by JASON PETERS
Courtesy Prince George Citizen 

The Prince George Spruce Kings went looking for game-breakers at the B.C. Hockey League trade deadline. Early indications are, the search was a success after the Spruce Kings beat the Westside Warriors 4-3 Friday night at the Coliseum. The game swung dramatically in Prince George’s favour in the last half of the second period. With the teams tied 1-1, the Spruce Kings reeled off three consecutive goals, one on the power play by Alain Joanette and two shorthanded by Tyler Helfrich. Both players became Kings on Wednesday, Joanette acquired from the Bancroft Hawks of Ontario and Helfrich picked up from the Fort McMurray Oil Barons.

Alain Joanette (8) scores his first

Tyler Helfrich (15) with the wrap-around goal

Joanette, perhaps the best player on the ice with his speed and playmaking, beat Westside goalie Stephen Caple with a laser of a wrist shot from the slot after a give-and-go with Curt Morrison. Then, just over four minutes later, while Morrison was in the penalty box serving a double roughing sentence, Helfrich surprised Caple with a wraparound goal after creating a turnover behind the Warriors’ net. With the Warriors still licking their wounds, Helfrich struck again 26 seconds later when he faked a shot and slipped the puck five-hole on Caple.

“It was a good way to get us going,” said the 19-year-old Helfrich, who led the Oil Barons in scoring at the time of the trade (18 goals, 32 assists). “We were kind of sitting there, laid back a little bit. It was just fortunate bounces and you make the most of them.

“It felt great (to score),” he added. “I was pretty nervous, first game here. I wanted to look good, wanted to do the simple things — get pucks out, get pucks deep — and I just happened to get two bounces and made the most of them. I’ve never scored a shorthanded goal before, so two in one shift is a little new to me.”

Forward Jason Yuel and goaltender Jordan White also made their debuts with the Spruce Kings Friday night. Yuel, who was captain of the Winnipeg Saints before coming to Prince George, was not as prominent on the score sheet but gave a solid two-way performance. White, the former backup for the Prince George Cougars, also got the job done. He looked poised and confident for most of the game and made his best stop while the Kings were clinging to the 4-3 lead. With 20 seconds to go, while the Warriors had their goalie on the bench for the extra attacker, Tommy Grant found himself alone at the bottom of the right faceoff circle. Grant fired a wrist shot but White, with a left pad save, turned him away to preserve the win.

“I didn’t see (the shot) until the last second,” White said. “I just tried to throw my leg down there, tried to get something on it. Luckily he shot right into my pad. I think (a save like that) helps the team. It shows that even though I’m a new guy here, I can keep the door shut.”

Kings coach and general manager Ed Dempsey was happy to see that all four of the new Kings contributed to the win.

“Tyler had two very nice shorthanded goals and A.J. (Joanette) had a very nice goal on the power play,” Dempsey said. “And I thought Yuel played well throughout the night and Jordan saved us at least a point with a game-winning save there at the end. I was happy with the way all four guys played.”

The Kings took their 4-1 lead into the third period but Trevor Bailey and Chris Vassos pulled the Warriors back within one goal. Bailey’s marker came on a backhander at the 5:12 mark and Vassos scored at 18:52 after a point shot by Taylor Reid started the play.

The Kings were fired up to start the game. Just 55 seconds into the contest, Dylan Exton got them on the scoreboard after finishing off a rush with Jordan Inglis. But four penalties before the game was eight minutes took away some of the Kings’ momentum. Aggressive penalty-killing kept the Warriors from tying the game, and so did the play of White.

Special teams were a big part of the first period. The Warriors were handed five power plays in the opening 20 minutes and the Kings were awarded four. Prince George, with quick puck movement, looked dangerous on the power play but kept having shots blocked by sprawling Warriors. Both teams ended up 1-for-8 on the power play.

The Kings improved to 20-14-1-4 on the season and moved seven points ahead of the Warriors (15-18-2-6) in the Interior Conference. The Kings face the Williams Lake Timberwolves tonight at the Coliseum (7 p.m.) and play the Warriors again Sunday at 3 p.m.

This article originally appeared in the January 13, 2007 edition of the Prince George Citizen and was reproduced here with the permission of the newspaper.