Pats Hold on For Win Against Lethbridge
Regina, Saskatchewan – The Regina Pats (15-13-2-1) welcomed the Lethbridge Hurricanes (20-11-0-0) to the Brandt Centre on Saturday night. The Pats built up a 6-1 lead and held on to win 6-5 to snap a three game losing streak.
Scoring Summary
First Period
Regina – Connor Hobbs (10) from Berg – 1:04
Lethbridge – Egor Babenko (16) from Gutierrez – 8:20
Regina – Colby Williams (3) from Steel and Brooks – 10:27 (PP)
Regina – Adam Berg (6) from Brooks and Zablocki – 18:21
Second Period
Regina – Rykr Cole (5) from Cooper and Freadrich – 7:12
Regina – Lane Zablocki (9) from Berg and Harrison– 8:40
Regina – Sam Steel (9) from Richards and Cole – 13:32
Lethbridge – Ryley Lindgren (13) from Burke and Nielsen – 16:31 (PP)
Lethbridge – Giorgio Estephan (12) from Wong and Nielsen – 18:37
Third Period
Lethbridge – Justin Gutierrez (15) from Burke and Babenko – 6:10
Lethbridge – Brayden Burke (8) from Babenko and Butierrez – 11:18
Shots on Goal
Regina – 13-13-9-(35) Lethbridge – 8-16-12-(36)
Powerplay
Regina – 1/3 Lethbridge – 1/2
Game Story
Connor Hobbs continued his torrid scoring pace as the Washington Capitals prospect skated onto an Adam Berg drop pass before rifling his tenth of the season to the back of the net. The opening marker came just 1:04 into the period. The Hurricanes picked up a tying marker at 8:20 when Egor Babenko squeezed a shot past Jordan Hollett. Regina responded two minutes later when Sam Steel put a cross-crease feed to Colby Williams on a five-on-three powerplay and the Pats captain buried the open chance. The offensive push continued from the Pats as Adam Berg finished a sweet passing play from Adam Brooks and Lane Zablocki late in the frame to give Regina the 3-1 lead through twenty.
The Pats continued to pour on the offence in the second period. Taylor Cooper jump-started things with a great play to cut through the Lethbridge defence before feeding Rykr Cole on the back door for the Pats’ fourth of the night. Just 1:28 later, Lane Zablocki grabbed his own rebound and lifted the puck over the outstretched pad of Jayden Sittler, ending the ‘Canes netminder’s night. Stuart Skinner took over in the Lethbridge night and received a rude welcome as Cole grabbed the puck and centered for Sam Steel who flicked it to the back of the net. The visitors weren’t about to go away quietly and the Hurricanes started the long road back three minutes after the Steel marker. The top ranked powerplay in the league took advantage of its opportunity when Ryley Lindgren tipped in a Brayden Burke feed to make it a 6-2 game. Before the period was over, Giorgio Estephan struck to get the Hurricanes within a 6-3 count.
After Colton Kroeker was turned away on a partial break and Connor Hobbs hit a post, Lethbridge continued to chip away at the Pats lead. Justin Gutierrez accepted a Burke pass out of the corner and fired in the ‘Canes’ fifth goal from the right faceoff circle. After setting up two goals, Burke got one of his own when Babenko’s pass went in off Burke’s skate and into the net. The Pats held onto their lead for the final 9:42 to fend off the comeback in their 6-5 victory.
Quick Hits
– Colby Williams notched his 100th career point in his 200th career game.
– Connor Hobbs extended his point streak to nine games with 10 points (6G, 5A) over that stretch.
– Hobbs also surpassed his 2014-15 total of 18 points with 19 points (10G, 9A) this season.
– Adam Berg had a career high three points (1G, 2A) in tonight’s game.
– Game attendance was 4,179.
What’s Next?
The Pats head up to Saskatoon for a 4:05 p.m. matchup with the Blades. Tune in on 620 CKRM with Bennett Dunlop Ford Pats Hockey starting up at 3:40 p.m.
