Kings retake top league position

By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The Agra Risk Wheatland Kings have catapulted themselves back to the top of the South Division standings, after sweeping a three-game road trip Oct. 3-5. 

Respectively, the Kings took on Okotoks, Coaldale, and Rocky Mountain House, each in their home arenas. 

Head Coach Doug Raycroft said he is happy with the results of the weekend, which bring the Kings back to being tied for the top position within the division.

“All things considered, it’s the beginning of the year with a lot of new players, and a lot of growth still needs to happen, but to be first place and get three wins in a weekend is a pretty good thing,” he said. “Last weekend we played a couple of good teams, and we could have won either one of those games. It fell on the unhappy side of both, so it is good to get the three wins this (past) weekend.”

As the standings currently sit, the Kings are on top of the South Division with a two-point lead over both Cochrane and Coaldale, while in the north, both Sylvan Lake and Red Deer tie the Kings with 10 points apiece. 

Raycroft said several of his returning players are starting to once again find their footing and score more goals, while in the first few weekends, the team struggled to find the back of the net. 

“This weekend, we were able to get some goals. Luke Nottveit got two hat tricks. He got a hat trick on the Saturday, and the Sunday game. It is a lot easier to win when you’ve got some goals being scored,” he said. “We are still not very good in our own end in my opinion. We are going to continue to work on that and we will get better. Right now, it’s next weekend we only have the one game and it is against Sylvan Lake. They are the defending champions, so it will be a big test for us.”

Raycroft said the team must stick to their systems against a team like Sylvan Lake by keeping up communication, moving the puck, defending well, and avoiding taking penalties.

“I thought there was a big step forward this weekend with our leadership group and especially with our captains. They led the way and all of our veterans played pretty well. It sure helps a lot,” added Raycroft. “We really worked hard this week, and sometimes going on the road is a good thing. You spend a lot of time together on the bus and so I think it was good to have that tough week of practice and then to get three wins is kind of a rewarding thing.”

Sylvan Lake will visit the Strathmore Family Centre Arena to challenge the Kings on Oct. 11, with puck drop taking place at 7:45 p.m.