FRIDAY IS CALENDAR POSTER NIGHT
Brandon, MB. — The Brandon Wheat Kings will be hoping to close out their pre-Christmas schedule on a winning note this weekend as they take on the Moose Jaw Warriors in a home and home series, before taking on the Eastern Division’s top team.
The Wheat Kings, who are coming off Tuesday’s 7-5 loss to the visiting Saskatoon Blades, will host the Warriors on Friday night before travelling to Moose Jaw on Saturday. Brandon will then close out the weekend with a game against the front running Raiders in Prince Albert on Sunday. The 21-10-0-2 Raiders currently lead the second place Saskatoon Blades by nine points.
Brandon meanwhile is 11-18-2-2 and sitting in a tie for fifth place with Regina in the Western Hockey League’s Eastern Division. The Wheat Kings currently trail fourth place Moose Jaw by five points and third place Swift Current by seven as the league winds down play in time for the Holiday season.
Brandon will be playing without leading scorer Alessio Bertaggia this weekend. The 19-year old left-winger is back home in Switzerland, skating with that country’s junior team and preparing for the upcoming IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships in Russia.
While the Wheat Kings will be missing Bertaggia, the Warriors will have to do without all star blueliner Morgan Rielly. A first round draft choice of the National Hockey League’s Toronto Maple Leafs, Rielly is currently attending the National Junior Selection Camp in Calgary. Rielly is currently tied with Portland’s Seth Smith and Brandon captain Ryan Pulock for third place in scoring among Western League blueliners with 28 points each.
Two players that should be in the lineup and facing one another on Friday will be two of the league’s premier 16-year old rookies. Moose Jaw’s Brayden Point and Brandon’s Jayce Hawryluk are currently sitting in 5th and 7th place respectively in league scoring among first year players. A Calgary product, Point has eight goals and 25 points this season while Hawryluk – a second round draft choice of the Wheat Kings in the 2011 WHL Bantam Draft – has nine goals and 23 points and is coming off a 4-point performance in Tuesday’s loss to Saskatoon.
Moose Jaw enters the 2-game weekend series sitting three games under the .500 mark at 12-15-3-4.
Friday night is Calendar Poster Giveaway Night in Brandon, with all fans in attendance to receive a full color 2013 Calendar Poster courtesy of The Brandon Sun and McDonalds Restaurants in Brandon and Neepawa.
The game will also feature a special pre-game ceremonial opening face-off by former Wheat King and Kamloops Blazer netminder Geoff McIntosh. The Saskatoon native, who spent three years in Brandon, is one of many WHL graduates to take advantage of the league’s attractive Education Fund. Following his junior hockey playing days, he enrolled at the University of Saskatchewan and earned his degree in Dentistry.
Today, McIntosh is the new owner of Princess Dental in Brandon. He finished his WHL career with a goals against average of 2.77 and six shutouts, which means only five goaltenders in the history of the Brandon franchise have recorded more. That list includes Tyler Plante (12), Andrew Hayes (11), Glen Hanlon and Jamie Hodson (8) as well as Byron Penstock (7).
The WHL continues to be the leading provider of Hockey Scholarships in Western Canada. Since 1993, the league has awarded more than 4,900 scholarships to graduate players, representing a contribution of more than $17 million.
As well, the Wheat Kings will be honouring the Neelin Girls Volleyball team during the first intermission, in recognition of their recent Provincial 4A Championship Title.
Tickets to the game are on sale now at the Keystone Centre box office, by calling 726-3555 or online at keystonecentre.com
