired a centering pass to Mason Blacklock, who fired home his first of two on the night at 10:28.

The Vipers took that 2-1 lead into the first intermission, but just 1:38 into the second Shayne Morrissey got the Spruce Kings back on even terms when he converted a 3-on-2 with Rai and LeBrun. Morrissey and Rai almost collided as they crossed the blue-line, but LeBrun was patient and when Morrissey got open he dropped the puck back to the trailer and Morrissey's shot snuck past Smith.

Once again the Vipers came right back to take the lead with Persley scoring at 3:08 to give the Vipers their third lead of the hockey game.

Prince George finally got some momentum going in the middle stages of the second with Lyndon Martell and Dairy Queen player of the game Jace Hennig scoring less than a minute apart to give Prince George its first - and only - lead of the game. Martell's goal at 9:03 came off a nice give and go with David Stephens. Kevin Guiltinan also picked up a helper.

Hennig lit the lamp at 10:01 off another nice passing play, Lawson and Christian got the assists on that one.

The Vipers drew even late in the third on a nice individual effort in front of the net by Blacklock. He needed a couple of tries to beat Thompson at 18:28, but his unassisted goal did draw things even.

Neither team was able to muster much of an attack in the third, which brought the game to extra time.

The point for the overtime loss helps the Spruce Kings stay five points ahead of the Langley Rivermen, who will make the trip up to Prince George for a doubleheader to close the weekend. The Spruce Kings can clinch at least third place in the Mainland Division by sweeping Langley on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon at the Castle.

Spruce Kings Post a 5-3 Win Over Potential First Round Playoff Opponent

Kirk Thompson turned aside 45 shots as the Spruce Kings
post a 5-3 win over Chilliwack on Saturday night.
Photo courtesy Garrett James

What a difference a day can make as the Spruce Kings come up with a solid sixty minute effort against the Chilliwack Chiefs and were rewarded with a 5-3 win. The win came on the heels of a 5-3 loss to the Coquitlam Express one night previously.

After a slow start on Friday night, the Spruce Kings were ready to go Saturday night and came up with a couple of early shifts that generated chances despite not being credited with any shots on goal. That would change a little over five minutes into the open period when Mitch Eden came down the lane and fed a back hander in on the Chiefs goal. Mitch Gillam was able to get a piece of the shot but not enough to stop the puck from finding the inside of the post turning on the goal light at 5:17.

The Spruce Kings held onto the 1-0 lead for less than three minutes before the Chiefs were able to tie the game up at 8:05. Coming in to the game, the Chilliwack Chiefs head coach and general manager figured it was time for a change with the configuration of his top two lines. After the 5-1 loss to the Langley Rivermen on Friday night, Harvey Smyle moved Philip Zielonka off the right wing of the top line and slotted in Trevor Hills with Luke Esposito and Austin Plevy instead.

Hills made the most of his opportunity to play alongside the Chiefs top two goal scorers with a hard play in the offensive zone. From below the goal line, Hills spotted Plevy in the slot and gave the Chiefs sniper the puck who fired a shot through Kirk Thompson for his 30th of the season to tie the game at a goal a-piece. The two teams would trade a handful of shots on goal and a couple of high percentage scoring chances but the first period would end with the teams tied 1-1.

In the opening period the Spruce Kings came out hitting everything and as the first period came to an end the Chiefs defenceman Cooper Rush showed some of his frustration after being hit three separate times by Justin Rai. Giving up 9 inches and over 50 pounds to the NHL Central Scouting ranked player, Rai showed that he wasn't afraid to get in their and cause problems for the tall defenceman and the Chiefs as a whole.

It was more of the same in the second period with the teams trading chances until Cameron Lawson was able to break in on the Chilliwack Chiefs goaltender and let go a wrist shot that caught Mitch Gillam on the side of the exposed area the netminder's net. The puck fell down and rolled over the goal line as Gillam hit the ice in obvious discomfort. Lawson's 21st goal of the season gave the Spruce Kings a 2-1 lead but didn't give Prince George an opportunity to take the momentum that should have come as a result of a go-ahead goal. Instead the energy was sucked out of the building as everybody's attention turned to the Chiefs number netminder who lay on the ice and was attended to for almost three minutes before finally being able to regain composure and resume play.

