Jiri Patera once again had an excellent performance, the Brandon Wheat Kings offence did what they had to and the club continued its red-hot play on Friday night.
Welcoming the tough Calgary Hitmen to town, Patera turned away 30 shots as Brandon skated past the Hitmen 3-1.
The win was Brandon’s eighth straight as the team continues its pursuit of the top spot in the East Division.
”The crowd was behind us tonight, and to get one in front of them, it was pretty special,” said Jake Chiasson after the game courtesy of wheatkings.com.
Rookie Brayden Peters was also very good for Calgary as he made 31 saves, but it wasn’t enough to stop a Brandon team that hasn’t lost in 2020.
Before the first 20 minutes were over, the Wheat Kings already had a 2-0 lead thanks to an early goal and a very late one.
1:43 into the game, Duncan Pierce tallied his fifth goal of the season as Brandon went up 1-0.
It stayed that way for quite a while until Brandon had a late power play. With 22 seconds left in the frame, Jake Chiasson beat Peters and Brandon led 2-0 after 20 minutes.
Patera was a perfect 10-for-10 in the first period while Peters went 8-for-10.
The second period brought no goals, but Peters certainly kept Calgary in the game. He turned away 12 shots while Patera made six saves. The Wheat Kings had a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes.
With 3:09 left in the third period, Calgary trimmed the deficit in half. That’s when Josh Prokop beat Patera. However, that’s as close as Calgary could get.
Neithan Salame sealed the game with 58 seconds left as he scored his third of the season.
Brandon’s eighth straight win improved their record to 23-17-1-2 and they now have 49 points. That’s just four back of Winnipeg and Prince Albert for the top spot in the East Division.
”We’re playing for the guys next to us, and if we keep doing that, good things will continue to happen,” said Chiasson.
Calgary, meanwhile, dropped to 22-14-4-1. They remain in the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Brandon will now head to Moose Jaw on Saturday while Calgary plays the ICE on Saturday.
Wheat Tips:
- Brandon stayed very disciplined on the night. They only allowed Calgary to have one power play and the Wheat Kings killed it off.
- Brandon, meanwhile, went 1-for-5 on the power play.
