GAME PREVIEW: Calgary vs Medicine Hat | 11.23.25
HITMEN HEADLINES: The Calgary Hitmen (12-6-2-1) open a four-game homestand this afternoon as they welcome the Medicine Hat Tigers (13-6-3-2) to Scotiabank Saddledome. Game time is 4:00 p.m. for Farley’s Birthday Bash powered by RAM. Among the highlights will be FREE birthday cake on the concourse behind Section 213 during the second intermission. It’s also another Sunday Funday at Scotiabank Saddledome presented by Brookfield Residential. Fans can enjoy $6 food and drink deals all game long, $3 sips and snacks plus Face Painting and the Fun Zone on the West Concourse. Back by popular demand is also the Post-Game Family Skate. The Hitmen are coming off last night’s wild 7-6 shootout setback in Medicine Hat where Liam Ruck counted the game winner for the Tigers in round seven. A total of six Hitmen recorded multi-point performances with Kale Dach leading the charge with three assists. Harrison Lodewyk scored a pair of goals while Andrei Molgachev, Brandon Gorzynski, Ben MacBeath and Ethan Moore all notched a goal an assist.
MEDICINE HAT: Today marks the fifth of eight regular season meetings between the two Central Division rivals. Calgary is 1-2-0-1 against Medicine Hat and has been outscored by a combined 22-13. Dating back to last season, the Hitmen have just one win in their last nine games against Medicine Hat with the Tigers, posting an overall record of 1-5-0-3 in that span. Harrison Lodewyk (2g, 2a) leads the Hitmen with four points while Andrei Molgachev (2g, 1a), Landon Amrhein (1g, 2a), Luc Trevors (1g, 2a), Brandon Gorzynski (1g, 2a) and Kale Dach (3a) all have three points each. Markus Ruck (2g, 5a) is the top performing Tiger with seven points. Liam Ruck (2g, 3a) is next with five. Their next meeting is not until Tuesday, Jan. 20 when the Hitmen travel to Co-op Place.
2025-26 SERIES RECAP
Oct. 4/25 in MH: Tigers 7 Hitmen 1…Shaeffer Gordon-Carroll (2g, 1a) and Yaroslav Bryzgalov (1g, 2a) notched three points each.
Oct. 10/25 in CGY: Hitmen 4 Tigers 2…Eric Tu made 38 saves for Calgary while the Hitmen scored four even strength goals.
Nov. 19/25 in CGY: Tigers 6 Hitmen 2…The Tigers built leads of 2-0 and 5-1 en route to the win.
Nov. 22/25 in MH: Tigers 7 Hitmen 6 Shootout…Medicine Hat overcame a 6-3 second period deficit.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Shots on Goal: CGY 114 MH 151 Power Plays: CGY 4-19 (21.1%) MH 4-16 (25%)
STREAKIN’: Caine Wilke (3a) is on a three-game assist streak…Luc Trevors (1g, 1a) and Calder Hamilton (2a) have points in back-to-back games.
WHERE THEY STAND: Calgary is tied with Prince Albert having both played an Eastern Conference low 21 games…At 27 points, Calgary holds the fifth seed. Medicine Hat is third with 31 points.
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTEBOOK: The Hitmen power play has scored at least once in six straight games…The Hitmen penalty kill leads the WHL at 85.9%.
HOME COOKING: Today kicks off a stretch for the Hitmen that will see the club play eight of their next 10 games at home. Among the highlights will be the Teddy Bear Toss powered by ENMAX when the Hitmen host Wenatchee on Sunday, Dec. 7 at 4:00 p.m. Press Level seating is now open for the popular holiday season spectacle which will see fans bring a Teddy Bear to the game to toss on the ice when the Hitmen score their first goal.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: Centre Kale Dach (201) eclipsed 200 face-off wins last night becoming the second member of the Hitmen to achieve that mark this season joining Harrison Lodewyk (245)…Ethan Moore leads Calgary with 62 shots on goal followed closely by Brandon Gorzynski who has 61… Calgary has 24 players on their roster including 14 forwards, eight defencemen and two goaltenders. There are only seven returning players from last season with 14 rookies on the club…Calgary is 7-3-1-1 against teams from their own division while Medicine Hat is 5-2-0-2 against the Central.
