Boston Pizza Recap: Ward’s hat trick leads Broncos over Tigers
Swift Current, Sask. – Mathew Ward’s first career WHL hat trick led the Swift Current Broncos (18-24-5-1) to a 7-2 win over the Medicine Hat Tigers (9-31-3-1) Friday night.
Swift Current jumped out to an early 1-0 lead just 1:13 into the game. Connor Hvidston picked up the puck in the slot of the Tigers zone before firing a shot on net that deflected off a Tigers player and into the net. It was Hvidston’s eighth of the year, and extended his point streak to five games.
The Broncos then added to their lead on the power play 10 minutes later. Right off the faceoff to start the power play, Raphael Pelletier hooked the puck across the crease for Mathew Ward who fired in his 16th of the year to put Swift Current ahead 2-0.
Medicine Hat got on the board before the period came to an end as Teague Patton blocked a clearing attempt and skated down the slot, beating Reid Dyck under the glove to cut the Broncos lead in half.
It was a slow start to the second period until the Broncos went back to the power play at the 10:05 mark of the period. Just 22 seconds into that power play, Braeden Lewis fired a pass from the goal line across to Pelletier, whose shot ramped up off a Tigers stick and into the net to restore the Broncos two-goal lead.
The game remained 3-1 until the final minute of the period when the teams were playing four-on-four. Owen MacNeil flipped a pass ahead for Bogdans Hodass who was streaking down the left wing, and his shot from the left circle beat Dyck under the glove with 23 seconds left in the period.
The second intermission came with the Broncos leading 3-2 and the shots 17-15 Tigers.
The Broncos got their two-goal lead back once again five minutes into the third period. Josh Davies flew into the Tigers zone down the left wing and stepped around the defender, cutting across the crease before getting stopped by the left pad of Garin Bjorklund.
The rebound sat loose in front of Bjorklund and Hvidston lifted a backhander over the Tigers goaltender for his second of the game, putting the Broncos ahead 4-2.
Four minutes later the Broncos worked a give-and-go passing play to perfection as Ward worked the puck to Pelletier in the left circle of the Tigers zone before the return feed came back to Ward to tapped the puck into an open net to give the Broncos the elusive three-goal lead.
Ward capped off his hat trick on a 2-on-1 with Pelletier, taking the pass on left wing before firing it past the blocker of Bjorklund for his 18th of the season.
The offence wrapped up with Karson King redirecting a pass from the goal line from Lewis, as Lewis picked up his third assist of the night on King’s second of the year. Dyck finished with 22 saves in the Bronco crease, his fourth win of the season.
The Broncos now turn their attention to the Brandon Wheat Kings (24-15-3-2) as Brandon returns to the Innovation Credit Union iPlex for the second time this week, ending the season series.
Announced attendance was 1,435.
