When the Winnipeg ICE hit the ice for their first game of 2020, they’ll do so as the best team in the East Division.
The ICE have jumped over Prince Albert for the top spot after a hot past few days.
Before we get to what’s been happening with the ICE, I hope everyone had a great Christmas and I hope everyone has a wonderful 2020.
The “Battle of Manitoba” continued on December 27 at Westoba Place.
The ICE sure didn’t give Brandon fans anything to cheer about as they shutout their provincial rival 4-0. Liam Hughes made 28 saves in the game while Isaac Johnson tallied two goals.
The two teams met the next night. However, this game was a lot closer. In front of a sold out crowd at the Wayne Fleming Arena, the Wheat Kings scored twice. But, those two goals weren’t enough to get a victory. Owen Pederson scored the game winner early in the third as Winnipeg picked up a 3-2 win.
The ICE then hit the road on Sunday morning for Prince Albert.
Winnipeg recorded just 14 shots in the game, but they made it work for them.
Connor McClennon scored the game winner just 2:31 into the third and Liam Hughes was solid once again as the ICE beat Prince Albert 3-2.
“Yeah, it feels pretty great right now. We’re happy with it and we’ll enjoy it, but we know what’s coming up next,” said McClennon after the game, courtesy of winnipegice.ca. “We have a lot of work to do moving forward.”
“At times we bent, but we didn’t break. Liam Hughes was also outstanding when he had to be,” said James Patrick. “Prince Albert is a tough team to create offence against. We played a solid defensive game and we gutted out a win.”
Connor McClennon also scored the first goal of the game. 6:55 into the contest, he beat Boston Bilous for his 17th goal of the season.
Being a title contender, Prince Albert was expected to bounce back and they sure did. With 3:58 left in the opening frame, Ilya Usau beat Hughes for his 10th goal of the campaign.
However, Winnipeg regained the lead before the period elapsed. Just 59 seconds after Usau tied it, Owen Pederson scored his 11th to give Winnipeg a 2-1 lead — a lead they held into the third period.
Bilous stopped four shots in the second while Hughes turned away six.
Usau’s stick stayed hot early in the third as he tied the game just 1:05 into the frame. But that’s when Winnipeg came right back. Just 1:26 later, McClennon beat Bilous for his second goal of the game and 18th of the season, and more importantly, the goal stood as the game winner as Winnipeg skated off with a 3-2 win.
Liam Hughes ended up making 10 saves in the final frame. Since joining Winnipeg, Hughes has been very good. He’s 7-2 with a 2.41 GAA and a .914 save percentage.
ICINGS:
- Connor McClennon scored twice and was also a +3 as he led Winnipeg.
- Both teams went 0-for-1 on the power play.
- This was Winnipeg’s third straight win after the Christmas break. They have also won four of their last five.
- Prince Albert has dropped all of its games since the break. The team was swept in a home-and-home with Saskatoon this past weekend.
Winnipeg will remain on the road to begin 2020. They play the Saskatoon Blades on Wednesday night. Winnipeg is 22-13-1 for 45 points, one ahead of Prince Albert who has 44. The Saskatoon Blades are eight points back.
James provided these words on finishing 2019 in first place.
“We’ve come a long way and we have a long way to go,” said Patrick. “We have some goals we want to accomplish and we’ll push forward to try and achieve those.”
“It feels good, no question,” he concluded. “We’ll enjoy it for a bit here and then we’ll move ahead to Saskatoon and focus on that one.”
After Wednesday’s game in Saskatoon, Winnipeg begins a lengthy homestand. They will play nine straight games at the Wayne Fleming Arena through January 26.