As the play continued, it was the Chilliwack Chiefs that tried to rally around their goaltender and perhaps the Spruce Kings were guilty of not possessing a killer instinct as they didn't test the Gillam for some time with a hard shot or a high shot for the rest of the second period. The Spruce Kings did hold onto their one goal lead through to the BCHL time out but on return from that one minute timeout Chilliwack Chiefs forward Luke Esposito showed some speed and blew by a pair of Spruce Kings as he went through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone before whipping a shot from the right side face off circle that found the five hole on Thompson to tie the game 2-2 with nine minutes remaining int he second period.

The Spruce Kings would take a third lead on the Chilliwack Chiefs just as the scoreclock hit the one minute remaining mark. Shayne Morrissey from the left corner while on the goal line fired a shot in on Mitch Gillam that found the leg of Chad Staley and hole on the short side to get past Gillam. For Staley that was the rookie's eighth goal of the season and also rewarded Justin Rai for his work in the game with the goal's second assist. Unfortunately that third lead would be short lived as the Chiefs were able to cause some traffic problems down low all the way through the crease for their third tieing goal of the game.

Keifer McNaughton started the play with a point shot from the right side that deflected off Ryan Donohoe. Kirk Thompson made the initial save only to have it batted back towards him while he was down and out by Josh Hansen and then finally by Philip Zielonka who bunted the puck out of the air into the net at 19:31 of the second period. The goal erased the Spruce Kings third lead of the game and allowed the Chiefs to head to their dressing room on even terms with a team that most home team fans would agree were outplaying their opponents.

In the third period the Spruce Kings would find their fourth go-ahead goal of the game on the Studio Cuts Crowning Moment of the Game. Jake LeBrun was able to break up a play in the neutral zone in front of the penalty boxes and knock the puck up to Sean Landrey. Bryant Christian spotted the opportunity to turn it into an odd man rush giving Landrey the option of shooting or passing. Landrey went for the latter and it proved to be the right decision as Christian settled down the puck, hesitated for a split second which was enough to get Gillam to commit leaving the top half of the net open for Christian to pot his tenth of the season.

The goal would stand up as the eventual game winner as the Spruce Kings defence, headed up by Mitch Eden who had one of his best games. In the dying minutes, the Chiefs opted to pull their goaltender for an extra attacker giving the Spruce Kings the opportunity to double their lead with Lyndon Martell getting the puck onto the Coltyn Hansen's stick. The Spruce Kings leading scorer made the smart play gaining the red line before firing a shot into the open net for his 18th of the season at 18:40 of the third period. The Chiefs would try once again to pull their goaltender but as Mark Begert came up with the puck inside the Spruce Kings zone he was able to stare down Gillam and force the netminder to stay on the ice.

For Prince George this win was an important one to pick up as it becomes the team's 24th victory of the season, giving Prince George 56 points with five games remaining before the start of the playoffs. The win was also Kirk Thompson's 23rd of the season which ties a Spruce Kings franchise record for wins in a single season set by Kevin Genoe during the 2008-09 season. Thompson picked up first star honours in the game making 45 saves on 48 shots. On the Spruce Kings broadcast, Mitch Eden picked up the second star while Justin Rai was awarded the FortisBC Energy Player of the Game nod and Bryant Christian was recognized as the Dairy Queen Player of the Game.

It will be a short turnaround for the Spruce Kings now as they will have to be back on the ice at 2pm in Coquitlam and a chance to redeem their Friday night loss while really put the Express in a deep hole who are still in the running for the final playoff spot in the Mainland Division. Please note that the game will not be aired on 93.1 CFIS-FM due to programming conflicts. The Spruce Kings broadcast will air online only with a free audio feed on the Spruce Kings MIXLR.com channel and a pay-per-view feed on FASTHOCKEY.com.

Express Roll Past the Spruce Kings

The Spruce Kings found themselves under siege
for much of the game Friday night

The Spruce Kings came up short on Friday night dropping a 5-3 decision to the Coquitlam Express. Prince George was guilty of starting out flat in the first period but were perhaps lucky to get out of the first period only down 1-0 after being outshot 8-4.

