Rebels drop eventful 6-4 game to Moose Jaw
RED DEER – It was a fast-paced, high-scoring battle Friday night at the Marchant Crane Centrium as the Red Deer Rebels went toe-to-toe with the Moose Jaw Warriors, ultimately falling 6-4 in a spirited contest.
Veteran depth stepped up in a big way, with goals from Talon Brigley, Matthew Gard, Jaxon Fuder and Beckett Hamilton injecting energy into the Rebels lineup as the club put forth a much improved effort despite the final score.
Moose Jaw improved to 4-2-1-0 on the season while Red Deer dropped to 1-6-0-0 with a fourth loss in a row.
STATS STORY:
Lynden Lakovic (MJ): 2 goals
Talon Brigley, Jaxon Fuder, Matthew Gard (RD): 1 goal, 1 assist
Kash Andresen (MJ): 1 goal, 1 assist
Beckett Hamilton (RD): 1 goal
HOW IT HAPPENED:
A shorthanded marker from Moose Jaw’s Casey Brown had Red Deer trailing early in the first.
The Rebels answered back midway through the period as Talon Brigley worked his magic with a slick deflection on Keith McInnis’ point shot, slipping it past Moose Jaw netminder Matthew Hutchison.
Late in the frame, the Warriors regained the lead when Washington Capitals first-round pick Lynden Lakovic found the back of the net.
Red Deer came out firing in the second, and it paid off when Matthew Gard pounced on a Samuel Drancak rebound to even things up again.
Momentum was building, but the Warriors struck twice in quick succession, with goals from Riley Thorpe on the powerplay and Kash Andresen, prompting a goaltending change as Peyton Shore came in to relieve Chase Wutzke.
Moose Jaw added another before the period ended, making it 5–2 on a tip-in goal from Steven Steranka.
Still the Rebels weren’t done. Jaxon Fuder netted his first of the season with a fortuitous bounce off the end boards, cutting the deficit to two heading into the third.
Beckett Hamilton made it a one-goal game with an absolute rocket from just inside the blue line, giving Red Deer a late surge of energy and belief.
Despite a strong push in the final minutes, the Rebels couldn’t find the equalizer.
Lakovic sealed the win with a slap shot into an empty Rebels net. That caused tensions to boil over and then some as every skater and both goaltenders converged for a game ending rumble in front of the penalty boxes.
Red Deer outshot Moose Jaw 35–23 but went 0-for-4 on the power play, while Moose Jaw converted once on five chances.
BRANDT THREE STARS:
1. Kash Andresen (MJ)
2. Talon Brigley (RD)
3. Casey Brown (MJ)
WHAT THEY SAID:
Rebels head coach Marc Habscheid…
NEXT UP:
Red Deer head south on Saturday, Oct. 11 for a 6 p.m. tilt against the Lethbridge Hurricanes at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena. It’s the third game of the season between the two clubs. The Rebels won 4-2 on Sept. 27 while the Hurricanes were 3-2 victors this past Tuesday.
