The Dauphin Kings will again try to move on to the MJHL semi finals this Friday following a loss to the Swan Valley Stampeders on Monday.

The Kings took a commanding three-games-to-none lead with a come-from-behind 3-2 win in game two, Mar. 29 in Dauphin and a convincing 6-1 win in game three, Friday in Swan River.

The Stampeders held a lead in both games. They were up 2-0 early in the second period of game two only for Dauphin to stage a comeback for the win.

On Friday, the Stampeders had a 1-0 lead after the first period, but Dauphin took control in the final 40 minutes.

The Kings knew Swan Valley would come out hard in game three, according to head coach and general manager Doug Hedley.

“It was a big game for them. You have to give them credit. They came at us hard for the first half of the game,” he said, adding goaltender Carson Cherepak was solid in goal for the Kings. “He made some big saves and kept it 1-0. And we found a way to come back in the game late in the second period.”

Dauphin scored three times with the man advantage, two of them coming in the third period when the Kings scored four times to put the game away.

“They took some liberties and we capitalized on the power play. So it ended up working out well and the power play ended up being the difference,” Hedley said.

The Kings have proven themselves to be a resilient group, having come from behind on several occasions. So when they do find themselves trailing at any point in a game, they have the confidence knowing they have the ability to come back. But it is something Hedley says you never want to be consistent at.

“But we have been very good at it this year, never giving up and never quitting. And we always know that we’re in every game when you have a goaltender like Carson Cherepak or Keaton Woolsey in net,” he said. “We know our back end can create some offence. We know our four lines can contribute. As long as we stay the course and use our speed and play fast, we have good opportunities to get back in games.”

The Kings, Hedley added, have played a lot of close games this season and things have worked out well for the hockey club.

“The guys are confident whether we’re one goal down or one goal ahead. They seem to stay the course and get the job done,” he said.

Having a never-say-die attitude is important, especially in the playoffs.

“It’s huge. We’ve had a good group all year. Guys get along. They like playing with each other. They hang out. It’s just a good group that’s worked hard, that’s put the time in off the ice and on ice this year. And it’s paying dividends,” he said.

Eight of Dauphin’s 14 goals after the first three games have come from defencemen. That kind of production from the blueline does not come as a surprise to Hedley.

“We knew it was going to be our engine this year. We knew we had some good mobility, some good speed, some guys that can move pucks. It’s been consistent all year,” he said, adding the Kings have had balanced scoring all season, with five players with 20-plus goals. “It’s a spread out offence. We knew we had to create some offence by committee this year and we’ve done that. And it starts on the back end,” he said.

Friday's game five starts at 7:30 p.m. inside Credit Union Place. If needed a game six will go Sunday evening in Swan River.