Throughout the first period, the Coquitlam Express showed just how hungry they were to get to within striking range of the Langley Rivermen for the final playoff spot in the Mainland Division. The Express came at the Prince George Spruce Kings in waves and forced turnovers creating chance after chance. Kirk Thompson did what he could to keep the door closed.

The first period featured a massive hit by Kevin Guiltinan on Travis Stephens. Stephens released the puck from the bottom of the faceoff circle and was able to just get the shot released as Guiltinan laid out the forward with a heavy check against the boards. The hit left Stephens woozy and although he skated to the bench on his own, the forward never returned to the game.

Prince George had the first real chance to open the scoring when Sean Landrey found himself streaking down the left wing and was able to blow past the Coquitlam Express defenceman who blew a tire in the neutral zone. Landrey started to cut to the middle and let go a wrist shot that was labelled for the inside of the far post only to find a piece of Cole Huggins' glove and sail wide.

The Express opened the scoring at 17:19 on a play that saw Brandon Morley feed Malcolm McKinney with a perfect pass from behind the net to the slot. McKinney didn't hesitate letting go the one-timer from in close on Kirk Thompson for his fifth of the season. Coquitlam would hold onto that 1-0 lead even while short handed to end the first period.

The Spruce Kings started the second period on the powerplay and were able to get a couple of shots on Huggins during that time. After killing off the penalty, the Express went back on the attack and were looking to go up 2-0 when the Spruce Kings seemed to gain control of the game.

It came with a play initiated by Chad Staley to get the puck deep into the Express zone. The Spruce Kings started cycling the puck and working on getting some chances of their own. Adam Conti, an AP for the Express, ended up icing the puck allowing Prince George to put out their top line for the ensuing faceoff in the Coquitlam end. For almost a full three minutes, the Spruce Kings put the pressure on looking for the equalizer only to be turned aside by some unbelievable saves by Huggins.

Just as the Coquitlam Express were able to get fresh legs out on the ice, one pair of those picked off the puck in the neutral zone and skate into the Spruce Kings zone. Zac Pryzbek gave the home team a 2-0 lead with a shot from the right side wall that got past Kirk Thompson. With the missed opportunity to take over the game and instead now down 2-0, the fear was that the Spruce Kings would not be able to get back into this game.

That wasn't the case as the top line came out and made things happen. Coltyn Hansen started the play spotting Lyndon Martell on the left wall going through the middle with speed. Martell carried the puck deep into the zone pulling Huggins out of his net exposing the far side. Martell spotted David Stephens and was able to feed his linemate a perfect pass for a backhand tap in for Stephens, his third of the season.

Less than a minute later the Spruce Kings found themselves down a man with Sean Landrey in the penalty box on a boarding call. On the penalty kill, Trevor Esau broke up a play just inside the Spruce Kings blue line, Coltyn Hansen recovered the loose puck and with a burst of speed headed down the ice. Bryant Christian jumped up on the rush creating a two-on-one and providing Hansen with an option that he took allowing Christian to tap home an easy shorthanded tally for his ninth of the season.

The goal brought the Spruce Kings even and erased all that had gone wrong previously in the game. The teams would eventually head to the dressing room tied 2-2 but not before the Coquitlam Express applied one more full court press looking to restore their lead that didn't come before the end of the period.

To start the third period, it was the Spruce Kings that started strong and were able to create a couple of scoring chance. Chad Staley kept a play alive in the neutral zone and was able to win a puck battle just inside the Express blueline. Staley carried the puck below the goal line and then wrapped a pass around the net for Justin Rai who put the puck up the middle for Shayne Morrissey who was coming down the slot. Morrissey hesitated just enough to create an opening for himself that he found with his 19th goal of the season giving the Spruce Kings their first lead of the game.

On the ensuing play, Ben Israel changed the game for good with a solo effort that saw him get the puck through a couple of Prince George players and deep into the Spruce Kings zone before firing the puck across the top of the crease to Justin Georgeson. Georgeson leaned into the pass and was able to direct the puck on net and watched it go off Thompson's skate and just inside the short side post. Forty eight seconds after Morrissey gave the Spruce Kings the lead, the game was once again tied.

