After a slow start to the season on home ice, the Winnipeg ICE are definitely happy to call the Wayne Fleming Arena home. The team beat the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Wednesday night in a shootout, 4-3 in front of another great crowd as the WHL makes a return to Winnipeg.
The team lost their first three games on home ice this season and they were outscored 15-2 in the process. In their last three games, Winnipeg has scored 14 goals on home ice and they’re 3-0.
The win for Winnipeg snapped the Hurricanes three-game winning streak on the road.
“I was happy with a lot of the game. We bent at times, but I saw so many positives,” said James Patrick after the game courtesy of winnipegice.ca. “Lethbridge is a good team and I think we played them head-to-head. They have some really good players and we played really hard.”
“We got pucks deep, we worked it down low and we used our defense to get the puck on net and we crashed the net,” said Austin Schellenberg after the contest.
The two teams combined for 17 shots in the first period, but no goals were scored. Carl Tetachuk went 10-for-10 for Lethbridge while Jesse Makaj went 7-for-7 for Winnipeg.
In the second, the Hurricanes got on the board in a hurry. It took Oliver Okuliar just 33 seconds to score his ninth goal of the season unassisted as the Hurricanes took a 1-0 lead.
The ICE came right back. With exactly 10 minutes left in the second, Austin Schellenberg scored his second goal of the season. Benjamin Zloty and Logan Danis picked up the assists on the game-tying goal.
“Our line was lucky enough to chip in on the scoresheet so that’s always nice,” continued Schellenberg.
Tied at one after 40 minutes, Lethbridge took back their lead. Calen Addison beat Makaj for his fourth of the season and Alex Thacker had the lone assist. The goal was scored 2:34 in.
Down 2-1, Winnipeg never stopped fighting and it paid off. Owen Pederson scored on the power play at the 6:56 mark to the tie game up. Michal Teply and Chase Hartje earned the assists.
Schellenberg and Danis got back on the scoresheet again a short time later. With 10:35 left, the duo set up Michael Milne who scored his second of the season to give Winnipeg a 3-2 lead.
“It was a great pass by Logan and I was able to capitalize on the opportunity,” said Milne about scoring the marker.
Trailing late, the Hurricanes were poised to get at least a point and that’s exactly what they did. Dino Kambeitz beat Makaj for his sixth of the season to tie the game up with just 1:34 left in the third period. Dylan Cozens and Addison had the assists.
After no goals were scored in the extra five minutes, the game was shootout bound. In the skills competition, Isaac Johnson and Michal Teply scored. Makaj stopped both Calen Addison and Dylan Cozens which meant Winnipeg picked up the extra point in what was a thrilling game on the University of Manitoba campus.
“It was a great win by the guys, we all bought into the system and we came out on top which is nice,” said Michael Milne after the game. “We’re gaining confidence and we’re looking forward to Friday’s game.”
“All four lines were going and I think everyone contributed,” he concluded. “Jesse also played great in net.”
The two teams don’t get to rest much. They meet in the second half of a two-game set on Friday night at the Wayne Fleming Arena.
The game will be the second of four straight on home ice for Winnipeg. Lethbridge, meanwhile, will then travel to Brandon Saturday to wrap up their quick three-game Manitoba road trip before returning home.
ICINGS:
- Wednesday’s win was the first for Winnipeg against a Central Divison team that has a winning record. Previously they were 0-2.
- The loss means Lethbridge remains two points behind Edmonton for the top spot in the Central.
- Winnipeg remains in third in the East Division with a 7-5-1 record, good for 15 points.
- Winnipeg was the only team to score on the power play in the game. They went 1-for-3 while Lethbridge went 0-for-1.
- Lethbridge won 44 faceoffs compared to just 25 for Winnipeg.
