DAUPHIN, MB - The Dauphin Kings got better as the night went on and by the time the dust settled they picked up another important two points in a 4-2 win over the Niverville Nighthawks.
As mentioned the Kings got better as the game aged. The first period was not their best. A stale slow period by the home team saw them fall behind 1-0 after 20 minutes and heavily outshot 24-5.
The second period Dauphin was able to match Niverville's energy level but could not pull even with them on the scoreboard. The shot clock, however, told a different story as the Kings out shot the Nighthawks 16-9.
In the third the Kings were clearly the better team. They out shot the Nighthawks 17-7 and scored four times. The first two goals were excellent, both bar down. First Ty Pratte (6) on the Power Play and that was followed by one of Dauphin's best players as of late, Gavin Nemis (14). After Niverville tied it Josh Schmidt (7) regained the lead for his team and Rylan Gage (16) would ice it with an empty netter, his third point of the night to make it 4-2.
For the second straight night Cole Sheffield was excellent. He kept his team in it early on and was able to shut the door late. The Kings' netminder turned aside 38 of 40 shots while his club had 38 shots on the Niverville net.
Power Plays were heavily in favour of Niverville early on but eventually evened out. Dauphin finished the night 1 for 5 and 1 for 6 on the Penalty Kill.
The win is Dauphin's 34th of the year, putting them at 34-15-2-1 on the campaign. They remain six points ahead of Norman after the Blizzard edged Selkirk 5-4 in a shootout on Saturday night. Both teams have six games left in their season.
The Kings continue their final home stand of the season on Tuesday when they host those Northern Manitoba Blizzard at Credit Union Place in a game that could very well determine the winner of the MJHL's West Division. The game is sponsored by Viterra, it's the final Fusion Credit Union TV Tuesday of the season and more. Don't miss it, game time is 7:30pm!
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