GAME PREVIEW: CALGARY AT BRANDON
HITMEN HEADLINES: The Calgary Hitmen (20-29-6-2) play their second game in as many days in Manitoba tonight as they visit the Wheat Kings (28-21-3-2) In Brandon. Game time is 6:00 p.m. MT at Westoba Place. The Hitmen are 0-4-1-0 on their road swing and coming off last night’s 4-0 setback in Winnipeg. Conor Geekie and Chase Wheatcroft both notched a goal and an assist to power the ICE while Dawson Coward made 23 saves to record a shutout in his WHL debut. Riley Fiddler-Schultz led the Hitmen with five shots on goal. Sean Tschigerl was next with four. The Wheat Kings also played last night and lost a home, falling 7-1 to Moose Jaw. Ryder Korczak led the Warriors with a goal and three assists.
HOW THEY STAND: Calgary, at 48 points, is 10th in the Eastern Conference, two points back of Prince Albert for the eighth and final playoff spot. Counting tonight, the Hitmen have 11 games remaining in the regular season with five of those on the road. Brandon, on a three-game losing streak, is sixth in the conference with 61 points.
DID YOU KNOW? Tonight is Game 6 of a season long seven-game road trip and the sixth of eight straight away from Scotiabank Saddledome. The Hitmen have played 57 games this season, yet not a single player has appeared in every game. On that note Sean Tschigerl, Zac Funk and Matthew Sutter all returned to the line-up last night in Winnipeg…Calgary has killed 37 of their last 41 penalties for an 90.2% efficiency…The Hitmen penalty kill is tied with Saskatoon for ninth best on the road at 79.8%…Calgary is averaging 32.3 shots per game.
VS BRANDON: Tonight is the fourth and final regular season meeting with the Wheat Kings. Calgary is 1-0-2-0 against Brandon with the last two games both decided in overtime. Riley Fiddler-Schultz (2g, 1a) leads the Hitmen with three points in the season series while Zac Funk (1g, 1a) and the departed Adam Kydd (2a) both have two points each. Nolan Ritchie (3g) and Mason Ward (1g, 2a) are the top performing Wheat Kings with three points. Calgary is 2-2-1-0 in their last five visits to Brandon.
2021-22 SERIES RECAP
Oct. 24, 2021 in CGY: Hitmen 3 Wheat Kings 2…Adam Kydd led the Hitmen with two assists.
Jan. 16, 2022 in CGY: Wheat Kings 3 Hitmen 2 OT…Nolan Ritchie scored the winner 3:46 into extra time.
Mar. 9, 2022 in BDN: Wheat Kings 2 Hitmen 1 OT…Nolan Ritchie scored the winner 1:11 into extra time.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Shots on Goal: CGY 107 BDN 88 Power Plays: CGY 1-12 (8.3%) BDN 1-12 (8.3%)
TRAVEL LOG: Calgary’s season high seven-game road trip will see the club play those seven games in 11 days. Since leaving Calgary on March 6, the Hitmen have travelled 2,947 kilometers.
ROSTER MOVE: On Sunday, Calgary reassigned 16-year-old defenceman Briggs Orr to the CSSHL’s U18 Prep Okanagan Hockey Academy. Orr appeared in 17 games for the Hitmen this season as an affiliate player registering five points (1g, 4a).
HOME AND AWAY COMPARISON: The Hitmen are 8-17-2-2 on the road this season. Brandon is 14-10-2-1 at home.
WHL TOP-10: Riley Fiddler-Schultz is second in the WHL in faceoff wins with 693 and sixth in the league in shots on goal with 234…Sean Tschigerl is in a three-way tie for the WHL lead in shorthanded markers with five…Brayden Peters is seventh in minutes played at 2,276 and eighth in saves with 1,099.
DRAFT WATCH: NHL Central Scouting has named two Hitmen players to its midterm rankings ahead of the 2022 NHL Draft. Defenceman Grayden Siepmann checks in at 139 among North American skaters while forward Maxim Muranov is 141.
MAYFAIR DIAGNOSTICS INJURY REPORT: Billal Noori (season ending, upper body), Keagan Slaney (one week, upper body).
HITMEN VS: (BDN 1-0-2-0), (EDM 1-5), (LET 1-2-2-1), (MH 5-1), (MJ 1-5), (PA 1-2-0-1), (RD 1-4-2-0), (REG 4-2), (SAS 2-2), (SC 3-2), WPG (0-4).
HITMEN MONTH-BY-MONTH: October (4-5), November (5-4), December (3-3-3-2), January (5-3-2-0), February (3-8), March (0-6-1-0).
REGULAR SEASON CAREER MILESTONE WATCH: Blake Allan is three games shy of 200. Blake Stevenson needs five points to reach 100. Ethan Buenaventura eclipsed 1,000 minutes played Friday in Moose Jaw.
PROSPECT WATCH: Hunter Sawka, Calgary’s fifth-round pick, 91st overall, in the 2020 WHL Prospects Draft is playing U18 Prep in the CSSHL with Edge School. The 16-year-old forward from Cochrane, AB has 49 points (21g, 28a) in 32 games.
ALUMNI UPDATE: Cody Sylvester is in the ECHL with the Atlanta Gladiators. The 29-year-old forward leads the team in scoring with 51 points (24g, 27a) in 48 games. Sylvester was a five-year member of the Hitmen from 2008-13 and left his mark on the franchise with 229 points (97g, 132a) in 315 games. Among his highlights, a franchise record seven points (1g, 6a) in a game set on March 5, 2013 in Saskatoon.
UPCOMING GAMES: The Hitmen road trip ends Friday, March 18 in Edmonton before the team gets an eight day break. The Hitmen will then visit the Medicine Hat Tigers on Saturday, March 26 before returning to Scotiabank Saddledome on Sunday, March 27 to host the Swift Current Broncos. The 2:00 p.m. start is the Every Child Matters game dedicated to Indigenous youth empowerment through sport and a celebration of the Blackfoot culture. It’s presented by Siksika Health Services in partnership with the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary, Okaki, and the Blackfoot Confederacy.
