Wednesday 19 January 2011

Warriors Blank Canes' 4-0 in Moose Jaw

MOOSE JAW, SK. - Quinton Howden scored twice as the Moose Jaw Warriors shut out the Lethbridge Hurricanes 4-0 in a penalty-filled game Wednesday night at the Crushed Can.

The Hurricanes came under siege in the first 10 minutes of the game as the Moose Jaw Warriors came out of the gate flying. Moose Jaw pumped 10 shots on Brandon Anderson before the game was barely five minutes old. The Canes' goalie stopped every one of those shots to keep it a scoreless game. The Warriors would end up getting the first goal in this game as Joey Kornelson tipped a point shot on a power play late in the period to give Moose Jaw a 1-0 lead. Lethbridge was out shot 13-7 in the opening 20 minutes.

In the second, the Warriors would go up by a pair as part of the Quinton Howden show. He scored twice in the second period for his 26th and 27th goals of the season to put to home team up 2-0 and then 3-0 with another goal with less than two minutes to go in the period. It continued to be a very busy night for Brandon Anderson in goal. Moose Jaw held the edge in shots 28-15 after two period of play.

In the third, Brayden Cuthbert extended the Warriors lead when he tipped in a point shot to make it 4-0 Moose Jaw. The Canes' pulled Brandon Anderson after that in favour of Dylan Tait who would finish the night in goal for Lethbridge. It was mostly to give Anderson a rest as the Hurricanes netminder has seen an awful lot of rubber the passed couple of games. After that, it was a penalty parade for the rest of the game. One player after the other headed to the penalty box for both teams as things got rough in the final 10 minutes of this one. The Canes' were given the majority of the minors in this game as the Warriors would end up with 13 power plays on the night. The final score would end up Moose Jaw 4 and Lethbridge 0. This is the second time this season that Lethbridge has been blanked in Moose Jaw. They lost here 3-0 earlier on in the season. The final shots favoured the Warriors 41-20 in this game. The power plays looked like this: Moose Jaw 1 for 13 and Lethbridge 0 for 6. The loss drops the Hurricanes record to 15-21-2-7 on the season, still four points behind Prince Albert for the final playoff position in the Eastern Conference.

I think both teams were frustrated in this game given the amount of penalties and power plays. Rich Preston showed his displeasure a few times on the Hurricanes bench. Lethbridge found itself short-handed two-men three times in the third period. The Canes' penalty killers did another bang-up job as they were seriously put to the test in this contest. Moose Jaw continues to play good hockey. They move into a tie for 4th place in the East with the Medicine Hat Tigers.

NEXT UP

The Hurricanes will play game three of this four game road trip on Friday when they travel into Manitoba and hook up with the Brandon Wheat Kings for the third time this season. That will be the first of two key games this weekend against teams the Hurricanes have to stay ahead of in the race for the final playoff position in the Eastern Conference. The Canes' are 1-1 versus the Wheaties this season. Brandon will be in Lethbridge on Tuesday next week for the final meeting of the year between the two clubs. Game time from the Keystone Centre in Brandon Friday is 6:30 pm (MST). The pre-game show on CJOC at 6:00.

Thanks,
Pat

This blog post is brought to you by http://www.clearlylethbridge.com/.

16 comments:

  1. very erratic team one game they show inspiration next one they play lousy, I still can't understand Preston... is way of thinking I guess all I can do is show him what i think buy not buying my 3 season tickets next season..and instead pick what games I choose to go watch as its not like the place is sold out..and if they don't make the playoffs..and I being a betting man say they won't think they will lose even more ticket holders next season..because Rich this team even a year older is not going to be that much better next year..

    J.K.

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  2. Let's do the math. Moose Jaw had 13 power plays and with only 1 power play goal that means the other 12 went the full 2 minutes. 2 x 12= 24 minutes short handed which is equivalent to more than one full period short handed. That means your penalty killers are tired, it means your goaltender is tired and it means that Preston can't roll 4 lines. So, was it a case of two incompetent referees, very undisciplined Hurricanes or a combination of both. No matter, it is unacceptable!
    Oh...I will be renewing my season tickets, because I support the boys!

    RJS

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  3. Yeah that's the reason Preston can't roll 4 lines. It's all starting to make sense. The team is not erratic when we are outshot like we were in the hat. The times we have won this year has mainly been due to a goalie stealing the game.