The next goal was a result of one of those plays that leaves coaches pulling their hair out. With an opportunity to use the glass to clear the zone, the wrong choice was made to spring a player on the opposite of the ice. Adam Rockwood intercepted the pass just inside the blue line and then worked the puck over to Will Cook in the left side faceoff circle who found a seam to the back of the net giving the Coquitlam Express a 4-3 with over twelve minutes to play in the third period.

The Spruce Kings could not find the equalizer and resorted to pulling the goaltender. That gave the Express the chance they needed for the equalizer that came when Malcolm McKinney and Zac Pryzbek found themselves moving into the Spruce Kings zone on a two-on-one with Mitch Eden doing what he could to prevent both the shot and the pass. Ultimately the pass was made, McKinney to Pryzbek and the Express had their 5-3 lead late in the third period. They would hold onto that lead despite picking up a penalty with 36 seconds remaining.

Coquitlam held their 5-3 lead to the final buzzer and headed to their dressing room knowing that they had pulled to within three points of the Langley Rivermen and that final playoff spot. By the time they got to an internet connection to check the BCHL scoreboard, their gain was as short lived as the Spruce Kings third period lead. The Langley Rivermen posted a 5-1 win over the Chilliwack Chiefs leaving the Express still five points out of that playoff spot and pulling the Rivermen to within six of the Spruce Kings.

Saturday night the Prince George Spruce Kings will find themselves in Chilliwack to take on the Chiefs and see if they can repeat what they did the last time they were in Prospera Centre. On February 9th, the Spruce Kings registered their first win of the season against the Chiefs with a 3-1 final. Game time is 7pm and will be broadcast on all the usual sources - 93.1 CFIS-FM, MIXLR.com and FASTHOCKEY.com.

Rivermen Double Up Spruce Kings

Stephen Penner (20) left a lasting impression in his first
BCHL game with a goal and an assist for the Spruce Kings

The Prince George Spruce Kings dug themselves a hole too deep to get out from Thursday night, dropping a 6-3 decision to the Langley Rivermen at the Castle.

The visitors built a 3-0 lead which they extended to 6-1 by the middle of the third before the Spruce Kings clawed back to make a game of it at the end. Despite the score, Prince George actually outshot Langley 49-22 - including 28-5 in the second period alone - but couldn't get enough pucks past James Barr.

The loss means the Spruce Kings were unable to make up ground on Chiliwack for second place in the Mainland Division, still trailing them by six points. Langley has now closed within six points of the Spruce Kings for third place.

Mario Puskarich, the leading scorer in the BCHL, did the most damage scoring three goals for Langley, all on the power play.

He opened the scoring at 3:23 of the first, splitting the Spruce Kings defence and getting to a loose puck in front just before Prince George goalie Kirk Thompson could cover it up. Mark Whiteley and Tanner Johnson got the helpers.

Puskarich had a great chance to add to that three minutes later, breaking in on a 2-on-0 short-handed break but this time it was Thompson who was quick enough to get across his crease and make a big pad save.

The sniper couldn't be contained for long as he scored his second power-play goal at 15:25 of the first after a weird bounce off the face-off went to him at the side of the net. Evan Campbell and James Robinson got the assists.

Mitch McLain made it 3-0 at 16:15, banging home a rebound off a Derek Sutliffe shot. Nathan Craft also got an assist.

Down 3-0, the Spruce Kings came out hard in the second, but it was Langley who scored first. Evan Campbell took a feed from Austin Azurdia, got past a defenceman and slid a puck five-hole on Thompson. That was it for the Spruce Kings starter, who was pulled after allowing four goals on 13 shots. Liam McLeod came on in relief.

Prince George finally got on the board at 12:20 as Bryant Christian scored from the slot just as a Langley penalty expired to make it 4-1. Mark Begert and Cameron Lawson got the assists.

