Tag Archives: Haden Parker

Coach Toneff Reaction To Recent Games

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The Comox Valley Glacier Kings played in a couple of really tight games last Thursday and Saturday. On Thursday, they travelled to Victoria and dropped a 2-0 decision to the Cougars before driving to Parksville on Saturday and coming out with a 4-2 come from behind victory. It was a couple of solid performances and gives hope that this club can play with the better teams in this league. They have proven it in the past beating Peninsula once, Westshore twice, Oceanside 3 times and Nanaimo once. The Glacier Kings have been playing a physical, defensive style that has been working. The team may not have its full chemistry yet with all the changes they’ve made but they are having good efforts and are really backing up each other as well.

They may not have won on Thursday but playing a team who is one of the best in the league and coming within a disallowed goal late in the 3rd period of going into overtime is a real accomplishment. It was definitely a disappointment not coming away with any points but it also showed the fight in this team. Head coach/GM Curtis Toneff liked some things and wasn’t crazy about other aspects in that contest, “For not playing in about 12 days, going into a tough building against a very good hockey club, to keep it 0-0 until the ten minute mark of the third period or whenever that goal was scored, I thought it showed that we took pride in defending. It showed in our effort, blocking shots and doing the things you need to do to be successful. I didn’t love our willingness and ability to go to the inside part of the ice in the offensive zone. Maybe it was just a product of not having those game reps the last number of days before because of the all-star break. That was addressed but overall we did a good job. I think Victoria is a very high-end team. If they (Victoria) would have just hit a couple more pucks they would have had more chances for success. They decided to make one or two extra passes all night. I would have been frustrated coaching that kind of talent just to be that fancy. It made our life easier in the long run.” The Cougars had 8 different goal scorers in their 10-0 win last night. Joseph Melichar continues to be the league’s best player.

As for Saturday’s game, Comox made up their minds that they were going to be physical. That same approach was taken by the Oceanside Generals and it made for some good old-time hockey. The fans got their money’s worth no matter which side they were cheering for. This is as close as a series can be with each team winning 3 games. This is also a possible playoff match up come end-February. Coach Toneff said his guys played with some spirit, “It was kind of a strange game, it was an emotional game for our team in a good way. We wanted those 2 points. A couple times it got intense on the bench and in the room with guys holding each other accountable. To give up a goal with 0.6 seconds left in a period, you can’t let that tell the story for the rest of the night. We come back to tie it and get the winner from an unsung hero like (Haden) Parker was a good sign. I thought our quote-unquote 4th line was really good the last two games. That was Mateo Morro, Gavin Munro and Cohen Kallin like we were talking before before we started recording, just their buy-in to their role, creating a little bit of energy, establishing some trust and us putting them out there in some certain situations was nice to see.” Between Oceanside’s loss, and Nanaimo’s win over Saanich yesterday, the Gens now find themselves in second place in the North.

Now that the weekend is over, it’s back to practice this week for the Yeti. There will no doubt be some bumps and bruises after Saturday’s game and some of the players may need a couple days off. Curtis talked about the week of practice ahead, “I made today’s practice optional, it’s a skills day. Guys can be there or they can take another day of rest, it’s up to them. We’re going to have a really good battle day tomorrow to get us back in that mindset. Systems on Wednesday and Thursday as well as special teams leading up to two really hard hockey games this weekend.” Those 2 games he is talking about are going to be against Peninsula and Victoria, a couple powerhouses to say the least.

With only 9 games left in the regular season, it appears that Comox will finish either 3rd or 4th unless Nanaimo or Oceanside have a complete collapse. It appears any team can beat any team in the North so it may not matter who finishes 3rd and who ends up 4th. You have to make it into the playoffs first and the Glacier Kings magic number to clinch is down to 5 (any combination of Comox wins and Port Alberni losses).

