Goals were tough to come by for the Abbotsford Heat for much of December and January, but signs abounded on Friday evening that the scoring slump is officially history.
The first positive omen came at 10:40 of the second period, when Gord Baldwin jumped into the rush and hammered a slap shot past Toronto Marlies goalie Ben Scrivens to open the scoring.
It marked the first goal of the season for the towering 6'5" defenceman, who has just seven goals over three pro campaigns.
The second sign came with 1:09 left in the third period, when Ryan Stone's shot from just outside the Heat blue line found the empty net at the other end of the ice to seal a 4-1 victory.
The otherwise pedestrian goal was Stone's third of the night, and represented the first hat trick of the season by a Heat player.
"We're starting to get some goals now, and it makes the game funner," Stone said with a grin afterward. "Playing with the lead is a lot easier than trying to dig yourself out of a one-goal deficit.
"We were getting chances when we were going through that slump, but pucks have been finding the back of the net lately. I can't put a finger on it – we're shooting pucks, and they're going in."
Whatever the reason, the Heat's offensive production has been on the upswing of late. Abbotsford's record is 20-2-0-3 when they score at least three goals in a game, and they've hit that plateau seven times in their last 11 outings.
Friday's victory at the Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre was a huge one for the Heat (26-22-2-5), winners of three straight, as they leapfrogged both the Lake Erie Monsters and the Marlies (25-21-0-7) for third place in the AHL's North Division.
"It's always hard to play your first game back at home after a long road trip, but the guys responded pretty well tonight," noted Baldwin, who called the goal "a monkey off my back."
Heat goalie Leland Irving picked up his AHL-leading 23rd victory, turning aside 27 of 28 shots. The lone Marlies shooter to solve him was Ryan Hamilton, who picked the top corner, glove side, at 11:48 of the second period.
Ales Kotalik, making his home-ice debut with the Heat, generated several excellent scoring chances and picked up an assist on Stone's first goal. He has five points – all assists – in six games with Abbotsford.
Stone said the addition of Kotalik has been "really positive."
"He came down with a great attitude," asserted Stone, who skated on a line with Kotalik and Greg Nemisz. "He works hard, he's committed, and he shoots a lot of pucks, which is great."
The Heat and Marlies renew hostilities on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the AESC.