Hurricanes Edge Wild 2-1 in Canadian Tire Teddy & Toque Toss
Lethbridge, AB – The Lethbridge Hurricanes earned a 2-1 victory over the Wenatchee Wild on Friday at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena in the 29th annual Canadian Tire Teddy & Toque Toss.
Lethbridge welcomed Wenatchee for just the second time since the Wild’s relocation in the third of a four-game homestand. The Hurricanes came out buzzing in front of a sold-out crowd with hopes of sending the teddy bears to the ice early in the contest. Lethbridge had a power play in the opening minutes and pressed early, but the Wild netminder Tobias Tvrznik was strong early keeping the game scoreless. The Hurricanes continued to press peppering the Wenatchee net early. Finally, the ‘Canes broke through while shorthanded when Kayden Longley struck on a breakaway at the 15:38 mark to send the bears and toques flying – for Longley, it was his seventh of the season and his first home goal as a Hurricane. The teams went to the dressing room for the cleanup and an extended intermission. The teams returned to play the final 4:22 of the opening period but neither team scored as Lethbridge led 1-0 after twenty minutes of play.
After a brief break, the teams changed ends and opened the second period. It was a clunky start to the middle frame as both teams struggled to generate any offensive chances as there was a lot of neutral turnovers by both teams. Lethbridge doubled their lead at the 11:53 mark when Grady Pichette lifted home his first goal in the WHL to make it a 2-0 Hurricanes lead; Luke Cozens and Owen Berge picked up the assists on the goal. The ‘Canes had a great chance to extend their lead when Logan Wormald was sprung on a partial breakaway but was disrupted by a defender and the Lethbridge captain was unable to get a shot away. Wenatchee had a great look to cut the ‘Canes lead in half late in the period, but Leif Oaten made a pair of great saves to preserve the Lethbridge lead. The Hurricanes were outshot 11-5 in the middle frame but held a 2-0 lead after two periods.
In the third period, the Wild carried the play in hopes of chipping into the lead. Oaten continued to stand tall in the period turning aside a pair of great looks for Wenatchee on a goal-mouth scramble early in the frame. The Wild broke the shutout bid at the 10:51 mark when Aiden Grossklaus tipped home a point shot on a power play to cut the Hurricanes lead to 2-1; Josh Toll and Nolan Caffey picked up the assists on the goal. Lethbridge remained pinned late in the game and nearly iced the victory when Easton Daneault rattled a shot at an empty-net off a goal post. The Wild pressed until the end but ran out of time as the Hurricanes hung on to a 2-1 victory.
Shots in the third period favoured the Wild 10-8 as Wenatchee outshot Lethbridge 37-23 in the game. The Hurricanes went 0/4 on the power play while the Wild was 1/5 with the extra man.
Three stars of the game were:
1) ‘Canes – #31 Leif Oaten (36-saves)
2) ‘Canes – #15 Kayden Longley (1 goal)
3) ‘Canes – #5 Grady Pichette (1 goal)
The win for the Hurricanes improves their record to 2-1-0-0 through the first three games of their current homestand while it lifts their record to 5-3-0-1 in their last nine on home ice. Lethbridge’s home record on the season improved to 5-8-0-1 on the year while their overall record jumped to 10-18-0-1 this season while improving to 2-1-0-1 against US Division opponents.
The Hurricanes will conclude their four-game homestand on Saturday when they host the Calgary Hitmen on Santa Night and Ugly Christmas Night at 6:00pm at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena. The ‘Canes will also hold a post-game skate with the players following the game. 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.
