Salmon Kings Upend Condors in Game 1

April 5, 2011 - ECHL (ECHL)
Victoria Salmon Kings News Release


Victoria, BC- In a Monday night matchup at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, the Victoria Salmon Kings took on the Bakersfield Condors in Game 1 of their best-of-five Western Conference Quarterfinal series. The Salmon Kings looked to David Shantz between the pipes, while the Condors countered with Brian Stewart.

The Salmon Kings came out strong and applied pressure early as they were able to hold the Condors in their own zone for the opening minutes. Victoria held a 7-1 lead in shots after five minutes. Victoria was rewarded with their strong start as Milan Gajic scored the first goal of the Kelly Cup Playoffs at 9:23. Kiel McLeod threw a puck on net from the top of the right circle that made it past Stewart and slid outside of the right post. Gajic was on the doorstep to toe drag the puck around the post and into the net behind Stewart. Victoria continued to dominate the play as they controlled a 22-4 lead in shots after 15 minutes. Bakersfield got a late two man advantage, but strong defensive play limited the Condors to only a couple of shots before the final whistle of the period. The Salmon Kings set a team playoff record with 24 shots in the period as they took their 1-0 lead into the second frame.

Bakersfield's two man advantage carried over from the first period, but the Salmon Kings' penalty killers were able to keep the puck to the outside and successfully kill off both penalties. Victoria gained momentum from the penalty kill as they controlled the play for the next few minutes. On a Salmon Kings power play halfway through the frame, Condors' captain Andrew Ianiero stole the puck in the neutral zone and went in on a breakaway. Ianiero looked to go low glove on Shantz, but fired the put just past the outside of the post. The game's physical edge started to pick up near the end of the period as both teams looked to take control of the game. Victoria kept their 1-0 lead after two periods.

Victoria started the period on the power play and extended their lead 38 seconds in. From the left corner Gajic found Chad Klassen in the slot area. The Salmon Kings forward one-timed the puck between the legs of Stewart for his first professional goal. Near the five minute mark of the period, McLeod drove to the net and bumped into Stewart which resulted in a scrum in front of the crease. Just under a minute later at 5:03, the Salmon Kings stretched their lead while 4-on-4. Off a Condors' turnover in the neutral zone, Rob Hennigar and Chad Painchaud broke in on a 2-on-1. From the left side, Hennigar fired the pass over to Painchaud who one-timed the puck into the open net for his first of the playoffs. Victoria started to shut down the Condors defensively as they limited their scoring opportunities. Bakersfield had one last opportunity to get back in the game as they had a 5-on-3 man advantage for the last minute and a half. The Condors pulled Stewart to give them the three man advantage and Guillaume Lefebvre would tap in a late goal to spoil the shutout. Salmon Kings 3 Condors 1. Victoria leads the best-of-five Western Conference Quarterfinals 1-0.

Victoria went 1/9 = 11.1% on the power play, while Bakersfield was 1/6 = 16.6%. The Salmon Kings outshot the Condors 39-26.

Game 2 of the best-of-five series against Bakersfield goes tomorrow at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. Game time is at 7:05 pm, while the Salmon Kings are offering $5 tickets for the match. The discounted playoff ticket is available to fans in all standard-bowl seating (excluding club seats). There is no maximum of tickets allowed to buy, so make sure to get yours today before they sell out! Fans can purchase the discounted tickets online at www.selectyourtickets.com, in person at the Select Your Tickets Box Office, or over the phone at 250-220-7777. Games 3, 4 and 5 will be played in Bakersfield with Game 3 going this Friday April 8th at the Rabobank Arena. Game time is at 7:00 pm.



ECHL Stories from April 5, 2011


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