Canes vs. Tigers CANCELLED

Due to the weather and poor road conditions, the Lethbridge Hurricanes regret to announce that tonight’s match up (originally scheduled to be played Saturday, December 5 at 7PM in Lethbridge) with the Medicine Hat Tigers has been cancelled. This game has been rescheduled and approved by the league to be played on Monday, December 7th once again with a 7PM start time.

This will be the Tiger's much anticipated first visit of the 09-10 season to Lethbridge. In their last meeting this past Tuesday, the Canes made the trip down Highway 3 and came home with a 3-1 win. Secondary scoring, combined with solid goaltending from rookie Brandon Anderson resulted in the Canes 9th win of the season. Anderson made 28 saves on 29 shots to raise his record to 4-5-1-1 and his save percentage to a solid .904. The Canes power play went 0 for 3 on the night but the penalty kill was relentless, holding the Tigers to 1 for 7 with the man advantage and the highest scoring team in the league to just 1 goal on the night. Sobey’s - a proud WHL partner returns as a game night sponsor for this evening.

Game time is 7:00 p.m. MST and tickets can be purchased by visiting the ENMAX Centre Ticket Office, the Yates Theatre Centre, by calling (403) 329-SEAT

It's been a wicked winter day here is southern Alberta. I've been busy shoveling snow all morning, see picture above! I had drifts up to my waste and many of my neighbours have been busy doing the same. Because of the hockey game now rescheduled for Monday, there will be no Hurricanes This Week talk show on Monday.

Thanks,

Pat

Canes' Lose 4-3 to Rebels

Austin Fyten opened the scoring on Teddy Bear Toss night at the Enmax Centre. Fyten's 10th goal of the season ignited a deluge of 2238 stuffed animals onto the ice. It was overall a pretty good start to the game for the Canes'. They killed off an early Red Deer 5 on 3 power play and managed to come back right after and get the first goal of the game. The Rebels though evened the score about 2 minutes later when Coaldale's Adam Kambeitz streaked down the left wing a rifled a shot off the goal post, beating Brandon Anderson in the Hurricanes goal.

In the second period, the Rebels would take the lead for the first time in the game as Kambeitz would score his second of the night to give his team a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes. Coming into last night's game Kambeitz had just two goals on the season. A good night for him in front of some family and friends playing pretty much at home. Minutes before that, Brody Sutter had a short-handed breakaway for Lethbridge, but was robbed by Rebels Goalie Darcy Keumper who made a great stop. That very well could've been the turning point in the game.

It was a back and forth 3rd period. Mike Reddington scored his first goal of the season early to tie the game at 2, but Red Deer kept chipping away and soon after took a 3-2 lead. For the second time, Lethbridge would tie it up on a goal by Mitch Maxwell. That's his team-leading 14th goal of the season. The Rebels would again take the lead, this time 4-3 half way through the 3rd and that would be as close as the Hurricanes would get. Adam Kambeitz earned the game's first star. He finished with two goals and one assist to lead the way for the Rebels. The Hurricanes have just one win in their past 8 games and currently sit 12 points out of a playoff spot with 5 games to go before the Christmas break.

It was certainly a wild night. The Rebels didn't arrive to Lethbridge until 6pm. They travelled all day in snow storm that got worse and worse the farther south they went. A blizzard rolled across the Lethbridge region about mid-afternoon Friday and conditions deteriorated as the day went on. The Rebels though, left earlier than normal from Red Deer and a 3 and half hour bus ride turned into more like a 6 hour bus ride. Rebels Assistant Coach Dallas Gaume told me before the game it was so bad, there were moments they seriously thought about turning around and going back to Red Deer. Nice to see they all made it in one piece! A tip of the hat to the Hurricanes fans who braved the horrible weather to come out to last night's game. There was a much bigger crowd than I expected given the blizzard outside. The official attendance was 3958, although it looked like there was less than that and I can certainly understand with weather the way it was.

Head Coach and G.M. Rich Preston stressed the importance on our pre-game show last night of getting more contributions from players other than the likes of Ashton, Bancks, Maxwell, Braes, and Fyten. He was very happy with the goals that Brody Sutter and Max Ross scored on Tuesday in Medicine Hat and he wants to see more secondary scoring as this season moves on. Last night the Canes' got a goal from Mike Reddington. That's his first of the season. It's nice to see a few other players on this team getting some goals too.

