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Productive week for Ice Hawks

Delta picks up five of six points as offence comes to life
hockey
The return of second-year forward Jihwan Kim helped the Delta Ice Hawks score 16 goals in three games last week.

The goal horn at the Ladner Leisure Centre must have sounded like music to the ears of Steve Robinson.

After his team struggled to find the net through the most part of eight games, the Delta Ice Hawks GM and head coach watched his team erupt for an 8-1 victory over the visiting Abbotsford Pilots on Tuesday night. They followed it up 48 hours later with a 6-1 win on the road against the Surrey Knights, then battled the Port Moody Panthers to a 2-2 tie on Saturday night to improve 4-3-1-2 on the season.

The five-point week was welcomed too in what is shaping up to be dogfight for the playoffs after the Pacific Junior Hockey League governors opted to revert back to the conference playoff format. 

The Tom Shaw Conference arguably features the league’s top three teams in defending champion North Vancouver (10-1-0-0, Richmond (8-1-0-0) and Grandview (5-2-1-0). That could potentially leave the Ice Hawks battling the improved second-year White Rock Whalers (5-5-0-0) and Port Moody (3-6-1-0) for the fourth and final spot.

Jihwan Kim led the way against Abbotsford with a pair of goals. The sophomore forward was playing in just his second game of the season and should give the attack a significant boost after being one of the team’s top players during last year’s playoffs.

Captain Mark Epshtein had a three point night while singles went to Brad Fortin, Cole Bromhead, Stephen Chen, Brice Kemp and Ryan Xu.

In Surrey, third period goals by Bradley Seto, Kim, Bromhead and Fortin broke a tight game wide open. Kyle Robinson and Epshtein had give the Hawks a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes.

Epshtein’s second of the night and eighth of the campaign with 3:17 remaining salvaged a point in Port Moody. 

Mission City visits the LLC on Tuesday at 7:35 p.m.