WHL HEADLINES

RED DEER @ CALGARY TONIGHT ON SHAW – Colin Fraser (pictured) and the Red Deer Rebels (34-24-4-4) visit archrivals the Calgary Hitmen (33-22-8-5) in a key Central division battle tonight.
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rTonight’s contest between the Rebels and Hitmen can be seen throughout the Alberta region on SHAW.
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rThe Rebels currently trail the Hitmen by three points for third spot in the Central division, but have two games in hand on Calgary. Red Deer is coming off Tuesday’s 7-3 victory over Regina and have won three of their last four outings. Fraser, the Rebels’ captain, ranks second on the team with 40 assists and third in team scoring with 62 points. Red Deer is 13-18-2 on the road this season.
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rThe Hitmen, who sit third in the Central division, are coming off Wednesday’s 2-1 overtime defeat in Kelowna and have dropped three of their last four outings. Calgary is a solid 19-9-6 on home ice this season, and they own the league’s second-best power play at home. Konstantin Pushkarev (21g-28a) leads the Hitmen in scoring with 49 points this season.
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rIt’s the ninth of 10 regular-season meetings between the Hitmen and Rebels. Calgary has dominated the series with a 5-2-1 record through the first eight encounters.
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rTonight’s SHAW broadcast can be seen in Alberta locally in Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, Red Deer Medicine Hat, and Fort McMurray.
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rElsewhere on Friday night, the Brandon Wheat Kings (42-20-5-1) welcome the Prince Albert Raiders (28-30-5-4) in an East division match-up.
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rThe Wheat Kings, who top the division, beat Swift Current 5-2 on Wednesday, clinching the team their second East division title in three years. Lance Monych is carrying an 11-game point streak into tonight’s contest.
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rThe Raiders, who are third in the East division, are coming off Tuesday’s 3-1 win over Moose Jaw and have won four of their last five games. The Raiders are 11-20-3 away from Prince Albert this season.
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rIt’s the ninth and final meeting of the season between the Wheat Kings and Raiders. Brandon leads the series 5-2-1 through the first eight meetings.
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rThe Everett Silvertips (30-25-8-2) welcome the Seattle Thunderbirds (41-21-2-2) tonight.
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rThe Silvertips, who are tied with Portland for second in the U.S. division, are coming off Wednesday’s 6-2 win over Spokane that clinched them a playoff spot. The Silvertips are 18-10-4 on home ice this season.
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rThe Thunderbirds, who have already claimed the U.S. division title, are coming off Wednesday’s 5-1 win over Tri-Cities and are 6-3-1 in their last 10 outings. The T-Birds are the only team in the league to have 20 or more wins both at home and on the road.
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rIt’s the eighth of 10 regular-season meetings between the T-Birds and ‘Tips. The series is ties 3-3-1 through the first seven encounters.
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rThe Kamloops Blazers (25-34-7-2) host the Kelowna Rockets (41-12-12-2) in a B.C. division contest tonight.
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rThe Blazers, who currently lead the Cougars by five points for fourth in the division, are coming off Tuesday’s 4-3 win over the Americans and are 4-5-1 in their last 10 games. The Blazers are 18-14-3 at home this season.
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rThe Rockets, who currently lead Kootenay by two points for first in the B.C. division and first overall, managed a 2-1 overtime victory over Calgary on Wednesday and have dropped only one of their last 12 contests. Kelowna owns the league’s second-best power play on the road.
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rIt’s the ninth meeting of the season between the Rockets and Blazers. Kelowna has the edge in the season series with a 4-1-3 record through the first eight encounters.
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rThe Kootenay Ice (43-15-6-2) host the Lethbridge Hurricanes (37-17-12-1) tonight.
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rThe Ice, who trail Kelowna by two points for the B.C. division lead and first overall, are coming off Tuesday’s 5-0 win over Calgary for their second consecutive shutout victory. The Ice are an impressive 26-5-3 on home ice this season.