The Hurricanes are back at it tonight when they host Medicine Hat. This will be the Tigers first visit to Lethbridge this season. Medicine Hat lost a 2-1 game in a shootout to Saskatoon last night. Game time is 7pm (MT). The pre-game show on CJOC at 6:30.

Thanks,

Pat

Hurricanes vs. Rebels..Teddy Bear Toss

The Hurricanes will try and build off a 3-1 victory in Medicine Hat earlier this week when they take on the Red Deer Rebels tonight at the Enmax Centre.

The Canes' have 6 games remaining before the Christmas break, 5 of those on home-ice. This is the first time these two teams will play since very early in the season. Lethbridge is only a few points back of Red Deer in the standings. The Rebels have 26 points while the Canes' have 22. The victory the other night in the Hat was a big one for Lethbridge. They ended a long losing steak and also got some production from a few unlikely sources in the scoring department. Not to mention, Brandon Anderson continued his strong play in goal. Something tells me, it's going to be tough for the Hurricanes to decide what direction they want to go in between the pipes once Linden Rowat returns from his ankle injury after Christmas. Anderson I would say is making a pretty strong case for himself right now and really, how can you argue with his play.

Tonight is the annual Teddy Bear Toss game. When the Hurricanes score their first goal, fans are asked to throw all the stuffed animals they bring to this game onto the ice. All the stuffed toys collected will go to local charities. Last year, just under 4000 stuffed animals took to the skies at the Enmax Centre. The Hurricanes are hoping for much of the same this year.

Game Time tonight is 7 o'clock. The pre-game show on CJOC at 6:30.

Hurricanes Hockey Package

The Lethbridge Hurricanes are proud to announce the easiest way to make Hurricanes Hockey a part of your Holiday Season with the Hurricanes Holiday Package. Every Hurricanes Holiday Package consists of a ticket to both the Hurricanes games on January 2nd against the Regina Pats and January 22nd against the Edmonton Oil Kings. In addition, each package will include a ticket voucher for any other remaining regular season game and a $10 gift certificate for the Hurricanes Shop! It’s the perfect package for the Hurricanes Hockey fan on your list!

- (1x) One ticket to the Hurricanes January 2nd game vs. Regina
- (1x) One ticket to the Hurricanes January 22nd game vs. Edmonton
- (1x) One ticket voucher valid for any remaining regular season game
- (1x) One $10 Gift Certificate for the Hurricanes Shop

Prices Regular Holiday Package Price
Adult $73.00 $40.00 Save $33.00
Senior $73.00 $36.00 Save $39.00
Student $58.00 $34.00 Save $24.00
Youth $38.50 $28.00 Save $10.50

Holiday Package pricing expires January 2nd.

(From Ryan Ohashi)

Thanks,

Pat

Hurricanes End Losing Streak

The Lethbridge Hurricanes halted a 6 game losing streak last night in Medicine Hat with a big 3-1 win, their first against their highway 3 rivals in 3 tries this season.

It was maybe the best first period of hockey for the Hurricanes in about 2 weeks. The Canes' jumped out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Cam Braes and Brody Sutter. Lethbridge was also backstopped by Brandon Anderson who was excellent for the visitors in the opening 20 minutes. He held off the Tigers who were pressing hard when the score was 1-0 Lethbridge. Shortly after that, Sutter scored on a 2 on 1 rush to give the Canes' a two goal cushion after one. Anderson, in fact was great the whole night.

In the second, the Tigers turned on the full court press and got back into the game with a power play goal, cutting the lead to 2-1, but the Hurricanes would not be out done. A beautiful goal on yet another 2 on 1 for the Canes' gave Lethbridge the two goal lead again. A great pass from Mitch Maxwell and a one-timer by Max Ross gave the Hurricanes 3-1 advantage heading into the 3rd.

In the final frame, the Hurricanes got themselves into penalty trouble, but the penalty killers, the best one being goalie Brandon Anderson held off the Medicine Hat attack and the Hurricanes were able to end a losing streak that has lasted pretty much three weeks. Anderson was fantastic between the pipes again for Lethbridge and was awarded the game's first star for his effort.

Head Coach/GM Rich Preston was pretty straight forward with his comments in our pre-game show last night. He was all business and perhaps that translated into the play of the Hurricanes players. When I asked him about his thoughts regarding the 6-1 loss in Prince Albert last weekend, his answer was two words, "It Stunk". He obviously wasn't happy with that outing, especially after a well played game the night before in Saskatoon (3-2 shootout loss). The players responded well last night. The team did take a few too many penalties I thought, but this time they were able to hold off the Tigers power play.