Langley extended its lead in the third, first McLain from Sutliffe and Whitely at 5:18 and then Puskarich from Jakob Reichert and Whiteley at 9:13. Puskarich was named the game's first star with his three goals and Whiteley, who had three helpers was named the third star. Barr took second star honours after making 46 saves.

The Spruce Kings did score a pair late, first Cameron Lawson breaking down the right wing short-handed was able to get one past Barr at 12:17, with assists going to Coltyn Hansen and Stephen Penner.

Then Penner, an affiliate player, scored his first BCHL goal at 15:42 with a blast from the point. Shayne Morrissey and Trevor Esau got the assists.

Penner's strong play, especially in the second half of the game as he got more ice time earned him Dairy Queen player of the game honours. Fellow blue-liner Mark Begert was named the Fortis Energy player of the game.

The Spruce Kings and Rivermen play again Friday night as the Castle at 7 p.m.

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 Clipped by Nanaimo

Spruce Kings had chances ... all but one sailed by
photo courtesy Gary Dorland

The Prince George Spruce Kings let one get away Friday night at the Coliseum.

Leading the Nanaimo Clippers 1-0 heading into the third period, Prince George was unable to hold on to the lead eventually dropping a 2-1 decision to close out a four-game homestand with two wins, a loss and an overtime loss. Josh Bryan evened the score for the Clippers on a back door power-play goal midway through the third and Mason Mitchell scored the game winner. Cameron Lawson opened the scoring for the Spruce Kings in the first period.

Despite only getting the one goal, Prince George had ample chances against Clippers netminder Jayson Argue. In the first period a Lyndon Martell point blast on the power play rung off the post. In the second, again with the man advantage, Shayne Morrissey clanged one off the cross bar and in the third Coltyn Hansen found the iron.

Argue, who shut out the Spruce Kings in their previous meeting, turned aside 24 shots and was named the Treasure Cove Casino first star.

Lawson's goal came on the Spruce Kings first recorded shot at 8:28 of the opening period. Liam Blackburn's centering pass - likely intended for Morrissey - bounced off a Clipper defender and right to Lawson. The Spruce Kings leading goal scorer wasted little time in putting his 16th goal of the season in the net.

The Spruce Kings got into penalty trouble in the first, but escaped a two man disadvantage unscathed. In fact the penalty killing unit did an excellent job through two periods, killing off four infractions with ease. But it was the fifth penalty that did Prince George in.

The game's second star Greg Fraser set up the pretty goal with a cross-ice pass to a Bryan who was streaking in from his blue-line post. His quick shot beat Spruce Kings goaltender Kirk Thompson. Mitchell also got an assist on the play. Moments later Mitchell notched the game winner, again set up by Fraser with linemate Matthew Grant picking up the third assist.

Thompson, the game's third star, made 29 saves in a losing cause.

For the second game in a row the Spruce Kings captain Trevor Esau was named the Fortis Energy player of the game, while Jace Hennig took home Dairy Queen player of the game honours.

The Spruce Kings begin a stretch of seven straight games against Mainland Division opponents next week when they hit the road for games against Surrey and Chilliwack.

Spruce Kings Soar Past Eagles

Liam Blackburn (24) was called up from the Cariboo Cougars
and notched his first in the BCHL

The Surrey Eagles may be the Mainland Division leaders, but the Prince George Spruce Kings sure have their number so far this year.

For the fourth time in seven meetings the Spruce Kings came out victorious, decisively defeating the Eagles 4-1 at the Castle on Thursday night.

Lyndon Martell had a goal and an assists and Cameron Lawson chipped in with three helpers as the Spruce Kings improved their record against the Eagles to four wins and three overtime losses. Chad Staley and Liam Blackburn also scored for the home side, while Kirk Thompson turned aside 31 shots to earn Treasure Cove Casino first star honours. Martell, the Dairy Queen player of the game, got things started with a power-play goal at 9:07 of the opening period. His blast from the point appeared to hit something and front and fool Michael Sanatguida in the Eagles net. Jake LeBrun and Lawson picked up the assists.

Just over a minute later the Spruce Kings doubled their lead as Chad Staley and Jeremiah Luedtke broke in 2-on-2. Staley tried a drop pass to Luedtke, but the winger fanned on his first shot attempt. The puck bounced right back on Staley's stick and he lifted it over Santaguida at 10:31. Skylar Pacheco also picked up an assist.

