They do so with Jesse King back in the lineup as the Shamrocks are also at home Friday evening to the Burnaby Lakers then scoot back out on the road to Coquitlam to tackle the Adanacs on Saturday.
鈥淲e want that first-place spot, as usual, so winning out the rest of the season is pretty important,鈥� King said of the 9-4 Shamrocks, who are three-time defending WLA victors and 2015 Mann Cup champions.
Coming off a 12-10 loss in Burnaby last Friday, the Shamrocks will benefit from King鈥檚 return as he bounces back and forth with the Rochester Rattlers of Major League Lacrosse. In his two outings with Victoria, King has scored four goals in each.
鈥淗e makes everybody better and gives everyone else more space to do things,鈥� Shamrocks head coach Bob Heyes said of King. 鈥淎t times he can be a one-man wrecking crew out there, but he鈥檚 also not a guy to hold on to the ball. He can dish it out and he plays both ends of the floor. He can be counted on to do so much.鈥�
To be playoff eligible, King needs to get into four regular-season games. The just-turned 24-year-old has eight goals and six assists in his two appearances so it鈥檚 obvious he still has that chemistry with his teammates.
鈥淚t鈥檒l be my first home game on Friday, so I鈥檓 excited to play again in front of family. I love playing here,鈥� said King. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really important to get back in the flow. I鈥檓 trying to get into as many games as I can towards the end of the season and, hopefully, playing a little more to get that chemistry going.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 too much of a problem for us. It鈥檚 my third full year now and playing with guys like Corey [Small], Rhys [Duch] and Jeff [Shattler] the last three or four years. It gets easier to jump into a lineup with such talented players,鈥� he added.
鈥淚t鈥檚 easier jumping into a lineup like that, with such talented veteran players, than maybe going in and out of my Georgia lineup where we were younger,鈥� said King, who also plays pro with the Georgia Swarm of National Lacrosse League in the winter.
鈥淎 lot of guys are veterans and they鈥檝e been to the games where everyone wants to get to. We鈥檙e at a point where people understand each other. We understand each other鈥檚 tendencies and that鈥檚 really important, especially in this last little stretch.鈥�
It鈥檚 a stretch where Heyes wants to see his team become more playoff prepared.
鈥淥ne more win and we鈥檙e in. It鈥檚 all about placement,鈥� said Heyes, who would like to have home-floor advantage throughout. 鈥淚f we can win out we can get first place, but we鈥檒l see where that all ends. It鈥檚 about playing the right type of lacrosse heading into playoffs.
鈥淭he loss in Burnaby is one of those things where we have to learn how to play through stuff and be mentally stronger.鈥�
The Shamrocks were delayed in arriving in Burnaby in the loss as the bus driver took a wrong turn and the team ended up in major traffic issues on a Friday.
鈥淔or all we went through, we only ended up losing by a goal and an empty-netter. We were only down 4-3 after the first period, we just didn鈥檛 come out ready in the second period,鈥� said Heyes. 鈥淭here are still a lot of little things to tighten up on.
鈥淲e鈥檙e nowhere close to being championship ready. Playoff ready? We鈥檙e getting there, for sure.鈥�
