The Prince George Spruce Kings knew they'd found a good one when they landed defenceman Tyler Anderson.
To get his rights they had to give up a proven scorer and fan favourite, homegrown forward Braiden Epp, whom they sent to the West Kelowna Warriors in a one-for-one trade in late September. Since then, the 20-year-old Anderson has done nothing but thrive as one of the go-to guys on the Spruce Kings blueline.
When he arrived after helping the Warriors capture the RBC Cup as junior A hockey national champions last season, Anderson brought a winning attitude, strong skating stride, big-league shot and physical nature and has become the Spruce Kings' top defenceman.
He's having a career year with the Kings as their second-leading scorer with 18 goals, 30 assists and 48 points in 53 games played and that's earned Anderson the attention of B.C. Hockey League coaches, who picked him as the Mainland Division's representative for the BCHL's top defenceman award.
"Tyler dictates the flow of hockey games," said Spruce Kings general manager Mike Hawes. "He's a big six-foot-four, 220-pound guy with a bit of a mean streak and he shoots the puck like Shea Weber. He's difficult to play against."
Anderson is one of three finalists for the award, announced Thursday by the league, along with Jake Stevens of the Victoria Grizzlies and Michael Ufberg of the Vernon Vipers, the respective Island and Interior Division choices.
Hawes and the Spruce Kings stated their case for Brett Mennear as a league MVP candidate but the coaches decided on Wenatchee Wild centre Brendan Harris as the Mainland Division nominee for the Vern Dye Memorial Trophy. Harris is running away with the BCHL scoring race with 23 goals and 96 points in 53 games.
The Spruce Kings (24-25-4-2, fourth in Mainland) wrap up the regular season with a three-game, three-night tour that takes them to Coquitlam tonight, Langley on Saturday and Chilliwack on Sunday. The Kings are coming off a 4-0 loss Monday in Langley after a 3-2 double-overtime victory the previous night against the Chilliwack Chiefs. The win over the second-overall Chiefs was the second for Prince George this season and it was a confidence-builder.
"We had been in Chilliwack a week earlier and didn't have a good result (a 7-3 Prince George loss Feb. 4), so for the group to show some resiliency and gut that victory out while missing some key pieces in our lineup during that game is certainly a credit to the guys," said Hawes.
"We're sitting a game under .500 and I would like to see us win at least two of the three this weekend and that would give us a little momentum heading into the playoffs."
The Spruce Kings will face the league-leading Wild in the first round of playoffs, a best-of-seven series which starts Saturday, March 4 in Wenatchee. Game 2 will be March 5 with the series resuming in Prince George with Games 3 and 4 the following Tuesday and Wednesday at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena. If a Game 5 is needed, it would be played Friday, March 10 in Prince George, with Games 6 and 7 (if needed) in Wenatchee.
"They've been dominant and we've been doing our homework the last two weeks trying to find a couple areas we can exploit with their team," said Hawes. "They're a strong team in every aspect so it's going to take a full effort from our group to have any success against them in the playoffs, but we're up to it. We've got a group that's proven we can play with any team in our league."
Goalie Tavin Grant is healthy again after missing seven games with a hamstring injury. Grant, who just turned 19, is expected to get the start tonight in Coquitlam, but injuries remain an issue for the Kings.
Defenceman Connor Russell, 20, dislocated his shoulder last weekend in the Chilllwack game and will be sidelined for at least four weeks. Winger Ethan de Jong, 17, who shared the team's top rookie award with defenceman Liam Watson-Brawn, is still nursing a shoulder injury sustained Jan. 25 in the CJHL Prospects Game in Cornwall, Ont. De Jong could be back in time for the playoffs. Right winger Tanner Campbell, 19, hurt his knee in practice last week and he is not on the trip this weekend. The Kings will also be without 20-year-old winger Chong Hyun Lee, who is playing an international tournament this week in his native South Korea.
Affiliate player Chong Min Lee, 17, is with the Kings the rest of the season now that his junior B season with the Port Moody Panthers is finished. Forward Ethan Leyh, 15, a University of Wisconsin recruit, has been called up from the Vancouver Northeast Chiefs. He's the fourth-leading scorer in the B.C. Hockey Major Midget League with 30 goals and 58 points in 32 games.
LOOSE PUCKS: Playoff tickets are now on sale at the Spruce Kings' office at RMCA... The team is hosting its annual spring prospects camp, April 7-9. Registration is available online at sprucekings.bc.ca.
