The Brandon Wheat Kings did their job on Tuesday night as they wrapped up their three-game homestand inside of Westoba Place against the visiting Red Deer Rebels.
On a night when Ben McCartney broke out with two goals and Ethan Kruger made perhaps the save of the year, the Wheat Kings beat the Rebels 5-2.
“Our start of the game was huge. Our momentum was really good and I think the guys handled it very well in the intermissions,” said Ben McCartney, courtesy of wheatkings.com.
“It was great to win against Red Deer. We had a tough game against Lethbridge, so it was great to see everyone play well together,” said Duncan Pierce after the game.
McCartney scored his eighth of the season at the 4:40 mark. The goal to make it 1-0 was assisted by Ridly Greig and Connor Gutenberg.
With 10:04 left in the first frame, Arshdeep Bains came back for Red Deer with his third goal of the season. Jaxsen Wiebe and Dawson Barteaux drew the assists.
With the game tied at one after 20, Brandon took over. Just 1:22 into the second, Neithan Salame and Lynden McCallum set up Luka Burzan who scored his eighth goal of the season.
At the 7:10 mark, McCartney scored his ninth of the season and second of the game as Brandon went up 3-1, but they weren’t done there.
15:23 into the second, Nolan Ritchie scored his fourth of the season. The insurance marker was assisted by Cole Reinhardt.
Up 4-1 after 40, the stage was set for Duncan Pierce. He was awarded a penalty shot and beat Byron Fancy for his first goal as a Brandon Wheat King. The marker put Brandon up 5-1 at the 5:03 mark.
Pierce also had a penalty shot last year. He cashed in on that opportunity as well.
“I just wanted to take things easy and read what the goalie was doing,” added Pierce. “I didn’t do anything special.”
“It was nice to get something going offensively. It was a nice confidence booster,” continued Pierce. “It was huge to get a win tonight and I’m happy the boys bounced back.”
With 2:13 left, Mason Ward scored his first goal of the season. The marker was assisted by Joel Sexsmith and Jaxsen Wiebe. But Red Deer got no closer in a 5-2 loss.
Brandon is now 8-10 and they currently occupy the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. Red Deer, meanwhile, is 5-9-0-2 and they’re four points back of Brandon.
The Wheat Kings will now head on the road. They start their two-game Saskatchewan road trip in Prince Albert on Friday night.
“It was a really consistent effort against Red Deer, but it’s all about Prince Albert now,” concluded McCartney. “They have a lot of good players. I’m really confident in these guys.”
After Friday, Brandon plays in Saskatoon on Saturday.
Red Deer’s trip continues on Wednesday against Winnipeg. On Friday, they’re in Saskatoon.
Wheat Tips:
- Brandon has now won two of their last three games at Westoba Place.
- Both teams struggled on the power play. Red Deer went 0-for-4 while Brandon went 0-for-6.
- Brandon’s second period is certainly one they will want to replicate. Not only did they outscore Red Deer 3-0 in the frame, but they outshot them 17-7.
- Arshdeep Bains scored for the second straight game for Red Deer.
