Game Story

Surrey Eagles vs Powell River Kings Pre-Game Report

by Ryan Ho

Off To The Island

Powell River, BC – As the Christmas season rolls around, the Surrey Eagles (11-15-2-3) look to continue their winning ways on the road as they’ll play their 5th straight away from the South Surrey Arena against the Powell River Kings (15-14-1). The Eagles are coming off 2 huge road wins against the Vernon Vipers and the Trail Smoke Eaters in their respective rinks, and will gun for their first 3 game winning streak in over 2 years.

Cal Schell will man the crease tonight for the first time since the Eagles game against the Merritt Centenialls. Buddy Johnson will also make his return to the lineup tonight after sitting out the game versus the Smoke Eaters. Look for the full roster for tonight’s game later today on our social media channels.

Who To Watch Out For

The Eagles and Kings are separated in the standings by only 3 points, and score in different ways. The Eagles top line has been a force to be reckoned with all year, while the Kings have more consistent secondary scoring to supplement their top guns. Tonight, a new acquisition will look to continue his hot start with his new team, while an Eagle will look to repeat his incredible performance from earlier this year. Here are tonight’s key players to watch.

Surrey Eagles: Hudson Schandor

The Eagles captain has continued to be a star for the team after his sluggish start to the season, and has brought his season totals to 10 goals, 29 points in 31 games in his first season in Surrey. Schandor was outstanding the last time these two teams faced off, scoring his first career B.C Hockey League hat-trick. Hudson will look to repeat his performance to lead the boys to a victory.

Powell River Kings: Brett Roloson

The son of former NHL’er Dwayne Roloson, Brett has had a strong season in his full BCHL campaign. The Victoria native has 10 goals and 22 points in 24 games played split between Merritt and Powell River, and has 6 points in just 5 games since being traded to the Kings. Roloson has given the Kings another proven scorer alongside Levi Glasman, and they’ll look to help even the score against the Eagles in Powell River.

3 Keys To The Game

The Eagles came away victorious earlier in the year with a strong 5-3 win over the Kings, but that was on the olympic sized ice in South Surrey. With the Eagles in the middle of an 8 game road swing, and the first of 3 off the mainland, it’ll be an uphill battle to maintain their success. The Kings are 9-5 at home this year, so the Eagles will need to play a strong, yet simple game in order to capitalize and win their 3rd in a row. Here are tonight’s 3 keys to the game.

  • Keep things simple: The boys are heading into a tough barn, and will be coming off 2 ferry trips to make it to their destination. As such, the Eagles need to keep things simple tonight against the Kings. If the Eagles can stick within their game, they’ll increase their chances for a win.
  • Keep the powerplay going: The Eagles powerplay has been great of late, going 5 for 14 in their past 4 games (no opportunities against Trail). The Kings have the worst penalty kill in the BCHL coming into tonight’s game, and the Eagles will need to take advantage when up a man if given the opportunity.
  • Start off strong: Against a team close to them in the standings, the Eagles need to start out strong and make a statement against the Kings. If they can find their game early, and push the pace of play like they did at home earlier in the year they’ll be successful. It won’t be easy with the home crowd behind their opposition, but they’ve pulled through against tough teams already against the Vipers and Smoke Eaters. Just have to keep the good times rolling.

Summary

The Eagles and Kings do battle looking to continue their upward climb in the standings. The Eagles will look for their 3rd win in a row, while the Kings will look for revenge after losing in Surrey earlier this year. It all sets up a quality Friday night showdown at the Hap Parker Arena in Powell River.

You can catch the live broadcast on HockeyTV and Mixlr. The broadcast will start at 6:50pm, with the opening puck drop slated for 7:00pm from Hap Parker Arena in Powell River, BC.