I thought the Canes' played a good road game. It's always nice to beat your biggest rivals, especially since it was broadcast live on SHAW. It was the Hurricanes best performance since their last win November 10th when they beat Calgary. Also, for the first time in a while the Hurricanes got offensive contributions from players other than the top two lines. They will need more from the Sutters and the Ross' of the world if this team wants to be successful.

The Hurricanes next action is on Friday night when they host the Red Deer Rebels (7pm MT). This will be the first meeting between the Canes' and Rebels since very early in the season.

Thanks,

Pat

Canes' @ Tigers 7pm (MT)

The struggling Lethbridge Hurricanes hope the unfriendly environment of the Medicine Hat Arena will change their fortunes tonight.

The Canes' are trying to put a screeching halt to a 6 game losing streak against the Tigers, a team that has beat them twice already this season. The two teams are night and day in one stat category, goals for. The Tigers have scored more goals than any other team in the WHL to this point hitting the twine 126 times so far. Lethbridge has had issues scoring and currently sit second last in the league with only 76 goals to this point on the year. This will be the first of two games between the rivals this week. Medicine Hat pays it's first visit of the season to Lethbridge on Saturday.

Head Coach and G.M Rich Preston says that's been a big problem all year and says when the Hurricanes have needed a big goal and when they play well and the goaltending has been good, they just can't seem to score. Preston says it's a hard one to put your finger on.

Last night, Hurricanes Assistant G.M. and Director of Player Personnel Brad Robson was on Hurricanes This Week. He reiterated the importance of the next few weeks leading up to the Christmas break for the Canes'. He said the team will have to be making a decision fairly soon as to what direction in plans on heading into the new year.

The Canes' Numbers Through 27 Games

Captain Carter Bancks continues to lead the team with 27 points (8G, 19A) and WHL rookie Mitch Maxwell leads all Canes rookies with 19 points (13G, 6A). Maxwell, along with Carter Ashton lead all Canes goal scorers with 13. Rookie goaltender Brandon Anderson raised his save percentage to 0.898 this weekend despite the pair of losses while rookie d-man Landon Oslanski continues to lead the team with a plus-4 +/- rating.

The game gets underway tonight at just after 7pm (MT). This game will be broadcast live on SHAW. The pre-game show with myself and Fred Jack beginning at 6:30 on CJOC.

Thanks,
Pat

Riders Lose Grey Cup.....Hurricanes This Week

Well, I must say I was glued to my TV yesterday watching what really was a fantastic Grey Cup game.

For this Riders fan, and many others I would suspect went from jubilation to devastation in a matter of seconds. Saskatchewan played great against the best team in the CFL I thought, but made a few mistakes in the final quarter, none more costly than with no time left on the clock when the Riders had too many men on the field when Montreal missed a field goal. That play would've given Saskatchewan the cup, but the penalty gave the Alouettes a second chance to win it and they made no mistake. Someone made a mistake, whether it was a miscount or miscommunication, I don't know. A tough loss for the Riders, but a big win for Montreal. Give the Als credit though. They were down 16 points, marched back and won the game. Congrats to them for sure.

It certainly wasn't the blow out than many non-Riders fans and others alike had predicted, but it was truly a great game to watch and at times, I'll admit it was hard to watch, pacing up and down in my basement. I think I wore out a path on the rug. I'm disappointed with the result yes, but proud of a team that no one thought would've been playing in the Grey Cup in the first place. I know, this game will be analyzed 10 ways to Sunday amongst the "Rider Nation" across the country, especially back in my home province of Saskatchewan. This will sting for a while for the Rider faithful, likely until the season starts again in June. Regardless of the result, I'm proud of my team. That's what good fans do. They stick with their team through thick and thin, the good times and the bad. As a Riders fan there's been a lot of lean years, but the team has shown a different look over the past 3 seasons and is becoming a force in the CFL. Yes, we all get frustrated with our favourite teams from time to time, but in the end you never give up on them as a fan. That's what make a true fan in any sport in my opinion.

Now back to the Hurricanes. The hockey team has lost 6 games in a row and play three more this week as they try to get out of this rut. Tomorrow, the Canes' travel to Medicine Hat (7pm MT), and then on the weekend back home for back-to-back-games. Red Deer pays a visit on Friday. That is the ever-popular Teddy Bear Toss night and then Saturday the Tigers make their first visit to the Enmax Centre this season.


