Karan Toor came out for the Prince George Spruce Kings on the weekend, providing an offensive spark the team has desperately needed.
The sophomore defenceman notched the winning goal - his first in the B.C. Hockey League - in Friday's 3-2 win in Coquitlam against the Express and scored his second goal and set up the winner in overtime Sunday as the Spruce Kings once again beat the Express 4-3.
The Spruce Kings (5-3-0-1) were perfect on their three-game road trip, which vaulted them into first place in the Mainland division. Saturday the Spruce Kings beat the Chilliwack Chiefs 2-1. Jake LeBrun broke a 1-1 draw midway through the third period with his team-leading eighth goal of the season to give the Spruce Kings their second win this year over the Chiefs.
Other than the LeBrun, Bryan Christian and Brent Lashuk line, the Spruce Kings have had trouble finding the back of the net this season, losing three games despite outshooting their opponents by about a two-to-one margin.
On Sunday, in their return matinee game in Coquitlam, defenceman Skylar Pacheco gave the Spruce Kings a 1-0 lead, but the Express answered right back with a pair of goals from Canon Pieper and Corey Mackin less than two minutes apart to carry a 2-1 advantage into the first intermission.
A shorthanded goal by Toor was the only marker of the second frame. Mitch Eden and LeBrun picked up the assists. For LeBrun it was his third assist of the season after recording two in Friday's win over the Express. Another Spruce Kings defender, Christian Weidauer, gave the team a 3-2 lead early in the third period, but it didn't take long for the Express to tie the game again as Ryan Rosenthal beat Prince George goalie Alex Murray about four minutes later.
The teams played the remaining 14 minutes of regulation and the first five-minute overtime period without settling anything. Then 29 seconds into the three-on-three second five-minute overtime period, Christian potted the winner off a pass from Toor.
Murray was outstanding in the Spruce Kings' net stopping 36 of 40 shots the Express fired, especially in the second and third periods when they peppered him with 30 shots in a desperate attempt to salvage a weekend split. The 20-year-old goaltender also picked up the win in Chilliwack after Jesse Jenks shone in the Spruce Kings' 3-2 win Friday.
The Spruce Kings return home for a pair of games this weekend at the Coliseum as the Vernon Vipers are in Prince George on Friday, 7 p.m. and the Victoria Grizzlies are in town Saturday, 7 p.m. After the visit from the Grizzlies the Spruce Kings have a six-game road trip, spanning two weekends, before they host the Merritt Centennials on October 24.
