A long travel day thanks to a broken-down bus and wind-delayed ferry left the Victoria Grizzlies vulnerable when the puck dropped at Hap Parker Arena in Powell River, and the Kings took full advantage.
The Kings got Josh Cobenz and Ethan Kimball goals 17 seconds apart just three minutes into the game en route to a 5-2 victory over the visiting Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies were 20 minutes outside of Langford when their bus stopped working on the Malahat and a new one had to be called in to replace it. The delay left the Grizzlies hurrying to catch the ferry to get to Powell Rive River in time, and they just made it, but windy conditions on the water left several players asking for Gravol to get them to the other side.
Two quick goals by the Kings in the second period chased Kurtis Chapman from the Grizzlies鈥� net as he was replaced by Zack Rose. Levi Glasman added a power-play goal for the Kings with under two minutes to go in the second before Riley Hughes broke Mitch Adamyk鈥檚 shutout bid with 55 seconds left in the middle period.
Hughes, a 2018 seventh-round draft pick of the New York Rangers, added his second of the night midway through the third. Alex Campbell chipped in two assists for the Grizzlies.
Chapman stopped 13 of the 17 shots before exiting, while Rose stopped all but one of the 14 shots he faced. Adamyk made 25 saves for the win.
The victory moves the Kings (26-16-1-0) to within three points of the Island Division-leading Grizzlies (27-14-0-2).
The teams will go at it again Saturday at 5 p.m. at Hap Parker Arena.