Hurricanes This Week Tonight

Fred and I are back in studio this evening for another edition of Hurricanes This Week. We have three more shows left, including tonight before we take a two week break at Christmas. Tonight, Canes' forward Austin Fyten will be in to talk with us. We'll also speak with Lethbridge's Assistant G.M. and Director of Player Personnel Brad Robson, and then in the last part of the program we'll head to Red Deer and talk with the long time voice of the Rebels Cam Moon. All that and maybe a few phone calls too on the program as well. Any comments or questions can be e-mailed to hurricanes@pttwireless.ca.

Thanks,
Pat

Hurricanes Lose 6-1 in P.A.

On the bus back to Lethbridge - The Lethbridge Hurricanes losing skid now sits at 6 games after a 6-1 loss in Prince Albert last night as the Canes' continue having issues scoring goals.

The Raiders came out flying last night, pounding 17 shots at Hurricanes goaltender Brandon Anderson in the first period. Anderson again played good between the pipes, but isn't getting much offensive support up front. The Raiders opened the scoring about half-way through the period and then added one more with 13.3 seconds left on the clock in first. That was a tough goal to give up late in the period for a team that has been struggling scoring goals itself.

In the second, the Canes' got that one back when Luca Sbisa fired a one-timer passed Raiders goaltender Garrett Zemlak to cut the lead to 2-1. That was Sbisa's first goal of the season to go along with the 7 assists he already had going into last night's game. Prince Albert though would keep on coming. They got that goal back plus one more with 25 seconds to go in the period to give the Raiders a comfortable 4-1 lead after 20 minutes. That would be it for Anderson in goal.

The Hurricanes decided to change up the goaltenders in the third, but it didn't make much difference. Ville Kolppanen was beat on the first shot he faced and the Raiders would later add one more on a power play to take the game easily 6-1. The Canes' were out shot 48-30. It was a busy night for the two Lethbridge goalies. The Hurricanes had a few chances to score themselves, but for whatever reason the puck just isn't going in the net for this team right now.

The game did show have some chippiness to it. Captain Carter Bancks dropped the gloves with P.A.'s Ryan Harrison. I would give Bancks the edge in that scrap. The Raiders though took advantage of every chance they got and they deserve a lot of credit for a well played game. Prince Albert has lost only 3 times in regulation on home-ice this season. They continue to play good hockey at the Art Hauser Centre.

Head Coach/GM Rich Preston told me before the game that his team needs to find a way to score more. Preston said scoring has kind of been the Canes' Achilles heal this year and noted the goaltenders have been keeping the team in games, but troubles putting the puck in the net have proved to be the difference in a lot of games. Case and point again last night. Only one goal to show. The Canes' have been getting chances, just trouble finishing especially close in around the net. I would have to say the team is frustrated with the way things have gone lately, with just one point in the last 6 games. Teams are starting to pull away in the Eastern Conference and it is getting tougher and tougher to look at the standings after each game.

The Hurricanes next action is Tuesday night when the travel to Medicine Hat to take on the Tigers. Game time is 7 pm (MT). This will be the 3rd meeting between the two rivals this season. The two clubs will play again on Saturday (Dec. 5) in Lethbridge.

5th Annual Hurricanes Celebrity Dinner and Auction

The Hurricanes held their annual sports dinner and auction Friday night at the new Coast Lethbridge Hotel and Conference Centre (the former El Rancho). The sold out event was well received. Cabrel "Cabbie" Richards from the Score TV Network was the M.C. for the dinner and auction. Former NHLer Gerry Cheevers was the guest speaker. The silent auction brought in $10,000 while the live auction raised $73,000. After it was all said and done, the net earnings from the event turned out to be $61,000. All that money will go to support a number of local charities in southern Alberta. A big thanks to Brian Wichars, Parrish Hanelt, and Shawn Hass for all the work they put in organizaing the event. The dinner and auction was held earlier this year. It usually doesn't happen until sometime after the new year.

Time to get set now and watch the Grey Cup later on today. I'll admit I'm a bit nervous being a die hard Riders fan, not because they're playing the power house Montreal Alouettes, simply because it's the BIG game. Can't wait. Nothing like being the underdog. Everything to gain and nothing to lose, well expect for the Grey Cup I guess!

Go Green!

Pat