TIGERS OUTLAST REBELS
Medicine Hat, AB — After a short unscheduled pause, the Tigers are back on home ice to do battle with the Red Deer Rebels. Ethan Anders gets the nod for the Rebels and Garin Bjorklund will backstop for the Tigers.
There was a good pace to the game in the first period. Both teams would trade penalties halfway through the frame and shortly after it was the Rebels who got on the board first. Ben King got his 6th of the season when he was left all alone in front of the net and went five hole on Bjorklund. Red Deer continued to apply pressure and was doing everything possible to get ahead as they had lost the last nine games in a row and wanted the win. The Tigers were a bit rusty to start the frame and took two more penalties but Red Deer could not capitalize. The period ended with Brett Kemp on a shorthanded breakaway, but Anders was up to the task and made a great pad save.
The middle frame started with two Tigers in the box. The penalty parade continued with Bjorklund taking a delay of game for dislodging the net. Red Deer took advantage and scored their 2nd of the game with a seeing eye wrist shot from Ben King. The Rebels came to play, as they were getting in Medicine Hat’s skating lanes and slowing the Tigers down. Medicine Hat got some quality chances on the power play when Smith was called for roughing, but couldn’t connect. Red Deer took another penalty for high sticking and it was then that Corson Hopwo took over and scored a beauty to rally the Tigers. Shots on goal were 19 – 19 at the end of the 2nd period.
Red Deer’s Jhett Larson was sent to the penalty box for high sticking and the Tigers would again utilize their league leading powerplay in the the 3rd. Brett Kemp scored his 9th of the season with a great snipe to make it a 2 -2 game. Less than a minute later, Eric Van Impe found an open lane and beat Anders cleanly. The Tigers were able to knock the rust off and keep the pressure on the Rebels. Red Deer would take one more penalty before the end of the game, and Corson Hopwo was Johnny on the spot and made it a 4-2 game. It was a great 3rd period for the Tigers, as they went 3 for 5 on the man advantage and earned their 10th win of the season.
The team will travel north, up the # 1 highway tomorrow, to the Enmax Centrium to meet the Rebels for another engaging tilt. Game time is 7:00 pm.