WHL LEADERBOARD: Eric Tu is tied for third in goals against average at 2.46 while his .913 save percentage ranks sixth. Calgary has three of the WHL’s Top-20 Rookie scorers. Kale Dach is fourth with 24 points (10g, 14a) while Andrei Molgachev (8g, 6a) and Landon Amrhein (5g, 9a) are tied for 17th with 14 points each.
2026 NHL DRAFT: Five Hitmen are on NHL Central Scouting’s list as Preliminary Players to Watch ahead of the 2026 draft. Landon Amrheim and Ben MacBeath are forecast as second or third-round picks. Hunter Aura, Aidan Hesse and Andrei Molgachev are projected to be sixth or seventh-round candidates.
CHL TOP-10: For the third time in as many weeks the Calgary Hitmen sit in the CHL Top-10 Rankings presented by Delta Hotels by Marriott. The Hitmen hold the #9 spot and are one of four WHL teams to earn the nod joining Edmonton (#4), Everett (#3) and Prince Albert (#2).
ROSTER MOVE: The Hitmen have added Cohen Daoust to the roster as an affiliate player. The 19-year-old forward from St. Albert, AB made his Hitmen debut on Wednesday against the Tigers after starting the season in the AJHL with Canmore. He is currently the Eagles top scorer and third overall in league scoring with 29 points (15g, 14a) in 19 games.
HOME AND AWAY COMPARISON: The Hitmen are 5-4-0-0 on home ice this season having outscored their opponents by a combined 29-25. Medicine Hat is 6-5-2-1 on the road with today’s game their 15th contest away from Co-op Place this season.
WHL REGULAR SEASON MILESTONES: Harrison Lodewyk is set to play career game 250 this afternoon against the Tigers. Lodewyk spent the first four-plus seasons with Prince Albert, appearing in 233 games with his last 16 as a member of the Hitmen. He is also two assists shy of 50.
ALUMNI WATCH: Dax Williams is playing NCAA Division I college hockey in Worcester, Massachusetts with the Holy Cross Crusaders in Atlantic Hockey America. The 20-year-old defenceman has five points (1g, 4a) in 13 games and is taking economics. Williams played parts of four seasons with the Hitmen from 2021-2025 recording 46 points (7g, 39a) in 173 games.
MAYFAIR DIAGNOSTICS INJURY REPORT: Parker Schellenberg (Lower Body, Week-to-Week).
HITMEN VS: BDN (1-0), EDM (2-0), EVT (0-0), KAM (0-0), KEL (0-0), LET (2-1-1-0), MH (1-2-0-1), MJ (0-1), PEN (0-0), POR (0-1), PA (1-0), PG (0-0), RD (2-0), REG (0-0-1-0), SAS (1-1), SEA (0-0), SPO (1-0), SC (1-0), TC (0-0), VAN (0-0), VIC (0-0), WEN (0-0).
UPCOMING SCHEDULE: Calgary has a pair of games this coming week starting on Thursday, Nov. 27 when Washington Capitals first round pick Lyden Lakovic leads the Moose Jaw Warriors into Scotiabank Saddledome for a 7:00 p.m. start. The Hitmen will then welcome their rivals from Central Alberta on Sunday, Nov. 30 when the Red Deer Rebels pop in for a 2:00 p.m. puck drop in another Sunday Funday presented by Brookfield Residential. Fans can enjoy $6 food and drink deals all game long, $3 sips and snack plus Face Painting and the Fun Zone on the West Concourse. Back by popular demand is also the Post-Game Family Skate.
