Warriors Offence Explodes In 7-1 Game 3 Win
The Moose Jaw Warriors scored four goals five minutes apart in the second period and went on to a 7-1 Game 3 win over the Brandon Wheat Kings at Mosaic Place.
The Warriors utilized their speed throughout the opening period to create opportunities. They came through the neutral zone quickly and crashed the Wheat Kings along their walls, forcing the puck towards the Brandon blue ice.
On the other side of the red-line, the Wheat Kings got in to Warrior clearing lanes inside their zone which resulted in turnovers and extra attack time.
The teams combined for 21 shots in the first period, they both were 0-for-1 on the power play, they both had a couple great scoring chances taken away by big saves, and the game went in to the first intermission scoreless.
In the second period the line of Brett Howden, Jayden Halbgewachs, and Tanner Jeannot attacked the Wheat Kings zone and finally found some rewards.
At 10:35, 15-year-old Jett Woo flipped the puck through the neutral zone to Jeannot who led a rush across the Brandon line. Jeannot came down the right wing and connected with Halbgewachs driving to the Wheat Kings net where he picked up the game’s first goal.
Just over four minutes later and with Moose Jaw on the power play, Halbgewachs had a shot blocked from inside the left circle. The puck went to Nikita Popugaev along the wall who went back to Halbgewachs who snapped in his second of the game.
Just over a minute later Halbgewachs, Jeannot, and Howden stormed up the ice, this time Halbgewachs set up Howden charging the net where he picked up his fourth goal of the playoffs.
A surge of Warriors offence ended under a minute later at 16:39 when Brayden Point danced his way from inside the right circle and then shelved a back-hand over Brandon goalie Jordan Papirny to make it 4-0 going in to the second intermission.
Brandon was physical to start the third period and was able to generate a goal three minutes in to the frame. With the visitors pressing the Warriors silenced their momentum with Jayden Halbgewachs’ hat trick goal at 8:21.
The Warriors went on to add goals from Tanner Jeannot and Nikita Popugaev in the final three minutes and Zach Sawchenko finished with 34 saves in the Warriors one-sided 7-1 win.
Halbgewachs finished with three goals and five points, Tanner Jeannot had a goal and four points, Nikita Popugaev had a goal and three points, and Jett Woo recorded an assist for his first WHL playoff point.
Moose Jaw now trails Brandon 2-games-to-1 heading in to Wednesday’s Game 4 at Mosaic Place, Western Nissan Warriors Hockey is back on Country 100 starting with the PreGame Show at 6:40pm.