The Eagles got one back in the second period when their most dangerous player on the night Brady Shaw capitalized. He came in on a rush, cut to the middle of the ice and fired a shot past Thompson - the lone blemish on an otherwise perfect night for the Spruce Kings' ace. Thompson had played spectacularly well against the Eagles this season, with both his shutouts coming against Surrey.

The Spruce Kings weathered a strong second period by the Eagles and carried a 2-1 lead into the third. Using all four lines all game, Prince George appeared to have more jump in the final stanza and it paid off on the scoreboard.

First sniper Shayne Morrissey restored the two-goal lead with the help of Lawson and Mark Begert at 8:26. Then Blackburn, a member of the midget triple-A Cariboo Cougars and one of three affiliate players in the Spruce Kings lineup, scored his first BCHL goal at 10:21. Santaguida made a save on a Lawson shot, but Blackburn dug out the rebound and fired it in the net. Blackburn was named the game's second star.

The game got chippy in the third and the Spruce Kings were awarded ample power play time in the dying minutes which allowed them to control possession and run out the clock.

Captain Trevor Esau was named the FortisBC Energy Player of the Game for his steady - and physical - play patrolling the Spruce Kings blue-line.

The Spruce Kings are back on the ice on Friday night when the Nanaimo Clippers make their first and only regular season visit to the Castle this year.

Hansen Hat Trick Powers Spruce Kings Past Express

Cameron Lawson (7) celebrates Shayne Morrissey's
eventual game winning goal

The Prince George Spruce Kings offence got back in gear and the team snapped a three-game losing streak Saturday night with a 5-3 win over the Coquitlam Express at the Castle.

A pair of first-period goals by Coltyn Hansen got things started and he added an empty-netter to finish things off with a hat trick. In between the Shayne Morrissey-Cameron Lawson combination clicked for a pair early in the third as the Spruce Kings built a three-goal lead and hung on for the win.

With the Spruce Kings leading 2-1 through 40 minutes, Lawson and Morrissey both scored in the first six minutes of the third to put the game out of reach.

First Lawson broke into the Express zone, but was stopped by a Coquitlam defender. Morrissey, the trailer, corralled the loose puck and his shot hit Lawson as it made its way past Cole Huggins in the Express net.

A few shifts later, Morrissey was credited with a goal after a Coquitlam player put the puck in his own net. The goal came after a nice rush by the Spruce Kings' top scoring line, with assists going to Lawson and Trevor Esau.

Will Cook scored twice to get the Express back within one, but Spruce Kings goalie Kirk Thompson shut the door from that point on to preserve the lead. The first goal off a face off in the Prince George end and the second on a rush with just 1:45 remaining in the third.

Hansen iced it with an empty-net goal.

Hansen got the Spruce Kings on the board on the very first rush on the very first shift of the game. After Jace Henig's shot went wide, the rebound off the end boards came right to Hansen and he deposited the puck into the open net just 34 seconds into the game. Mark Begert also picked up an assist.

Ben Israel got the Express back on even terms with a perfectly placed wrist shot off a two-on-two rush. Israel crossed the blue-line on the left wing, moved across to the right slot and shot back across his body catching Thompson going the wrong way.

Hansen restored the Spruce Kings lead before the first period was out and once again he found himself in position where all he had to do was put a puck into an open net. This time Hansen got help from Mitch Eden who passed it to Lyndon Martell in the high slot, Martell quickly slid it over to Hansen just off the left wing boards. The quick puck movement was too fast for Huggins, and Hansen fired it home.

With the two tallies, Hansen has tied Tyson Witala for second on the team with 14. Lawson scored his 15th of the year Saturday to take sole possession of the team lead.

Thompson finished the game with 38 saves - including a few of the acrobatic variety - to notch his 19th win of the season. Huggins stopped 27 pucks in a losing cause.

The Spruce Kings have won all five meetings against the Express so far this year, but Coquitlam will try to change that when the two teams meet again for a Sunday matinee at the Castle. Puck drop is 3 p.m.