Hurricanes Earn 4-3 Win Against Wheat Kings on Friday
Brandon, MB – The Lethbridge Hurricanes opened a two-game set against the Brandon Wheat Kings on Friday with a 4-3 victory at Westoba Place.
The Hurricanes entered Friday’s contest with a 1-1-0-0 record on their six-game road trip after earning a split in Winnipeg against the ICE. Lethbridge had a good start to the game capitalizing on an early power play as Tyson Laventure snapped home his fourth goal of the season to make it 1-0 Hurricanes just 3:29 into the game; Cole Shepard and Logan McCutcheon were credited with the assists on the goal. Brandon answered just over ten-minutes later when Mason Ward banged home a rebound on a power play to make it 1-1. Just 46-seconds later, Brandon added another power play goal as Nate Danielson banked home his 12th of the season off Harrison Meneghin and in to give the Wheat Kings a 2-1 lead after twenty minutes of play. The Hurricanes trailed the shots in the first period 16-15 in the first period.
Lethbridge had a big second period matching a season-high for goals in a single period with three. The ‘Canes tied the game with a power play goal at the 5:08 mark when Jett Jones banged home a loose puck at the top of the crease to make it a 2-2 game; Laventure and Shepard picked up the helpers on the goal. Just over two-minutes later, the ‘Canes retook the lead as Logan McCutcheon snapped home his first goal of the season – and first in 27-games dating back to last year – off the rush to give Lethbridge a 3-2 advantage; Tyson Zimmer and Noah Chadwick earned the helpers on the goal. The Hurricanes added to their lead when Laventure buried his second goal of the game beating a screened Carson Bjarnason on a power play to make it 4-2 ‘Canes after two periods of play. Lethbridge outshot Brandon 18-11 in the second period.
In the third period, the Wheat Kings pressed down a pair of goals outshooting the Hurricanes 13-4 in the final twenty minutes. Brandon pulled the goaltender Bjarnason and scored with the extra-attacker with 1:52 remaining when Calder Anderson snapped home his fourth goal of the season to make it a 4-3 contest. The Wheat Kings used their 30-second timeout and pulled the goaltender again. In the final minute, the Wheaties had a glorious chance to tie the game when Andrei Malyavin bust in down the slot but Meneghin was able to stretch out and making a fantastic glove save to preserve the one-goal lead helping the Hurricanes to the 4-3 win.
Lethbridge was outshot 40-37 in the game by Brandon. The ‘Canes went 3/4 on the power play – setting a new season-high for power play goals in a game – while the Wheat Kings were 2/5 with the extra man.
Three stars of the game were:
1) ‘Canes – #28 Tyson Laventure (2 goals, 1 assist)
2) ‘Canes – #2 Logan McCutcheon (1 goal, 2 assists)
3) Wheat Kings – #47 Mason Ward (1 goal)
The victory for the Hurricanes improved their record to 2-1-0-0 in the first three games of their six-game road trip. The win lifting the ‘Canes record to 8-2-0-1 in their last 11 games and 13-10-0-1 on the season. It was the first win for the Hurricanes against the Wheat Kings since January 25th, 2020 ending a six-game losing streak against Brandon.
The Hurricanes will continue their road trip on Saturday at 6:00pm MT in the second of the back-to-back set against the Wheat Kings before visiting the Tri-City Americans and Spokane Chiefs next weekend.
Lethbridge will return to the ENMAX Centre on Tuesday, December 6th when they host the Swift Current Broncos. Individual game tickets can be purchased in person at the ENMAX Centre Ticket Centre, the Yates Memorial Theatre Ticket Centre, by calling 403-329-SEAT (7328) and online at www.lethbridgehurricanes.com.