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  4. Well said about season tickets RJS. The "I am not renewing my season tickets will show them" attitude is idiotic. Yes we are all frustrated with the lack of discipline, inconsistancy and constant rebuilding but lets be real. If the so called fans of this club keep "I am not renewing my season tickets will show them" guess what? you will have to start a new blog called I cant belive we lost our junior hockey team. The Canes are already bleeding money and yes like I said it sucks but wake up and think about what you are saying

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  5. We already lost one Junior team because after winning the WHL Championship in 1983, the Broncos started losing and the fans disappeared (fans here only support winners)and the team 3 years later moved back to Swift Current.One of the players on that team was a 16 year old by the name of Joe Sakic....of course he amounted to nothing.
    Go ahead, and don't support the players and when the franchise is sold and a private owner jacks up all the ticket prices in order to make money....LET THE COMPLAINING CONTINUE!
    Not supporting the team, only hurts one group of people, the players! We have a core of about 2000 fans who get it...support the players! I bet Jeff Chynoweth (owner of Kootenay) would love a season ticket base of 2000.
    We may not like what the Board does; we may not like what the Shareholders do; we may not like what the GM and coaches do; we may not like what the Business Manager does: but as hockey fans, we should be there for the players.

    RJS

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  6. RJS, I couldn't have said it better myself. I'd like to shake your hand.

    -cc

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  7. imo our business manager has done a great job yes our crowds havent been the best but he is doing all he can to change that. On the flip side i know lots of you hate hearing it but give the rebuilding some time. If they dont get top 6 in the conference next year then maybe i can see a bit of panic. To be honest if i was a junior player Lethbridge would be the last place i would want to play.

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  8. The sky is falling. We are losing the team.
    Is the status of the organization that fragile? The Enmax is under expensive renovations. I doubt that is happening if the main tenant is that precarious.
    GDC

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  9. The goaltenders haven't stolen many games for this team. They haven't had to. When the Hurricanes win, it is generally because the execution is there, both on special teams and in five-on-five situations and from the goalies. Now, Red Deer's Kuemper has stolen some games, and I'm sure the Rebels fans are complaining that when they win, he steals the game...
    If the "constant rebuilding" is what's driving you crazy, then Preston's five-year deal should make you happy. Rome wasn't built in a day. The Rebels, Tigers and Ice have recently struggled through rebuilding processes. The Canes could be like the Swift Current Broncos: always in the playoffs, never a contender.
    The team is taking chance that Preston's way will work for long-term success, but you wanted what? Another round of trading for players to sneak into the playoffs and flame out? Or an organization to build a deep, talented group from ages 15-20? Preston may not be the guy to do it, but only time will tell.
    - Dylan

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  10. The Hurricanes are currently sitting at a deficite of about $250K as stated at the Mid-season shareholders meeting, but at the same time it was reported that there is over 1 million banked. So losing this club will not happen as it happened in the past. The organization has been hurt by poor attendance (winning brings in fans) underestimating the impact of the renos at the Enmax and (up until the hiring of the current Business Manager) a lack of a solid business/marketing plan.I like what Preston has done as a GM,
    stock piling high end draft picks, not panicking with patch work trades and having a plan in place. However,if the Canes do not make the playoffs I wonder if Preston will re-evaluate his coaching and give up those duties for a younger more intune with junior hockey and the players? Is Preston the problem as a coach? Monday night on the Talk Show one of the media took a long pause when talking about a problem....Was he about to say Preston? Rebuilding is a process and like the Mini Donut eating,computer pounding scribe says; a deep, sound, year in and year out competitive team is what we all want!

    RJS

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  11. "Preston may not be the guy to do it"---therein lies the problem....agree, we don't want trades, etc just to make the playoffs........but the coach has had more than a year and a half with this team and no success....it's not just where the Canes are in the standings; it's the way the team is playing.....sure, there are no superstars, but there is enough talent and skill on this team to clearly be in the playoffs, not fighting to stay out of last place.

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  12. I truly think the firt person that Preston needs to look at is the trainer. The Hurricanes lose more games in the third period than any other and I can't helpbut to wonder if it is because their conditioning is not where it should be. They always seem to be trying to get through the third period on an empty tank of gas. I think it is time to find someone that is going to get these boys the stamina they need.

    -cc

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  13. How was Portland 2 years ago? Give it time! Thing look bright, rink reno's, 4 bantam pick in first 2 rounds in both (10 and 11). Good core of 18yr old dmen. If we need a new coach that is fine but I would be extremely disappointed if Rick was not our GM.

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  14. -CC,(the moderator should be telling you this).... unless I am completely wrong, the trainer is not in charge of conditioning. Carolyn Glover takes care of the aches and pains and mid-game patchups and monitors a player's long-term injury recovery. Conditioning (on ice endurance-having something left in the tank) is up to the coaching staff and a conditioning coach. A big reason the Hurricanes may
    run out of gas in the third period is because of the number of penalties they have taken earlier in the game. Thus tiring out your penalty killers who are also your best forwards and d-men.

    RJS

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  15. Yes RJS you are bang-on. The Hurricanes have a Strength and Conditioning Coach who the players work with back at home.

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  16. You're right. That is what I meant but did not properly convey. I realize that Carolyn is the trainer but I chose my words poorly. It was absolutely the strength and conditioning coach I was referring to. Thanks for bringing that to my attention.

    -cc

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