Jiri Patera was nothing short of sensational and the Brandon Wheat Kings did enough offensively on Friday night to snap their two-game losing streak.
On a night when more than 3,200 fans packed into Westoba Place, Patera made 40 saves as he helped the Wheat Kings shut out the visiting Vancouver Giants 3-0.
Patera made 15 saves in the first, 13 in the second, and 12 saves in the third for his second career Western Hockey League shutout.
“I thought we did a lot of really good things, and we were the guys that dictated the pace of the game for a lot of the game,” said Dave Lowry on the QCountry postgame show. “Patera also played really good and made some big-time saves.”
It was the line of Ridly Greig, Luka Burzan, and Ben McCartney that led the club offensively on Friday. With just one minute left in the first, Ben McCartney scored his third goal of the young season with Luka Burzan getting the assist. Taking a 1-0 lead into the second, that line kept on plugging away.
8:22 into the second, Burzan scored his fourth of the season. Ridly Greig and Zach Wytinck assisted on the power-play goal.
Ridly was making his return to the team. He played just 21 seconds of game number one before he was suspended for three games. He ended up with two assists on the night.
“It was a good feeling getting back into game action,” said Greig. “I almost forgot what it feels like to play. I was excited to get back at it.”
Power plays were the theme of the game. Brandon took seven penalties throughout the 60 minutes. They did a fantastic job of killing them, however, as they went 7-for-7 on the penalty kill.
“We got away with one tonight. We took too many stick infractions, and those are penalties that hurt hockey clubs moving forward,” added Lowry. “If your goaltender is on, he’s usually your best penalty killer, and that was the case on Friday night.”
After they took a 2-0 lead into the third, Brandon sealed the game midway through the final period. Braden Schneider scored his first as a Brandon Wheat King this season. It was also his 10th career goal with the team.
Ridly Greig picked up his second assist of the game, while Chad Nychuk got the secondary assist on the power-play goal.
“It was a great shot by Ridly, and it was a lucky bounce to me that I was able to finish,” said Schneider. “It feels really good that I was able to finish it off.”
Brandon ended up scoring twice on their nine power-play opportunities. Brandon finished the game with 32 shots.
The Wheat Kings will remain on ice for a game on Saturday night against the Edmonton Oil Kings. Edmonton hammered Winnipeg on Friday 7-0 at the Wayne Fleming Arena.
“Our guys need to make sure they eat, stay hydrated, and get some rest,” concluded Lowry. “Edmonton is one of the best teams in the country. They’re a very good opponent, and it’s going to be another really good test for our club.”
Brandon is now 2-3 this season, while Vancouver drops to 3-3.
ICINGS:
- Brandonite Trent Miner made his return to Brandon, and he ended up making 29 saves for Vancouver.
- The line of Burzan, McCartney, and Greig combined for two goals and three assists.
- Brandon held Bowen Byram off the scoresheet, and he was a -1.
- It was Brandon’s first shutout of the season, while it was the first time Vancouver was held off the scoreboard. They scored at least two goals in every other game.
- This year’s season series ends 1-0 for Brandon. The clubs won’t meet again until next season.
