7 pm, Friday, March 3/2017
Regina Brandt Centre
620 CKRM
Access 7/Shaw
OVERVIEW
The Regina Pats (44-10-7-1) host Medicine Hat on Friday for the final meeting of the season with the Tigers (45-18-1-0). Puck drop is 7 p.m. at the Brandt Centre. The Pats were last in action on Tuesday at home to the Lethbridge Hurricanes and lost 4-1. The Tigers are coming off a 6-5 overtime win in Prince Albert on Wednesday, their third straight victory. The Pats are 2-1-0-0 against the Tigers entering tonight’s fourth and final meeting of the season. The game can be heard on 620 CKRM with Bennett Dunlop Ford Pats Hockey beginning at 6:35 p.m. The game will also be shown on Access 7 and the WHL on Shaw.
Lead Up: Pats Drop Second In A Row On Tuesday
The Regina Pats fell 4-1 to the Lethbridge Hurricanes at the Brandt Centre on Tuesday night. Lethbridge jumped out to an early 1-0 lead and added a shorthanded goal late in the first to lead 2-0 after 20 minutes. Early in the second, the Hurricanes scored on the powerplay to lead 3-0. Dawson Leedahl got one back late in the second to make it 3-1 heading to the third. Lethbridge would score an empty netter with less than a minute left to lead 4-1 and take the two points. The Pats outshot the Hurricanes 43-27 in the loss, Tyler Brown made 23 saves for Regina, Stuart Skinner 42 for Lethbridge.
Head to Head
The Pats hold a 2-1-0-0 record against the Tigers so far this year. Both wins have come on the road and the one loss at the Brandt Centre. Regina has outscored Medicine Hat 19-15 in the three games. The Pats powerplay has gone four for nine (44.4%) and the penalty kill 12 for 16 (75%), in the first three meetings. Regina has outshot Medicine Hat 114-112. Sam Steel leads the Pats with three goals and five assists for eight points in the season series. Dawson Leedahl and Austin Wagner each have six points while Josh Mahura and Nick Henry each have five. Medicine Hat’s Chad Butcher has a goal and six helpers against Regina. Steven Owre has recorded six points and Clayton Kirichenko five. The Pats enter Friday’s action in first place in the WHL with 96 points, five ahead of the 2nd place Tigers. Regina holds two games in hand.
It’s A Big One
The Battle for playoff positioning will be front and center on Friday night. The Pats enter the weekend in first place in the Eastern Conference with a 44-10-7-1 record. The Tigers are five points back with a record of 45-18-1-0. A win for the Pats would mean the club would be seven points away from clinching top spot in the conference for the WHL playoffs. A loss would bring the Tigers to within three points of first. Regina would then need five wins in their last nine games to sew up the top seed. As for the East Division, the Pats are six points from clinching first. The League regular season title is 10 points away for the Pats. Any combination of five wins or five Everett losses.
Streaking
Pats forward and Anaheim Ducks prospect Sam Steel is riding a five game point streak entering Friday night. The 18-year-old has scored five goals and has seven assists over that stretch. He leads the WHL with 115 points in 56 games. Linemate Dawson Leedahl also has points in five straight games. The overager from Saskatoon has five goals and four assists in those games. His 80 points on the year is tied for 10th overall in the league.
Upcoming Schedule
Pats Vs Calgary – Saturday March 4, 7 p.m. – Brandt Centre (CKRM)
Pats @ Brandon – Sunday March 5, 4 p.m. – Westman Place (CKRM)
Pats @ Swift Current – Wednesday March 8, 7 p.m. – Credit Union Iplex (CKRM)
(Courtesy Phil Andrews/ReginaPats.com)
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