Terrace River Kings head into holiday break with win over Hazelton

The Terrace River Kings entered the holiday break in high spirits following a goal-filled affair at the Sportsplex on Dec. 18.

Terrace followed up its lowest scoring game (2-1 at Prince Rupert on Dec. 11) by beating the Hazelton Wolverines 9-6 in what was the highest scoring Central Interior Hockey League (CIHL) game so far this season.

Steve Cullis recorded a third period hat trick and was one of six players on the home team that had multi-point games. The game also marked the Teddy Bear Toss, where fans thew stuffed animals onto the ice for local charities after Colin Bell scored the River Kings’ first goal.

So far this year, the River Kings have been finding the back of the net with ease, having scored both eight and nine goals in a game twice. Terrace leads the league with 60 goals in total, averaging more than six per game.

But the team’s six goals allowed versus Hazelton were the most so far this season. Prior to Saturday, the most the River Kings have conceded in a game were three goals on Nov. 13 versus the Nechako Northstars.

Heading into the holiday break, Terrace’s Robert Orrey leads the CIHL in goals with 10, followed by Hunter Johnson (Prince Rupert, eight goals) and Eli Jarvis (Quesnel, seven goals).

Two Terrace players — Colin Bell and Ryan Roseboom — are ahead of the pack in total points. Bell has 18 (five goals, 13 assists) and Roseboom has 17 (six goals, 11 assists). Hunter Johnson and Nechako’s Kyler Boucher are tied for third in CIHL scoring with 13 points each.

Terrace’s next game is in Williams Lake on Saturday, Jan. 8, at 7:30 p.m. The River Kings next play at home is scheduled for Jan. 15 at 7 p.m. versus the Prince Rupert Rampage.

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