by Morinville News Staff
Following on their opening weekend 12-3 win over the Bonnyville Pontiacs, the Morinville Senior AA Kings pulled off back-to-back wins at home and on the road over the weekend to bring their record to 3-0-0 and a first place spot in the league.
Saturday night’s home opener saw the Kings shutout the Westlock Warriors with a 7-0 win, a tally that was built in a 2, 2 and 3 combo. Four of the Kings seven goals were powerplay goals.
Though the Kings kept the Warriors scoreless, it was not for a lack of trying on Westlock’s part. The Warriors out-chanced Morinville 34-32. Joel Wilson provided the shutout for the Kings.
Sunday saw the Kings face the Sylvan Lake Pirates, a contest they returned from with a 13-5 win.
In that effort, Morinville lead the game 6-1 after one but found themselves with a smaller lead after two with the Pirates rebounding to close the gap to 8-5. As is often the case in a Kings’ game, the Kings poured it on with another five goals to the Pirates none, giving them a 13-5 win.
Early into the season, the Morinville Kings have the top seven players in the NCHL and have 10 players in the top 20.
The Kings’ Mikey Mantello is in the top slot with 13 points, followed by Adam Wilson, Ashton Pietersma, Blake Grainger, Kyle Harris, Cole Cavell, and Jordan Pelletier. Jesse Slodobian and Tim Nolte sit at 11th and 12th spots, and Caleb McGillis holds 20th position.
The Kings play Eckville Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. at home and travel to Whitecourt to face the Wild on the following Saturday.
