Wheat Kings fall in overtime duel with Blades
Three times the Wheat Kings trailed against the Saskatoon Blades only to tie the score. Unfortunately, there was no opportunity to tie it when they gave up the fourth goal.
Jaxon Jacobson scored twice and Dylan Ronald picked up his first WHL goal, but the Wheat Kings fell 4-3 in overtime to the Eastern Conference-leading Blades. Carson Bjarnason made 36 saves in the loss.
Although they had a double-minor to work with, and piled up shots on it, the Wheat Kings couldn’t break through in the first period. And although they had a power play of their own, and amassed 14 shots, neither could the Blades at the other end.
By contrast, the goals flowed in the second. Saskatoon led it off with Tyler Parr beating Bjarnason with a quick shot off the rush low to the blocker side. Jacobson answered for Brandon, fed at the lip of the crease by Nolan Flamand to tie the score.
Again the Blades took the lead with Ben Riche finishing off a 3-on-1, but again the Wheat Kings answered. Ronald took a pass from Joby Baumuller off a faceoff and threw it low and hard at the net, sneaking it through Evan Gardner.
The final goal of the period, however, came late and came for the Blades. As the two teams went end-to-end, Brandon Lisowsky picked up the puck at the top of the offensive zone and flung it on net, slipping it through traffic with just 19.6 seconds to go in the second.
Again, the Wheat Kings tied the game, this time off a great individual effort by Jacobson. On the forecheck, he made the strip on Ben Saunderson, walked off the wall to the front of the net, and flipped home his second of the game.
The rest of the third period solved nothing, and overtime began with the Wheat Kings in control. But on the second shift of overtime, the Blades found a seam, sending Riche in alone to complete the win.
The loss ends a two-game winning streak for the Wheat Kings, who will get right back to work tomorrow against the Calgary Hitmen. Puck drop is 7:00.
