Either four, or one, of these five sa国际传媒 Hockey League players will be seeing red by the end of this playoff series.
But they will all be in red next season.
It is a compelling aspect of the Victoria Grizzlies/Powell River Kings second-round series that Grizzlies goaltender Matthew Galajda is facing four Kings shooters who will be his teammates next fall in the NCAA with the Big Red of Cornell University.
Two of them, Kyle Betts and Cam Donaldson, scored in the third period Monday night at Hap Parker Arena in Powell River to give the Kings a 2-1 victory as Powell River took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Jamie Rome had given Victoria a 1-0 lead in the second period.
鈥淭his is a tough series. Both teams are playing their best hockey,鈥� said Galajda, 19, of Aurora, Ont.
After a 3-2 Powell River overtime win in Game 1, in which Galajda made 56 saves, he stuffed his future Cornell teammates Betts, Matthew Cairns 鈥� and regular-season 30-plus goal scorers Donaldson and Tristan Mullin 鈥� with a 4-0 shutout in Game 2 on Saturday night at the Q Centre.
Galajda, the BCHL player of the week, made 33 saves on Monday in Powell River.
鈥淚 definitely give those guys the gears,鈥� said Galajda, about the verbal barbs between the five in the Grizzlies-Kings series.
鈥淭his is for bragging rights [next season in the Big Red dressing room].鈥�
About the zingers he gets back from them, he said: 鈥淚 don鈥檛 listen too much.鈥�
Galajda said that of his four future Cornell teammates, he knows Betts a little and the others not well. Not to worry. He has up to four years to do that.
Not to mention that these five will be well acquainted by the time the Grizzlies and Kings get through with each other.
Of the future Cornell five, the spotlight is probably most intense on Galajda because the goaltender鈥檚 role becomes magnified in the playoffs.
鈥淎t this time of year, you just have to play hard, and reset your mind after every goal,鈥� said Galajda.
The fourth game of the series is tonight at 7:30 p.m. in Powell River. The fifth game is Thursday evening at 7 p.m. in the Q Centre. If required, Game 6 will be Saturday at 5 p.m. in Powell River and Game 7 next Monday night at the Q Centre.
鈥淭his [Powell River] is a tough place to play,鈥� Grizzlies head coach Craig Didmon said.
鈥淏oth teams respect each other and are taking nothing for granted, and both have developed their approaches and gotten better.鈥�
From physicality along the boards to scoring touch, the Grizzlies feel they have it all for the playoff slog and can climb back from the Game 3 setback.
鈥淲e can play all different ways,鈥� Didmon said before Monday night鈥檚 game.
鈥淲e have depth and that will help us as this series progresses. We rely on every player.鈥�
Meanwhile, Grizzlies defenceman Brett Stirling returned to the lineup Monday after serving a four-game suspension incurred in Game 3 of the first-round series against the Nanaimo Clippers.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a 20-year-old and we really missed his veteran presence,鈥� Didmon said.
