Hurricanes Earn 40th Win; Down Wheat Kings 3-1
Lethbridge, AB – The Lethbridge Hurricanes continued a six-game homestand on Friday with a 3-1 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena.
Lethbridge played the final of four-game season series against Brandon as they celebrated International Women’s Day. The Hurricanes entered in search of their 40th win of the year and the ‘Canes had a great start to the game as they kept the Wheat Kings pinned in their own zone for the opening three-minutes of the game but were unable to capitalize. Lethbridge eventually opened the scoring when Brayden Edwards ripped home his 29th goal to make it 1-0; Logan Wormald picked up the lone assist on the goal. Brandon pulled even with a shorthanded goal at the 12:34 mark when Caleb Hadland scored on a two-on-one potting his 22nd goal to even the score 1-1. Just under two-minutes later, the ‘Canes retook the lead as Caden Price knocked a puck out of the air and into the net to put Lethbridge up 2-1; Luke Cozens and Wormald earned the assists on the goal. The Hurricanes struck again at the 15:11 mark with a power play goal as Wormald had a pass deflect off a defender and into the net for his 29th goal to make it 3-1; Leo Braillard and Brayden Yager were credited with the assists on the goal. Lethbridge outshot Brandon 15-5 in the first period.
The Hurricanes kept their foot on the gas in the second period peppering the Wheat Kings early in the frame. Lethbridge came close to adding to their lead when Tristen Doyle hit the goal post with a wrist shot from the slot. The ‘Canes kept their foot on the gas when Wormald was sprung on a breakaway and slipped a shot through Carson Bjarnason’s legs, but the Wheat Kings netminder was able to squeeze the puck under his left leg to keep it out. Lethbridge had another breakaway when Anthony Wilson jumped after a loose puck but was stopped by Bjarnason. Brandon had a power play at the midway point of the period, but it was Lethbridge that had the two best chances. First, Shane Smith had a breakaway that was turned aside before Wormald was robbed on a two-on-one with the glove of Bjarnason to keep it a 3-1 game after forty minutes of play. The Hurricanes outshot the Wheat Kings 12-9 in the second period.
In the third period, the ‘Canes were outshot 11-6. Lethbridge had a glorious opportunity on an odd-man rush when Wormald centered a pass to Edwards who had a gaping net to shoot at, but Wheat Kings defenceman Luke Shipley reached across to block the shot and deflect it out of play. Edwards had another scoring chance as he cruised in the right-wing before hoisting a puck over the crossbar and out of play. Brandon looked to try and dig into the Lethbridge lead when they received a four-minute power play. The Wheat Kings held good pressure, but they were unable to beat Unger. Late in the game, Brandon pulled the goaltender but could not dig into the lead as the Hurricanes hung on to the 3-1 victory.
The Hurricanes outshot the Wheat Kings 34-25 in the game. Lethbridge went 1/2 on the power play while Brandon was 0/3 with the extra man.
Three stars of the game were:
1) ‘Canes – #18 Logan Wormald (1 goal, 2 assists)
2) ‘Canes – #19 Brayden Edwards (1 goal)
3) ‘Canes – #11 Luke Cozens (1 assist)
The win for the Hurricanes was their third-straight victory as they earned their 40th win of the season. It marks the eighth time in their history and first time the ‘Canes have hit the 40-win plateau since the 2019-2020 season as the improved to 40-19-2-2 on the year. Lethbridge’s home record to 23-6-1-0 on the season while improving to 19-4-0-1 against the East Division this year. The Hurricanes end the regular season with a 2-1-0-1 record against Brandon.
The Hurricanes will play open a three-game week on Wednesday when they welcome the Prince Albert Raiders at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena at 7:00pm before hosting the Medicine Hat Tigers and Calgary Hitmen on Friday and Saturday. Tickets can be purchased by visiting the Yates Memorial Theatre or VisitLethbridge.com Arena Ticket Centre, by calling 403-329-SEAT (7328) or online at www.visitlethbridgearena.ca.