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rThe Hurricanes, who currently hold a one-point lead over Medicine Hat for the Central division lead, are coming off Wednesday’s 6-1 victory over Regina and have won eight of their last 10 outings. The Hurricanes are 18-10-5 on the road this season.
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rIt’s the sixth meeting of the season between the Ice and ‘Canes. Lethbridge has a 3-1-1 edge in the series through the first five meetings.
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rThe Portland Winter Hawks (30-25-5-5) welcome the Spokane Chiefs (23-33-8-2) tonight in another big U.S. division match-up.
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rThe Winter Hawks, who are currently tied with Everett for second in the U.S. division, are coming off Sunday’s 5-3 win over Seattle and have clinched a playoff spot. The Hawks are 17-13-2 on home ice this season.
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rThe Chiefs, who trail Tri-Cities by two points for fourth in the U.S. division, were beaten 6-2 by Everett on Wednesday and have only managed one win in their last five outings. The Chiefs are 10-22-1 on the road this season.
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rIt’s the eighth meeting of the season between the Chiefs and Winter Hawks this season. The series is tied 3-3-1 through the first seven encounters.
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rThe Prince George Cougars (24-38-3-1) host the Vancouver Giants (31-28-4-4) tonight in the first of back-to-back meetings between the teams.
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rThe Cougars, who trail Kamloops by five points for fourth in the B.C. division, have been idle since last Saturday’s 3-1 win over Spokane but have managed only three wins in their last 10 games. The Cougars are 16-14-2 at home this season.
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rThe Giants, who sit third in the B.C. division, are coming off Sunday’s 4-1 win over Kamloops and are 4-5-1 in their last 10 outings. Gilbert Brule (36g-43a) leads the Giants in scoring with 79 points.
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rIt’s the sixth of eight regular-season meetings between the teams. Vancouver leads the series 4-1 through the first five encounters. The Cougars and Giants meet up again tomorrow night in P.G.
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rThe Saskatoon Blades (34-21-6-6) welcome the Medicine Hat Tigers (40-20-4-2) on Friday night.
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rThe Blades, who have locked up second place in the East division, have been idle since last Friday’s 1-1 tie with Regina and are winless in four straight contests. Mike Green leads all WHL defencemen in scoring with 62 points this season.
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rThe Tigers, who trail Lethbridge by just one point for first in the Central division, are coming off Tuesday’s big 4-3 win over Brandon that snapped the Wheat Kings’ 15-game winning streak. The Tigers could clinch at least second place in the Central division with a win tonight.
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rIt’s the fourth meeting of the season between the Blades and Tigers. Medicine Hat has won all three previous meetings this season.
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rIn other action on Friday night, the Moose Jaw Warriors (13-44-10-1) host the Swift Current Broncos (20-37-6-3).
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rTonight’s contest between the Warriors and Broncos is a make-up game for a game between the teams on January 12th that was postponed due to bad weather.
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rThe Warriors, who hold a five-point lead over Regina for fourth in the East division, are coming off Tuesday’s 3-1 loss to the Raiders and have dropped three of their last four games. The Warriors are 9-20-5 at home this season.
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rThe Broncos, who sit fifth in the Central division, are coming off Wednesday’s 5-2 loss to Brandon and have only won twice in their last 10 outings. The Broncos have already been eliminated from post-season play.
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rIt’s the sixth meeting of the season between the Warriors and Broncos. Swift Current is undefeated versus Moose Jaw this season, with a 3-0-2 record through the first five meetings.
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rWHL UPCOMING T.V BROADCASTS
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rSHAW
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rSaturday, March 12
rRegina @ Saskatoon
r7:00 p.m., Saskatchewan and Manitoba regions
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rWednesday, March 16
rPrince George @ Kelowna
r7:00 p.m., British Columbia region
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rFriday, March 18
rVancouver @ Kelowna
r7:00 p.m., British Columbia region
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