Kings split weekend games

By Tyler Lowey, Times Reporter

Over the past few seasons, it hasn’t required much effort to topple the Three Hills Thrashers. But that same effort level against other teams from the Heritage Junior Hockey League northern division will get you burnt.
The Strathmore Wheatland Kings found that out the hard way Oct. 13 when the Mountainview Colts (7-2-0) hosted the Kings at the Didsbury Recreation Complex.
In what Assistant Coach Blake Bishop called a “poor effort,” the Kings were shelled 6-0.
Six different Colts got in on the scoring, as Laine Rothenbusch got the evening going with a snipe 6:35 into the first.
The Colts added a pair of power play goals, along with two even-strength markers in the second period, ending the night of starter Brett Willan. He stopped 27 of 31 shots.
Local product Riley Stovka relieved Willan for the third and only saw 10 shots, but still let one sneak past him when Matthew Myatt pulled his first short-handed goal of the season.
“The Colts weren’t as good as we made them look,” said Bishop. “We didn’t play hard and we got outworked from puck drop. You can’t play 10 minutes and expect to win.”
The Kings (3-4-1) allowed a season-high 42 shots against in the lopsided loss and for the second-straight week, the Kings went 0-for-8 on the power play.
Historically, the same type of effort was probably good enough to down the Thrashers, who only won seven games two seasons ago and went 1-35-0 last season.
This time, it was the Thrashers that got outplayed from puck drop, as the Kings scored as many goals as the Thrashers had shots in the opening 20.
Alternate captain Brenden Moore pounded his first of the season on a classic booming shot from the point.
New alternate captain Kody Hammond sniped his third of the year three minutes later from Bailey Filkohazy and captain Cole Busslinger.
Hammond is already one off his total in goals from last year, after sniping 11 as a rookie two seasons ago. Hammond and Busslinger tied for the team lead with three points against the Thrashers.
“Cole and Kody played great. They were flying around, banging bodies and making plays,” said Bishop. “Great game by both of those guys.”
Wrapping up the first period was another local product in Lucas Muenchrath, who jammed in a power play marker from Tyler Wirth and Isaac Benoit.
A back-and-forth second stanza saw Garret Vander Ploeg pop in his fourth goal and rookie Kaleb Rowe score his first goal in his first game.
Also making his first appearance this season was Cole Bright. Bright had been the odd man out of the goaltending picture this season, but picked up his first win after making 22 saves. Last year, Bright appeared in 11 games and went 2-5-0 with a 4.86 goals-against average and owned an .890 save percentage.
“Cole wasn’t busy early, but he faced a lot of shots in the third and held his own,” said Bishop. “We gave him a shot to prove his worth and he showed well. We will see how he does this week at practice and (the) coaching staff will make a decision on his next start.”
Busslinger put the Thrashers to bed once and for all in the third, when he sniped his second of the year from Eric Sandum.
The Kings will look to produce a more consistent effort this weekend when they take on the Stettler Lighting (2-5-0) Oct. 19 at the Stettler Recreation Centre, before returning home Oct. 21 to take on the High River Flyers (4-4-1) Oct. 21, in what will be a rematch of last year’s first round playoff series. Puck drop is set for 4:45 p.m.