Hurricanes @ Medicine Hat

Well, the Lethbridge Hurricanes will try and re-group tonight after a rough start to the season in Kootenay Friday.

The Canes' dropped an 8-1 decision to the Kootenay Ice and were out shot 48-14. Cam Braes broke Kootenay's shutout bid with 6.8 seconds remaining in the game. If anything, Lethbridge played with some edge and a chip on it's shoulder. It was a rough game at times with 5 fights. The Hurricanes found themselves down a few more players after Cody Castro was kicked out for being a 3rd man in on a scrap and then Austin Fyten left the game in the first after he was cut open during a fight. He never returned, but should be alright for tonight in Medicine Hat.

The goaltending duties were split by Michael Tadjdeh and Ville Kolppanen. I thought Tadjdeh played very well, despite the number of shots he faced in a very short period of time. Kolppanen struggled in his first-ever WHL action, allowing two goals on the first two shots he faced.

So I guess, it's only one game in the books and there are 71 more to go. There's no question though that defence is the main issue for the Hurricanes right now. They are young and inexperienced and I think Kootenay used that to their advantage last night. This is the area the Canes' need to build from, no question. I put that question to Rich Preston in the pre-game show Friday night and he agreed. Yes, there was certainly a lack of offence Friday, but as it's been said many times before in many other sports, your best offence is your best defence.

Tonight, Lethbridge will be the opponent for the Medicine Hat Tigers in their home opener. Perhaps the Canes' can put last night behind them and come out and have a strong performance against their biggest rivals.

The pre-game show on CJOC at 7:00. The puck drops just after 7:30.

Thanks,
Pat