Darryl Skender

Glacier Kings Win In Overtime

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The Comox Valley Glacier Kings got a much needed win on Saturday night as they downed the Oceanside Generals 3-2 in overtime. It was a fun game to watch with a lot of chances and great goaltending. The loss snaps the Glacier Kings two game losing streak and as well, the Gens winning streak ends at two. Oceanside actually came back from a 2-0 deficit midway through the second period but was never able to take the lead.

The Glacier Kings got the scoring started when Leon Mikhalchuk carried the puck over the offensive blue line on an oddman rush. He centered it into the slot where Tegan Clayton had his shot blocked but Winston Churchill got to the loose puck first and fired it past Andreas Bylerius to make it 1-0.

Silas Dromarsky made a nice save on Rykan Lay who was sent in on a breakaway late in the opening period and then another exciting play took place as time was winding down. Jacob Bate came in on a breakaway, went forehand-backhand and beat Dromarsky as the buzzer sounded. It was originally called a good goal by the referee but then after all 4 officials huddled they waived it off which was a good call. You can see the green light come on just before Bate backhands it.

 

The period ended 1-0 for the home side. Shots were 7-2 for the home team.

In the second period, Comox extended their lead to 2-0. Shortly after after Dromarsky robbed Levi Green, Leon Mikhalchuk got the puck in the Oceanside corner and passed puck to the circle to Tegan Clayton and his shot dribbled past Bylerius.

The Generals didn’t fold the tent however. Their captain Levi Green blocked a shot and Oceanside came the other way on a 2 on 1 which was executed perfectly. Ryken Lay slid the puck over to Kaiden Day who made no mistake putting it into the open net.

The middle stanza concluded with a 2-1 lead for the Yeti. The shots were 9-8 in favor of the Glacier Kings.

Early in the third, Lincoln Bueckert got possession of the puck along the goal line in the GKings end and slid it across the ice to a wide open Jacob Bate to tie the game at two.

Comox Valley took a penalty halfway through the period and Maxim Lefebvre saved a goal by hitting the stick of Jacob Leamy who had a sure goal after a puck deflected straight to him. The Generals dominated the last part of the period but couldn’t beat Dromarsky who was outstanding. The contest needed overtime. Shots were 12-6 for the Gens.

The winning goal came early in the extra period. Haden Parker left the puck at the top of his own circle for Cameron Collins and he did the rest. The 18 year old Comox native went end to end splitting between two defenders inside the offensive blue line and beat Bylerius up high with a backhand shot to make the final 3-2.

The win improves Comox Valley’s record to 8-9-2-1 for 19 points as they remain tied for 4th place with Port Alberni who also won. Their next game is Wednesday in Saanich. The point that Oceanside gained in the loss moves their line to 11-8-1-0 which actually puts them into a tie for first place with Nanaimo in the North. The Generals are off until next Saturday when they host the Bucs.

Other Observations:

  • The win was the Glacier Kings first in extra time this season. In their previous 3 games that went past the 3rd period they were 0-0-2-1.
  • Cameron Collins OT winner extended his points streak to 4 games (2G, 2A).
  • Kaiden Day now has points in 5 of his last 6 games (2G, 5A).
  • The Yeti haven’t scored a PP goal in 4 straight games.
  • Silas Dromarsky was really good and most likely earned himself another start in the very near future.
  • GKings are now a perfect 7-0-0-0 when leading after the 1st and 7-1-0-0 when leading after 40 minutes.
  • There was a penalty in the 2nd period you don’t see often as Zaya Morro tried playing the puck with a broken stick (no blade) and went off for 2 minutes for “Ineligible Player.”
  • Comox is back to .500 at home (3-3-1-1)
  • Leon Mikhalchuk has points in 8 of his last 9 games (5G, 5A).
  • The 2 shots the Glacier Kings gave up in the 1st period is fewest they’ve allowed in a period all season.
  • Comox Valley did their annual Remembrance Day ceremony. Well done by the organization and thank you to all our Veterans and active duty members. You are the real heroes. God bless you!

