Brayden Gelsinger has always been the Victoria Grizzlies鈥� top offensive player this season, but Friday night at The Q Centre the 20-year-old from Regina had a little extra jump in his step.
And it was a good thing.
A day after accepting a scholarship offer from the NCAA鈥檚 Lake Superior State Lakers, Gelsinger scored his 14th, 15th and 16th goals of the season to lead the Grizzlies to a 5-3 victory over the Powell River Kings.
The win moves the Grizzlies (15-20-4-0) three points up on fifth-place Alberni Valley in the battle for the final playoff spot in the Island Division.
鈥淲e were fresh from the break, and we came out and played a very strong hockey game,鈥� said Grizzlies GM/coach Craig Didmon, whose club had a 19-day layoff over the Christmas break.
鈥淲e saw a little rust, but that鈥檚 to be expected. But I thought we were the better team tonight so that was good to see.鈥�
Because Gelsinger played 14 WHL games for the Kamloops Blazers when he was 16 years old, he will have to red shirt (can practise but not play games) for a portion of next season before officially becoming a Laker.
鈥淭he NCAA will come up with a ruling [regarding WHL games and NCAA eligibility], but I鈥檓 hoping I won鈥檛 have to red shirt for long and can join them as soon as possible,鈥� said Gelsinger, who now has a team-leading 46 points.
鈥淚 researched Lake Superior a lot and talked to the coaches, and it looks like a really good program and I鈥檓 really excited about the opportunity.鈥�
Playing their first game since the lengthy Christmas break, the Grizzlies came out flying and took the lead just eight minutes into the game, when Gelsinger buried a nice feed from Dante Hahn.
Cole Pickup, with his 13th of the season, scored just two minutes into the second. Six minutes later Gelsinger struck again, this time beating Kings netminder Jeff Smith on a breakaway as the Grizzlies looked to be pulling away.
But in a 13-second span in the middle of the second, the Kings (22-15-2-0) showed why they鈥檙e in second spot in the Island Division and coming off back-to-wins over division-leading Nanaimo. Kyle Betts and Liam Lawson beat Grizzlies goalie Matthew Galajda with quick back-to-back goals, and now the game was really on.
Pickup relieved some of the pressure early in the third with his second of the night. But the Kings refused to go quietly and Betts added a shorthanded goal midway through the period.
However, Gelsinger iced it with an empty-netter with 20 seconds left.
鈥淏rayden locked up his scholarship and you can just see it takes that monkey off his back, and he told me before the game he鈥檚 ready now to take this team to the next level,鈥� said Didmon.
Gelsinger is the first Grizzlies player to commit to an NCAA school this season.
鈥淚t鈥檚 nice to get the scholarship, and now I just want to help this team go on a long playoff run and have as much success as possible,鈥� he said.
The Grizzlies have today off before hosting Langley on Sunday at 2 p.m.
LOOSE PUCKS: Class Act: After the game, the two teams presented autographed sticks to the family of the late Reid Kyfiuk, the teenager who died last month after a snowboarding accident on Mount Washington. 鈥� Following Sunday鈥檚 game, the Grizzlies hit the road for four games, beginning Tuesday in Duncan against Cowichan Valley.
