The Prince George Spruce Kings were outshot, outscored and outplayed by the Chilliwack Chiefs Saturday night at the Coliseum, yet they still came away with a point in a 2-1 overtime loss.
The Kings are 5-1-0-1 with 11 points to remain atop the B.C. Hockey League's Mainland Division.
The Chiefs are right behind them in second place at 5-1 and 10 points.
Kings' forward Jeremiah Luedtke scored his fourth goal of the season 12 minutes into the first period and Prince George had a 1-0 lead right until the 13:28-mark of the third period.
That's when Chiefs' forward Jake Larson stole the puck at his own blueline while the Kings were on the power play and broke away to put the puck past Prince George netminder Alex Brooks-Potts to draw even.
With the two sides trading scoring chances, the game went into four-on-four overtime.
With 16 seconds left in the extra frame, Chiefs forward Rory Bell scored the winner.
"We just didn't show up," said Kings assistant coach Jason Garneau after Saturday's contest. "We got what we deserved. We got outhit and outscored. Chilliwack is so big and strong. If we're not ready to go, we're going to get beat."
In the end, Brooks-Potts swept aside 36 of 38 shots, while his counterpart at the other end, Aidan Pelino stopped 23 of 24 shots.
It was a different story Friday night when the Kings beat the Chiefs 6-4 in their home-opener. The Kings had a 4-0 lead in the second period, until the Chiefs scored three goals in a span of eight minutes.
"Friday night we just stopped playing for 10 minutes," said Garneau. "Last night (Friday night) was a much better game."
The Kings were 0-4 on the power play Saturday while the Chiefs were 0-5.
Prince George has until Thursday to figure things out when the 2-3-0-1 Langley Rivermen visit the Coliseum Thursday and Friday for a two-game set. The puck drops at 7 p.m.
Ice chips: Karan Toor, the Kings top defenceman, remained out of the lineup on the weekend and will be out for some time, said Garneau. Defenceman Valik Chichkin is on the mend from a shoulder injury. Garneau said his return isn't far away.
