Victoria Salmon Kings defenceman Derick Martin summed it up succinctly before Friday night's ECHL game in Stockton, Calif.

“We were just tired of losing,” said Martin.

So the Salmon Kings went out and won for the seventh time in eight games, defeating the Thunder 3-1 to move to 24-25-3.

And they did it in one of the toughest settings in the ECHL, where the Thunder attract some of the most loyal crowds in the league. A total of 7,887 fans were on hand Friday night but that didn’t seem to faze the visitors from Victoria.

Jarrett Konkle, Mr. Accuracy with a 22.8 per cent shooting percentage, showed his eagle eye with a goal at exactly 10 minutes of the first period to put Stockton into the lead.

The Salmon Kings, however, kept their composure.

Second-period goals by Rick Cleaver of Parksville, on the power play, and former New York Islanders-prospect Rob Hennigar put Victoria ahead 2-1.

Ryan MacMurchy, a St. Louis Blues draft pick and NCAA champion out of the University of Wisconsin Badgers, sealed the deal for Victoria with an empty-net goal at 18:52 of the third period.

Victoria's David Shantz, ECHL goaltender of the week, has allowed just five goals in his past four games. A workhorse, the second-round NHL draft pick leads the ECHL in minutes played this season with 2,417 and ranks second in saves with 1,151.

His doggedness, through a horrendous stretch of injuries for the Salmon Kings in which the club underperformed, has paid off as Shantz has finally worked his way to over .500 at 19-18-3.

Shantz, who made 21 saves, was named first star of the game Friday. Hennigar was selected second second and Konkle third star.

The Thunder fell to

25-16-9.

The Salmon Kings play the Thunder again tonight and Sunday in Stockon before returning home to face the Utah Grizzlies next Friday at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.