The Lethbridge Hurricanes had a three game winning streak end Sunday with a 7-2 loss to the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings.
The Wheaties busted the game open with four goals in the first 10 minutes of the first period. Quintin Lisoway got things going for Brandon with a goal at the 2:26 mark, making it 1-0. That was followed up just over a minute later when Peter Quenneville scored to make it 2-0. Five minutes after that, another Brandon goal, this time from Rihards Bukarts. Just past the midway point in the period, the Wheat Kings struck again. Morgan Klimchuk scored to make it 4-0. That was it for goalie Jayden Sittler. He was pulled in favour of Stuart Skinner for the rest of the game.
In the second, the Canes got one of those back when Carter Folk scored his 9th of the year shorthanded to cut the Brandon lead to 4-1. The visitors though got that one back before the end of the period when Tyler Coulter scored to give the Wheaties a 5-1 lead through 40 minutes of play.
In the third, Rihards Bukarts scored again for Brandon, giving them a 6-1 lead. Braylon Shmyr scored a few minutes later on a power play to give the Wheat Kings a commanding 7-1 lead. Lethbridge managed one more goal before it was all said and done. The red hot Giorgio Estephan scored again, his 14th of the season on the power play to cut the lead to 7-2, but that's as close as they Hurricanes got in this game.
The Wheat Kings heavily out shot Lethbridge 55-25 in the game. The loss drops the Canes overall record to 15-31-3-3 on the season. The Hurricanes went 1/3 on the power play and Brandon was 1/6.
The Canes next action is Wednesday (Feb. 11) when they host the Moose Jaw Warriors.
Thanks,
Pat
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This was my third game of the year. Unfortunately, the Canes ran into a hot Wheat Kings team. When I say "team", I mean it. They don't seem to have a star, but roll four lines and three sets of D. They are a deep team without one particular player dominating the action.
ReplyDeleteI was less than over-whelmed by Ryan Pilon. I figured at this point, he'd be looking more like Brent Seabrook. But he isn't even close. He does the little things well (eg. passing, moving the puck), but doesn't have a mean streak nor does he attempt to move the puck with his skating. He'll be drafted this summer, but I don't see him as a high pick. Maybe 3rd or 4th Round?
I liked the energy the Canes played with. They played right to the final whistle on a 3 in 3 weekend. They're playing with a LOT more energy than when I saw them prior to Xmas with Berehowsky behind the bench. Absolutely NO comparison in their enthusiasm to play for this coach/GM. Watson is a handful every shift and I like how Anholt uses him on the PK.
Sittler had a rough start (4 goals on 9 shots), but I see tonight he had a stellar game against his old Red Deer club. Skinner continues to impress me. He's so technically sound for a young player, it's unreal! His up/down and side to side movement for a big guy is very good. He's rarely out of position and shows lots of poise under pressure. If the Hurricanes can build a defence around him, he'll be a high pick in a few years.
So nice to see the kids playing with enthusiasm. They play as if they're really enjoying the game. After all the crap that has happened over the past 2-3 years, it's really encouraging.
Darren