Tag Archives: Dhaliwal

SFU Clan 6, TRU Wolfpack 1

SFU Clan veteran Ben Van Lare scored twice to power the SFU Clan to a 6-1 win in game one of their best of three series against the TRU Wolfpack. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.
SFU Clan veteran Ben Van Lare scored twice to power the SFU Clan to a 6-1 win in game one of their best of three series against the TRU Wolfpack. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.

The SFU Clan opened the 2013 playoffs on Friday night with a convincing 6-1 win over the TRU Wolfpack. Graduating player Ben Van Lare put aside his penchant for assists in winning first star honours, scoring twice including the game-winner.

The Clan dominated this game from the opening face-off, and scored a pair of goals in each period for a complete game performance. The only blemish on the scoresheet for SFU was giving up a power play goal midway through the second period, a surprise given that TRU’s success with the man advantage ran at just 3% against the Clan during the regular season. They scored once in six tries, a goalmouth scramble after a power move into the crease by Duncan Shulz. Going the other way, however, the Wolfpack were forced to take an abundance of penalties as a result of SFU’s dominant puck possession. The Clan power play made them pay, scoring three times on nine chances.

TRU Wolfpack goaltender Shane Mainprize made more than a few great saves, but it was a stretch to expect him to singlehandedly beat the SFU Clan. SFU won the game 6-1. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.
TRU Wolfpack goaltender Shane Mainprize made more than a few great saves, but it was a stretch to expect him to singlehandedly beat the SFU Clan. SFU scored 6 goals on 37 shots to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three playoff series. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.

Unlike the regular season finale, game one of the playoffs featured few defensive breakdowns for the Clan, and the paltry number of opportunities generated by the Wolfpack were fumbled by players that seemed surprised to find themselves in scoring position. Graeme Gordon was credited with 26 saves on the night, but let’s be honest: he faced perhaps three genuine scoring chances during the game, and the shot total really flatters the visiting team. Despite long stretches of inactivity, Gordon was sharp when he had to be, making a huge glove save on Anthony Delong that would have brought the Wolfpack within two goals late in the second period.

Wolfpack goaltender Shane Mainprize made more than a few good stops himself, including one on a subtle little deke by Kody Dhaliwal on a clearcut breakaway early in the third. He was beaten high to the glove several times, however, including twice in the third on a wrister by Dhaliwal and a rocket one-timer by defenseman Mike Ball on a Clan  power play.

Check out the box score here, and don’t mind the fact that the scorekeeper mysteriously left out any and all power play stats. (As mentioned, SFU went 3 for 9, while TRU scored once in six tries.) And here’s Caleb Henry’s summary on the SFU website for good measure.

Game two goes Saturday, March 9 in Kamloops at 8pm PST. Check out www.fasthockey.com for the webcast.

SFU Clan goaltender Graeme Gordon stopped 26 of 27 shots to lead SFU to a 6-1 win in the opening game of the 2013 BCIHL playoffs. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.
SFU Clan goaltender Graeme Gordon stopped 26 of 27 shots to lead SFU to a 6-1 win in the opening game of the 2013 BCIHL playoffs. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.

 

SFU Clan defenseman Mike Ball lit the red light with a rocket of a one-timer just 47 seconds into the third period, as the Clan won their playoff opener 6-1. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.
SFU Clan defenseman Mike Ball lit the red light with a rocket of a one-timer just 47 seconds into the third period, as the Clan won their playoff opener 6-1. Photo by Jason Kurylo for Pucked in the Head.