Kings force spilt with snakes

Tyler Lowey
Times Reporter

 

Thoracic surgery is easier to understand than this Strathmore Wheatland Kings season.
Less than 24 hours removed from getting pulverized 10-2 by the division leading Coaldale Copperheads, the Kings turned around and lambasted the Copperheads 7-4 Dec. 4 at the Strathmore Family Centre.
“I don’t know what it was last night; maybe road game legs, or something, we just didn’t show up to play and they did,” said Kings head coach Shadoe Stoodley.
Brady Hoover got the call between the pipes for the Kings first tilt of the season with the Copperheads.
The Kings rubber stopper didn’t make it out of the first period, yielding five goals on 21 shots. Labeled their best option in net, Stoodley rolled Hoover back out there for the home half of the home-and-home, and he responded with 28 saves.
“We didn’t play in front of him last night. He played well, but we just had to get him out of there,” said Stoodley.
Playing their third game in three nights, the Copperheads got off to a slow start, but heated up in the third, but Hoover stood tall on home ice.
His biggest save came when Tyler Anderson weaseled his way just below the right faceoff circle when he received the puck. With all kinds of time and not a Kings defender within 15-feet of him, he picked out a spot, but Hoover slid over for the shoulder save.
Alternate captain Brenden Moore collected the rebound and sent Matt Thomson streaking up the left wing. Thomson kept and blistered one past backup netminder Dillan Kelly to put the Kings ahead 6-4 at the 10:23 mark of the third.
Kelly replaced starter Dylan Swanson at the start of the second period.
The Kings ambushed Swanson, scoring four in the opening frame, including two from leading scorer Brooker Pretty Youngman.
“We mentioned that last night’s game was over with. This was a new start and we had to come out focused for this game,” said Kings rookie right-winger Kody Hammond.
Pretty Youngman finished off the hat trick in style, sliding it home when the Copperheads emptied the net for the final 1:20.
“We wanted to send a message after getting blown out like we did last night,” said Pretty Youngman, who was named HJHL player of the week earlier in October. “It’s important to take wins away from some of the top teams in the league.”
He has already set career high in points (13 G, 18A) and continues to drive his 6-foot-3, 230-pound frame towards the net. He recorded a hat trick earlier Oct. 14, in a 7-6 overtime loss to the Airdrie Techmation Thunder.
Pretty Youngman found his butt stapled to the bench early in the first period. The Kings took three straight penalties in the opening frame.
“Penalty killing isn’t really my role on this team,” said Pretty Youngman. “My legs got a little cold, but you just need to keep your mind right and stay in the game at that point.”
One of the Kings key penalty killers, Hammond, returned after he sustained a lower-body injury blocking a shot last week.
Kings captain Keenan Ogle out-manned a pair of Copperhead defenders in the corner, walked out to the left faceoff dot, creating enough space to get a shot off. Hammond was standing to the left of the net as Ogle’s rebound came right to him, and he stuffed it below Kelly’s left pad for the game-winning goal.
Hammond has been playing with Ogle and Cole Busslinger all season and has really begun to take off lately, scoring in four consecutive games.
“(Hammond) has come a long way. He’s one of the hardest working guys I’ve ever coached,” said Stoodley, who worked with Hammond the past two seasons when they were members of the Wheatland Athletic Association midget Chiefs. “He’s not playing out of his element, he just works hard and crashes the net.”
“I think my game is coming along (well), there’s still stuff to learn, but the speed of the game is coming along for me,” said the Strathmore product Hammond
Zachary Meadows chipped in his fifth goal of the season and Ogle added another for the Kings, as they outshot the Copperheads 39-32.
The Kings have improved to 6-5-0 at the Strathmore Family Centre this season.
Another home-and-home series lies ahead, this time with the Okotoks Bisons.
The Kings host the Bisons Dec. 10 during the Thomson toy drive for the Ronald McDonald House game. Fans are encouraged to bring a new toy to the game for free entry as the puck drops at 8 p.m.
The Kings travel to Okotoks Dec. 11 for a matinee (1:15 p.m.) event. The Kings are 1-1 with the Bisons this year.