#24 Jake Hewitt deflects the puck in from the Kings goalie.
#7 Kai Daniells celebrates scoring a goal.
By Malcom Cooke
The Nanaimo Clippers fell 4-1 to the Powell River Kings on Friday in their first game back from the BCHL All-Star break. Despite outshooting the Kings 34-32, the Clippers could not crack Powell River goalie Liam Vanderkooi. Kai Daniells scored the lone goal for the home team. Nanaimo will get a chance at redemption on Saturday in a rematch against the Kings. The tone was set towards the end of the game with a dust-up that resulted in multiple misconduct penalties.
The Kings opened the scoring less than five minutes in on a net-front scramble. The puck snuck passed Clipper goalie Aidan Campbell. A penalty to Powell River gave the Clippers a chance to tie. A few moments later, Kai Daniells scored his 21st goal of the season to tie the game at 1-1. The Kings retook the lead off a floating shot from a bad angle. The two teams got into a scrum towards the end of the first, leading to 4-on-4 play that would last until the second period. The Clippers outshot Powell River 16-11 but trailed by a goal going into the first intermission. Head Coach Collin Birkas was ejected prior to the first period ending resulting in the Clippers starting the second period on a 4-on-3 penalty kill.
Thirty seconds into the second period the Kings added to their lead on the power play. The Clippers got a power-play opportunity as Mike Murtagh was slashed trying to attack the net. The extra space was not enough for the Clippers to cut into the lead. Another power play chance shortly after finished without a Nanaimo goal. Coincidental minors for the second time led to more 4-on-4. Clipper captain Micheal Craig took a cross-checking call resulting in a short 4-on-3 penalty kill. The penalty kill unit was able to keep the game at 3-1. Another penalty to the Kings gave the Clippers their third power-play chance of the second period. Even with the extra time and space for much of the second period, the Clippers did not get a shot on goal for the final ten minutes of the second.
The third period started with physicality from both sides. Nanaimo tried to get some energy back into the 1500 fans at The Frank. A fourth Clippers power play chance yielded the same result as the previous three. Kai Daniells was denied on point-blank chance by the outstretched glove of Vanderkooi. The Clippers had two scoring chances ring off the post as their attempts to cut into the lead were denied all night. The Kings scored again on a counterattack after Nanaimo hit the post, making the score 4-1. Prior to time expiring, the Clippers sent a strong message to the opposing team by going down swinging. The valiant attempt at salvaging something from the game resulted in multiple misconduct penalties awarded to each team, setting the stage for an emotional rematch tomorrow night.
Kings players swept the three stars of the game, and Charles Tardif earned the FortisBC Energy Player of the Game. The rematch set for Saturday night should provide more entertainment for the Frank Crane faithful. Tickets can be purchased at Nanaimoclippers.com or the Frank Crane box office on game day.