Darryl Skender

Faceoffs & Unsung Heroes

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The Comox Valley Glacier Kings started the season losing their first 4 games, 3 in regulation for a variety of reasons. There’s a lot of little things in a hockey game that can mount and become bigger things and eventually will decide if you win or lose. Faceoffs can be that important and in some of the Glacier Kings losses did have a big impact. They were losing the majority of the draws. Sometimes it can stand out brightly if you lose a faceoff in your defensive zone and get scored on immediately. But it can also be a lot more subtle than that. Every time you lose a faceoff, you lose a chance at possession of the puck. It can also be a lost chance if you’re at the offensive zone dot. It is especially key after you take a penalty. The faceoff is in your own zone and if you can win it and clear the puck down the ice, you’ve just killed 20 seconds of being shorthanded before the opposition can get control inside your own blue line so the power play goes from being 2:00 to 1:40.

Since the very start of the season, faceoffs have gotten significantly better and so has the team’s play. It has meant more possessions in a game and they have actually scored a few times right from winning the draw in the offensive zone. A glaring example was in the club’s last game. Westin Churchill won the faceoff back to Leon Mikhalchuk, his shot was stopped but Churchill buried the rebound. That’s just one instance. I asked Head Coach/GM Curtis Toneff if his team has been practicing that art, “Ya we actually do. We’ve worked on it, we’ve talked about it. One night we were in Saanich in Game 2 or Game 3 of the season, I actually brought in my old assistant coach Sam Waterfield and he brought all the centers in because he was always good on faceoffs when we were in Merritt. It’s maybe one of my weaknesses as a coach. I am not an expert so I figured I’d bring in someone that knows more than I do to help the boys. They’ve all seemed to take a thing or two that he said and use it to their advantage. That’s kudos to the players to take it all in seriously and take pride in their faceoffs. I know (Isaac) Dunsire has come a long way, (Ethan) Gobel’s good, (Landon) Morris has been good and then (Westin) Churchill has shuffled back to center for now so same thing for him.” If that trend can continue, more wins should be on the horizon.

Something that separates good teams from not-so good teams are star players obviously. However, if you look deeper into a roster, good teams will also have players who are not talked about as much as the stars that score a lot of goals or the goalie that has a great Goals Against Average. In hockey we call them Unsung Heroes. They are guys that don’t get a lot of attention because they are good at their job. The old saying goes that an official is good in a football game if nobody notices them. They are not stealing the show, the players are. Well, in hockey you need players that aren’t in the spotlight but are very effective at what their job is. That’s how you win games, especially if you’re not an offensively gifted team like Comox. The Yeti rely on guys like this to help win games. Coach Toneff talked about it, “Two guys kind of come to mind that don’t get a lot of credit since I’ve been here. Haden Parker and Landen May are hard to play against. They’re not guys that as an opposition, are a lot of fun to go on a rush against. They have long sticks, Landen can bully guys a little in the corner and get in their heads. Just their little bit of extra length I think. It helps us defend. It (shots) sometimes goes off their toe or their butt in the corner and we live to fight another day. I think that when we were missing Landen last Wednesday in the third period, it became noticeable on the scoreboard. With Parksie, he’s been pretty consistent all year. Those are guys that don’t jump off the screen. Maybe me being an ex-defenceman, you appreciate them more. I think we do as coaches and I think our team does as well.” It is not by accident that he named a couple of defenceman. May has 2 assists in 15 games while Parker has 1 helper in 15 games. They are both big bruising defencemen that keep opposing forwards honest and are not afraid to get in the dirty areas. That doesn’t show up on the score sheet but does score points with teammates and the coaches.

That’s it for today. I’m about to turn the Blue Jays game on. I love texting back and forth with owner Marsha Webb during the games. She loves the Jays as much as I do and we are both quite opinionated lol. As for the Glacier Kings, they’re next action is next Friday night in Lake Cowichan.

Darryl Skender