Photo by Jack Gower
The Kings have a fresh look to them in 2025, both on the roster sheet and in terms of on-ice play.
The unofficial first half of the Kings season was in the books at the Christmas break, and Komoka made several changes over the holidays in terms of player acquisitions. They picked up goaltender Zack Irvin from the St. Thomas Stars, as well as forwards Gavin Hern and Ben Funston from the Strathroy Rockets, and forward Micah Kraayenbrink from the Wingham Ironmen of the PJHL.
While the Kings did not come out on the winning side of either of their games this weekend, there were many positive signs that could be pulled from those contests:
New guys fitting in nicely
This weekend was one of firsts for Gavin Hern and Ben Funston, each scoring their first goals and getting their first points in a Kings uniform. For Hern, it was a bouncing puck in the slot area that he found and buried in St. Marys, on the Kings second goal. He put himself in a spot to score, and didn’t miss the opportunity when the puck found itself on his stick. Funston got an assist on the goal, after he sent it from the corner up to the point.
Funston then got a goal of his own on Saturday, when he got a nice tip on a Daymond Kindree shot from the line, to get the Kings within one. Hern got an assist on that goal, after he made a nice play to draw a penalty and get the puck up to Kindree.
Micah Kraayenbrink did not record a point this weekend, but his line with Alex Akena and Ethan Alexander generated good looks and momentum that can be built upon.
With several new bodies in the lineup, Kings Head Coach Rumun Ndur said that not much changes from a coaching perspective, but feels the team’s buy in has improved: “The [new] guys have come in, we’ve had two great practices, we played great [in St. Marys]. (…) I am going to coach the same way, I want the kids to be receptive and this group now, they are, which is a good sign.”
Fourth Line Found the Scoresheet Again
It had been a long while since the Kings’ fourth line contributed on the scoresheet. That is not to say they hadn’t had their fair share of good games, but for Everett Force it had been 14 games without a point, while for Dylan Lale it had been 17 games since his last point. That all changed when Force scored in the second period on Saturday, for his fifth goal of the season, with Lale getting a primary assist on the play. Additionally, Hayden Kemps was a bright spot again for Komoka, as he scored his second goal in the GOJHL, in his second game called up with the Kings.
Pushing the Pace in Games
In the early parts of the season, it was not uncommon for the Kings to trail in the shot category, by a larger number than you’d like. The Kings faced a Lincolns team on Friday that thrives on their shot suppression, and managed to create chances for themselves. They nearly kept pace with the Lincolns in shots, with 33 to St. Marys’ 37, and outshot the Lincolns in the third period by a margin of 13 to 11.
Rumun Ndur made sure his group knew that it was a solid effort, despite the score: “But for the score, it was one of our best games. It’s really hard to instill that in the kids when they see the score, (…) but we really instilled in them how well they played, their compete level was up the whole game. I was really proud of them.”
On Saturday, the Kings came out of the gates flying, outshooting the Stars 19 to eight, but they trailed in shots in both the seocnd and third periods, with the Kings generating a combined 13 shots in the final two periods, while the Stars got 24 on goal. The next step for Ndur’s group is to put together that first period effort over a full 60 minutes, which will come with time.
Other Notes
It’s also worth mentioning that Shane Neusteter got his first GOJHL goal this past weekend in St. Marys, getting his second point on the year. Nate Adams continued his strong play, as he is sitting at a point per game as a King, with three goals and nine assists for 12 points in 12 games, including three goals and four assists for seven points in six games since he returned from injury.
So, as Komoka tries to finish the season strong, there were positive flashes in week one of the new year, and some things to look forward to in the final 18 games for the team. The Kings are in action on Friday in St. Thomas, before returning home to Komoka to take on the Chatham Maroons on Saturday night, at 7:15pm, at the Komoka Wellness Centre.
