Its been some start to the year for the Kamloops Blazers. Since the calendar flipped to 2020, the Blazers have won eight consecutive games and outscored their opponents 49-11 in that stretch.
Before diving into the offensive surge behind the streak, it’s worth noting the context of a few of these games. Game two was against a Victoria Royals squad at the tail end of its road trip. Games six and seven brought a banged-up Tri-City group into town where 16-year-old rookie Mason Dunsford started both games in goal and took the brunt of the losses.
With that said, the Blazers weren’t exactly firing on all cylinders either. Draft-eligible Connor Zary missed two games due to the Top Prospects Game in Hamilton, Ontario. Starting goaltender Dylan Garand — who joined Zary in Hamilton — missed three Blazers games. Ryan Hughes missed the first four games in 2020 with a nagging ankle injury, while 19-year old forward Ryley Appelt has missed the last four games with his own ailments.
Regardless of the personnel, this eight-game streak has put the Blazers on the map. Here’s a look at the numbers.
Special Teams
With the man advantage, the Blazers went 15-for-40 — a 37.5 percent rate over the eight games. Overall, their 26.1 percent conversion rate is third-best in the WHL. They’ve also had the most power-play opportunities (212) and goals (55) in the league.
Orrin Centazzo and Zane Franklin have 12 power-play goals apiece, tied for first in the WHL with Ryan Chyzowski of the Medicine Hat Tigers. Zary’s 11 goals on the man advantage are tied with Spokane’s Adam Beckman for second-most. Max Martin and Zane Franklin lead the WHL with 23 power-play assists each.
On the penalty kill, the Blazers haven’t conceded a single goal on the opposition’s 21 power-play opportunities in 2020. At 88.7 percent, their penalty kill leads the WHL while their eight shorthanded goals are tied for second-most with Calgary. Zary’s three shorthanded goals on the season put him in a tie for first place with four other individuals.
Pucks on Net
The Blazers have fired a whopping 353 shots on net during the eight-game winning streak, an average of 44.1 per game. Perhaps even more impressive is the 173 shots they allowed on Rayce Ramsay and Dylan Garand. Those 21.6 shots per game have limited the opposition to just 11 goals since January 3rd.
After Garand won the first four games of January, Ramsay replaced the 17-year-old starter and went 3-0, including his third shutout of the season. Garand then returned to action on Sunday afternoon against the Vancouver Giants and recorded a 24-save shutout, his third of the season.
Despite missing those three games, Garand continues to lead the league in minutes played with 2,044. The Victoria, B.C., product is also tied for first in wins with Portland’s Joel Hofer at 24 apiece.
Takin’ Care of Business
Rob Brown? Greg Hawgood? Is that you guys? The Blazers have averaged over six goals per game during their winning streak. Their 191 goals in 44 games (4.34 per game) lead the WHL while their 106 goals against (2.4 per game) are the second-fewest behind Portland’s 103.
Franklin — who’s recorded five goals and 17 points during the streak — leads the WHL with 72 points, four more than his career-best set last season.
Led by three consecutive three-point games, Zary has tallied 12 points in his last five and sits fifth in overall scoring. Centazzo — whose 33 goals are tied for the league lead with Beckman — has accumulated 13 points during the eight-game streak. Josh Pillar and Brodi Stuart provided more than enough depth as each forward has posted eight points in January.
Have we mentioned Logan Stankoven yet? The 16-year old rookie has five goals and 12 points in the last eight games. Head coach Shaun Clouston likes what he’s seen from the Kamloops native since the Christmas break.
“He must have had a great break; he’s been a different player since then. He’s playing with lots of jump and doing a much better job playing away from the puck. He’s really starting to grow his game and it’s really exciting to think about the future and what he could do for his team.”
Blue Line, Rookies “Chipping in”
After a slow start offensively, Quinn Schmiemann has tacked on seven points during the winning streak. Schmiemann’s defensive partner — 20-year old Max Martin — has put together a tidy 14 points in the last eight games. His 46 points on the season — a career-high — lead all WHL defensemen in scoring.
Caedan Bankier, Matthew Seminoff, and Reese Belton all enjoyed their first multi-point games over the weekend. After going scoreless in his first 25 games, Belton recorded goals on back-to-back nights
Standings Watch
Things sure change in a hurry in the B.C. Division. Both the Victoria Royals and Kelowna Rockets were within six points of Kamloops at the beginning of the new year. After closing the gap on the Blazers, Victoria took a step back with consecutive losses against the Giants this past weekend.
Kelowna — decimated by injuries to key players including Roman Basran, Kyle Topping, and Nolan Foote to name a few — has gone 4-9-0-0 since December 18th.
What does this all mean? The Blazers are 10 points up on the Royals who hold one game in hand on Kamloops. The Memorial Cup hosting Rockets, meanwhile, are 18 points back of Kamloops and three points ahead of the Giants. Vancouver — who currently occupies the first wild card spot — has two games in hand on Kelowna.
Buckle up
Things are about to get interesting. Of the 24 games remaining on the Blazers schedule, 17 are against B.C. Division opponents.
