It was Grizzmas time at The Q Centre on Saturday night and Victoria Grizzlies fans had a merry ol’ time watching their team cruise to a 5-1 victory over the Powell River Kings in the final game before the B.C. Hockey League’s Christmas break.
Sporting their special Grizzmas jerseys in front of a crowd of 1,467, the Grizzlies’ offence kicked into high gear late in the first period courtesy their big guns and never looked back.
Owen Bohn opened the scoring with three minutes left in the opening frame, beating Kyle Metson for his sixth goal in the past six games. The California product finished with two points on the night. Bohn’s linemate, fellow 20-year-old Olivier Picard, also did some damage against the Kings.
Picard, who won a Memorial Cup with the Saint John Sea Dogs last spring, scored his team leading 15th and 16th goals of the season, including a power-play marker early in the second that put the Grizzlies up 3-0.
Kings forward Carter McNarland broke Oliver Auyeung-Ashton’s shutout bid at the eight minute mark of the third period. Grizzlies rookie Masen Culley notched his first career BCHL goal midway through the third, and veteran Jack Gorton buried one late in the final period to round out the scoring. Gorton, bound for the NCAA and Boston University in the fall, also chipped in a pair of assists on the night.
Auyeung-Ashton finished with 34 saves to pick up his 10th win of the season. Matson made 40 saves in the Kings’ net.
The win moved the Grizzlies (13-11-2-2) to within three points of Coquitlam for third place in the Coastal Conference and Victoria has two games in hand. Powell River drops to 10-15-1-12.
The Grizzlies and Kings will also kick off the post-Christmas portion of the schedule as the two teams will meet Dec. 30 at The Q Centre.
LOOSE PUCKS: The Grizzlies were minus four forwards on Saturday as Noah Leibl, Luc Pelletier and Jacksenn Hungle all missed the game with injuries, while Cam Smith served a one-game suspension due to a blow-to-the-head penalty in last weekend’s game in Langley. The Grizzlies dressed Vancouver Northeast Chiefs U-18 forward Lucas Baxter as an affiliated player.
