2007 RBC Cup

KODIAKS STAY UNDEFEATED WITH WIN OVER STEELERS

The Camrose Kodiaks remained the only undefeated team at the 2007 RBC Royal Bank Cup on Monday, getting a goal and an assist apiece from Scott Kobialko and Player of the Game Joe Colborne in a 3-1 win over the Selkirk Steelers at CN Centre.

The Kodiaks came out the gate flying, outshooting the West Region champions 20-6 in the opening 20 minutes. Kobialko opened the scoring just past the eight-minute mark, batting home the puck after Colborne was stopped on a partial breakaway by Steelers goaltender Andrew Leslie.

Colborne pushed the lead to two just five minutes later, finishing off a beautiful three-way passing play, with Kobialko and Evan Oberg picking up the assists on a Camrose powerplay.

Brent Hawes got the Steelers to within a goal within the last two minutes of the opening period, beating Camrose goaltender Allen York from a sharp angle to give his team some life.

The Kodiaks again controlled the play in the middle frame, outshooting Selkirk 11-4 in the period. Owen Chatwin scored the only goal of the period for the Pacific Region champions, providing the final margin of victory.

The Steelers carried the play in the final period, outshooting the Kodiaks 14-7, but could not get a puck past York, who made 23 saves in the win.

Leslie picked up Player of the Game honours for Selkirk after turning aside 35 shots, albeit in a losing cause as the Steelers fell to 0-2.

Kodiaks head coach Boris Rybalka was pleased with his team’s performance in all but clinching a semi-final berth.

“We played very well tonight, especially for the opening 40 minutes,” Rybalka said. “We weren’t pleased with our start yesterday (in a 4-2 win over the Prince George Spruce Kings), and we made sure to come out more aggressive tonight.”

Both teams have Tuesday off before returning to the ice at CN Centre on Wednesday. The Kodiaks face the Pembroke Lumber Kings in the afternoon game, while the Steelers take on the Prince George Spruce Kings in the night match-up.

KODIAKS LOOK TO STAY PERFECT, FACE STEELERS

The Camrose Kodiaks look to stay perfect while the Selkirk Steelers try to break into the win column when the two teams meet at the 2007 RBC Royal Bank Cup at CN Centre in Prince George, BC on Monday night.

The Kodiaks came out slow in their tournament opener against the host Prince George Spruce Kings on Sunday night, trailing by a pair of goals early in the second period before rebounding for a 4-2 win.

Expect the Pacific Region champions to come out much stronger against the Steelers, which could mean trouble for the Manitoba title holders. The Kodiaks were the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s highest-scoring playoff team, and are due for an offensive breakout.

The Steelers had just six days off between the end of their seven-game ANAVET Cup victory over the Humboldt Broncos – including a quadruple-overtime victory in Game 7 – and, with a cross-country trip involved, looked out of sync in their opening game loss to the Aurora Tigers on Sunday.

Brothers Kyle and Brent Howarth, who tore up the Manitoba Junior Hockey League for a combined 272 points, had two points between them against the Tigers and will need to get on track offensively if the Steelers hope to play on the weekend.

Both teams enter Monday’s game looking for a win to improve their semi-final chances. Camrose can all but book a weekend spot with a win, while a victory for the Steelers will push them even with the host Spruce Kings at 1-1 and significantly increase their final four aspirations.