Hurricanes Down Broncos 4-3 in Overtime
Lethbridge, AB – The Lethbridge Hurricanes opened 2026 with a come-from-behind 4-3 overtime win over the Swift Current Broncos at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena on Friday.
It marked the second meeting of the season between the Hurricanes and the Broncos as Lethbridge entered on a three-game losing streak while Swift Current entered on a 15-game losing streak. The Broncos had a good start to the game as they jumped out to an early 1-0 lead just 2:53 into the game when Jayden Oleskiw banked a shot off the skate of Leif Oaten and into the net for his first WHL goal. Lethbridge pulled even just over three-minutes later when Owen Berge scored his ninth goal of the year at the 6:11 mark when he beat Archer Cooke to tie the game 1-1; Carsen Adair and Will Scott picked up the assists on the goal. Swift Current pulled back in front at the 14:08 mark when Trae Wilke potted his ninth of the year slipping a shot low to the glove to make it 2-1. Before the end of the period, the Hurricanes tied the game at 2-2 as Scott wired home his second goal of the season with a shot bar-down over the glove of Cooke; Berge and Tyden Lafournaise earned the assists on the equalizing goal. The Hurricanes were outshot 10-6 in the first period by the Broncos.
Lethbridge and Swift Current traded chances in a see-saw middle frame. The Broncos pulled ahead with goal at the 5:32 mark when Wilke rifled home his second goal of the game – and 10th of the season – as Swift Current took a 3-2 lead; Oleskiw and Brown earned the assists on the goal. Lethbridge had their chances including a great look for Luke Cozens on a partial breakaway, but Cooke made a glove save to keep it a one goal lead for Swift Current. The Broncos continued to press late in the period with another scoring chance for Wilke as Oaten made a good save on the short side. The Hurricanes were outshot 17-12 by the Broncos in the middle frame as Swift Current held a 3-2 lead after forty minutes of play.
In the third period, the teams opened play with four-on-four with off-setting penalties at the end of the second period to Sawyer Dingman and Owen Berge. The Hurricanes outshot the Broncos 9-7 in the third period and tied the game for the third time at the 6:17 mark when Kai Anderson skated in on the right wing before ripping home his seventh goal of the season to make it a 3-3 game. Lethbridge continued to press and came close in the dying seconds of the game as Hudson Kibblewhite was hauled down on a partial breakaway with 9.9-seconds remaining in regulation resulting in a Hurricane power play. The ‘Canes had a flurry before the end of regulation, but Cooke was able to close the door to force overtime.
The extra session lasted just 24-seconds as the Hurricanes won the game on the lone shot of the overtime when Luke Cozens buried a one-timer home for his team-leading 17th goal of the season – and first career OT winner – to lift Lethbridge to a 4-2 victory to improve to 5-0 this season in extra time.
The Hurricanes were outshot 34-28 in the game by the Broncos. Lethbridge went 1/2 on the power play while Swift Current was 0/3 with the extra man.
Three stars of the game were:
1) ‘Canes – #3 Will Scott (1 goal, 1 assist)
2) Broncos – #26 Jayden Oleskiw (1 goal, 1 assist)
3) ‘Canes – #31 Leif Oaten (31-saves)
The win for the Hurricanes ended a three-game losing streak as they opened the month of January and 2026 with a win improving to 7-6-0-1 in their last 14 games at home. Lethbridge evened their season series at one game apiece against Swift Current. The ‘Canes overall record lifted to 12-25-0-1 on the season while their home record improved to 7-11-0-1 on the year.
The Hurricanes will visit the Broncos in the second of the home-and-home weekend tomorrow at the InnovationPlex in Swift Current. Lethbridge will return to the VisitLethbridge.com Arena on Wednesday when they welcome the Seattle Thunderbirds on Wednesday at 7:00pm. Tickets for the game can be purchased by visiting the VisitLethbridge.com Arena Ticket Centre, by calling 403-329-SEAT (7328) or online at www.visitlethbridgearena.ca.
