Game 1 of the special two-game series between prospects from the Kings and Ducks took place in Anaheim on Saturday night, ending in a 6-1 victory for Los Angeles. Manchester Monarchs forwards Andy Andreoff and Tanner Pearson led the way offensively, each posting a pair of goals. In net, JF Berube was outstanding during his scheduled 40 minutes of play, stopping 26 of the 27 shots he faced.
In a poll that closed Sunday evening, MayorsManor readers voted Andreoff as the most impressive player in the game by giving him 39% of all votes collected (complete totals for ten different players can be found here)
The two teams will meet up again later tonight at the Kings training facility in El Segundo. We’ll set the stage for that contest in a subsequent article, but first let’s close the book on Game 1.
Photographer Chasen Ikiri, who’s work is often featured here on MayorsManor, was on hand to snap some shots of all the action – including images of Andreoff, Berunbe, Nick Deslauriers, Derek Forbort, Maxim Kitsyn, Pearson, Toffoli, Jordan Weal and Valentin Zykov.
Two fights took place in the game, both can be seen in the videos below…
And finally, a few post game quotes…
– Andreoff on the overall game: “It was a really good win, but a bit of a rough start in the first period. I guess everyone was a little nervous until we got our legs going. But, I thought we battled back in the second and third period and ended up having a pretty good game.”
– Andreoff on the second line (Zykov-Andreoff-Cam Maclise): “Playing with Maclise and Zykov is a little bit different, but after the first period was over, I think we were connecting pretty well out there, so I was happy with them.”
– Berube on his play early, especially rebound control: “All goalies would like to face that many shots the first game of the year, and I was ready. They had good, quality chances and D’s made a good job keeping it outside and helping me see the puck…I felt like I was really patient on shots. I was reading the releases really good, too. It was good – I was able to keep the pucks close to me, and it always makes it easier after that. It makes it easier on my D-men, too, so it was a good game, overall.”
– Coach Mark Morris on Berube’s play: “He played solid for us. We really needed him in the first. I thought we were disconnected, and I didn’t think we played as a unit of five, which has been a major emphasis. We got into some habits, and they came with great speed. I think that if it wasn’t for him, it certainly would have been a different outcome.”
– Morris on camp invitee Cam Maclise: “He’s grown on me. I thought he was very thorough. He’s a responsible guy, and often times you can just tell by body language how in step a guy is or how in tune he is with what’s going on out there. I felt pretty comfortable with those guys, and I hope he takes full advantage of this opportunity. I love that when guys can make the most of these chances. It’s always heartwarming to find those guys work their way in and earn the trust of the coaches and the organization.”
– Morris on Zykov, a 2013 draftee: “I think he’s just trying to find his way, but he has tremendous creativity from what I can gather so far. He’s a good skater. I know he was disappointed he didn’t score in the shootout, but I think he’s going to be a tremendous player as his confidence grows.”
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What can I say!! Great JOB!!!…GKG…