Defending champion Spud Kings ‘reset’ for the playoffs and defeat Grand Junction 3-2

IDAHO FALLS – Playoff mode activated.

“We kind of reset everybody for the playoffs and they kind of bonded, so it was good,” Spud King coach Anthony Bohn said Tuesday night after the Spud Kings downed the Grand Junction River Hawks 3-2 to win the opener of the Mountain Division best-of-5 semifinals.

The Spud Kings opened defense of their Dineen Cup championship with the victory, and may have answered some questions about the team’s approach to the postseason.

As defending champions, the Spud Kings earned an automatic berth into the Dineen Cup finals and will host the championship series.

What’s that mean for the divisional round of the playoffs?

It means the team can get knocked out or even swept and still end up playing for the championship.

It’s a weird postseason scenario, but Bohn said he liked what he saw on Tuesday.

“Because we have 10 guys from that Dineen Cup team, I think everybody was looking to get into the playoffs … I was happy with the entire process start to finish.”

The game had the feel of a playoff matchup.

Grand Junction scored in the first period and the Spud Kings responded in the second with a power play goal by Lucas Rauner and a goal by Caleb Lepitre.

The River Hawks’ Sami Kallionkieli found the net in the third to tie the game, but Braden Cunningham scored the eventual game-winner less than a minute later.

Grand Junction threatened throughout the third period, but Spud Kings goalie Devin Degenstein finished with 18 saves on 20 shots for the game.

Game 2 is Wednesday at the Mountain America Center. Puck drops at 7:05 p.m.