Despite 28 seasons behind the Powell River Kings, the Fred Page Cup, awarded annually to the BC Hockey League (BCHL) playoff champion, still eludes the club.
The realization comes one week after the team’s season ended at the hands of the Nanaimo Clippers in a second-round playoff sweep. As many players depart Powell River, some for the final time, we look back at one of the more streaky Powell River Kings teams in recent years.
Through September and into October, Kings were off to a fantastic start, cruising to seven straight wins, beginning in Nanaimo on the second weekend of the season, and ending in West Kelowna in mid-October.
However, that season-high run was quickly followed by a season-high six game losing skid, which included a 180-minute stretch without scoring.
“You have to look at who we had going in and a big question for us this season was who was going to score,” said Kings assistant coach Brock Sawyer. “We were in a lot of the games in that stretch, like a 7-5 loss in Cowichan where bounces didn’t go our way; we had to rely on scoring by committee and that shows with a high number of guys in double-digit goals.”
Through November and December, the league began to take notice of a more consistent and deep Kings team. Jeremy LeClerc earned BCHL player of the week honours on November 29, while both Kyle Betts and Carter Turnbull were selected to represent Team Canada West at the World Junior A Challenge.
“Such a cool experience to put the maple leaf on; I can’t say enough about the experience,” said Betts upon returning from a gold medal performance at the tournament. “To do it with Carter was fantastic, too. I can use this experience and apply it here, I’ve seen what makes a team successful and learned a lot of valuable lessons from the coaching staff.”
Following a longer-than-usual Christmas break, Kings returned with four convincing wins. First, a New Year’s Eve doubleheader sweep against Alberni Valley, followed by a 2016-opening sweep of Nanaimo. The games set the tone for Powell River in the stretch drive as the team had its sights set on first place in the Island Division.
“It’s not anything special, we just have to play a solid game. Be disciplined, play with great energy, find that line between staying on the ice and being in the box and just play the right way,” said Kings head coach Kent Lewis about the start of the new year.
The run was quickly halted and fans were reintroduced to a streaky and inconsistent club in early January. Three losses on a Vancouver Island road trip were followed by a pair of gutsy wins and a fantastic effort in defeat through a road trip versus interior teams.
Following back-to-back road trips, Kings settled in for a season-long nine-game home stand, where the team collected points in every game, posting a record of 7-0-1-1.
Into February, the hunt for first place was alive, but just barely. A doubleheader in Nanaimo midway through the month summarized the season in a nutshell; Kings shutout Nanaimo 4-0 in the first game, only to fall the following night and hand the Clippers a division title.
The club finished in second place at the end of 58 regular season games, and headed to playoffs for a 15th consecutive year. Kings stumbled in game five but ultimately edged past Cowichan Capitals in six games, setting up a rematch with Nanaimo.
In round two, back-to-back three-goal losses in Nanaimo put the Kings into a hole to start the series. They would never recover, ultimately dropping two more close contests in Powell River to bow out in a four-game sweep.
Kings will hold a spring camp in Kamloops at the end of May. Main camp for the 2016/2017 season is scheduled for at the end of August in Powell River.
On Saturday, March 26, Powell River Kings held its annual awards banquet with the following awards handed out:
Most Valuable Player - Jeff Smith
Unsung Hero - Rylan Ball
True Grit Award - Nick Halagian
Rookie of the Year - Kyle Betts
Playoff MVP - Kyle Betts
Most Inspirational Player - Kyle Betts
Top Scorer - Tristan Mullin
Armitage Mens Wear Three Stars - Tristan Mullin
Scholastic Award - Carter Turnbull
Top Defenceman - Adam Brubacher
Coaches Award - Jeff Smith
Crowd Favourite - Jack Long
Most Sportsmanlike - Liam Lawson
Community Award - Jeremy LeClerc
Most Improved - Hunter Findlater and Nick Nonis
Don Smisko Volunteer of the Year - Zach Evans
True Beauty Award - Dr. Robert Head
