It’s fortunate for the Moose Jaw Warriors that they have been the least-penalized team in the Western Hockey League by a wide margin because they also have the least-effective penalty kill in the league.
The Warriors allowed two power play goals against on consecutive nights as they split a pair of weekend games.
The Calgary Hitmen ended the Warriors six-game point streak with a well-earned 5-1 win Friday before the Warriors bounced back with a 3-2 win over the Regina Pats on the road Saturday night.
The Warriors (5-3-2-0) remain in the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference at this early stage of the season.
The Warriors came from behind Saturday thanks to a pair of third-period goals to beat the Pats.
Tristin Langan netted his eighth of the season with 7:21 left and hung on for the win. Langan set-up Ryan Peckford for a power-play goal earlier in the frame to tie the game.
Right where momma keeps the peanut butter! Tristin Langan (@tlangan6) puts one top shelf and we lead 3-2 with 7:21 to go in the third. pic.twitter.com/Yy4JDnePId
— Moose Jaw Warriors (@MJWARRIORS) October 21, 2018
The Pats power-play got them going as Austin Pratt’s power-play marker opened the scoring and Jake Leschyshyn scored with the man-advantage to give the Pats a 2-1 lead after two periods.
Tate Popple scored a short-handed goal for Moose Jaw to tie the game.
The Pats were 2-for-7 on the power play as the Warriors surrendered their 10th power goal against on the year. They’ve only been short-handed 28 times, but have only killed off 64.3 per cent of their power plays against.
It was the Hitmen’s power play and the Warriors lack of discipline that killed off any chance of a comeback Friday night.
Calgary had a well-earned 2-0 lead in the third period when Warriors defenceman Jett Woo took a retaliatory penalty against Mark Kastelic. Dalton Hameliuk got the gate for charging 38 seconds later and the Hitmen had an extended 5-on-3 power play.
Kastelic scored twice on the power play to put the game away.
Warriors rookie defenceman Alek Sukunda — playing as a fourth-line forward — scored his first WHL goal after stealing a poor clearance attempt by Jackson Van De Leest.
Josh Prokop scored into an empty net for the Hitmen who are riding a three-game winning streak. Jake Kryski opened the scoring with a breakaway goal in the first period and Cael Zimmerman capitalized on some good work from Ryder Korczak to double the Calgary lead in the second period.
The Warriors debuted their new alternate logo and a new special red jersey.
Carl Stankowski made 30 saves in goal for the Hitmen and Brodan Salmond made 31 stops for the Warriors.
Saturday Adam Evanoff made 31 saves in the Warriors win.
The Warriors were without Josh Brook as he served a suspension for a checking from behind major.
The Warriors also announced Friday morning that third-year forward Brecon Wood was “no longer with the club.” Wood has joined the AJHL’s Spruce Grove Saints.
That move leaves the Warriors with 12 forwards.
