Throughout the week, their coaching staff challenged the Brandon Wheat Kings not to put the Tigers on a pedestal. They answered, bringing a five-game losing skid against the Tigers to an emphatic end.
Caleb Hadland scored what proved to be the game-winning goal early in the first period and Carson Bjarnason made 33 saves for a shutout as the Wheat Kings downed the Tigers 3-0. At the other end, Harrison Meneghin was similarly strong for the Tigers with 35 saves.
“They’re a really good team and you have to respect them,” said head coach and GM Marty Murray. “Their top end is elite, they play hard and can burn you in a lot of different areas. We have to respect them for sure, but we’ve been guilty of standing around in awe and letting them do their thing… tonight we played pretty hard for the most part.”
The Wheat Kings wanted a better start and they got it. Marcus Nguyen forced a turnover below the Tigers’ goal line and fed the puck out front to Hadland, who snapped home his third of the season.
Throughout the rest of the first period, the Wheat Kings looked for more, but they ran into a bit of a brick wall in Harrison Meneghin. Brady Turko had a golden opportunity, but Meneghin dove across to snare the shot with his trapper and prevent the Wheat Kings going ahead by two. By the end of the first, Brandon had amassed 17 shots on goal.
In the second period, it was the Tigers’ turn to pile up shots. They fired 16 of their own on the Wheat Kings’ net, many of them from high-danger areas, but Bjarnason foiled them at every turn.
The third period saw the Wheat Kings press for more insurance, but even with two good power plays they couldn’t break through Meneghin. When the Tigers pulled him for the extra attacker, however, that was when the Wheat Kings made them pay. Matteo Michels lifted the puck to centre and Quinn Mantei chased it down to put the Wheat Kings up 2-0.
The Tigers pulled Meneghin again, but the Wheat Kings took advantage again. This time, Dominik Petr was the man who stuffed in the extra insurance.
The win moves the Wheat Kings to 8-4-1-1 on the season and wraps up the five-game homestand for them at 4-0-1. Next up is a quick trip up the road to Regina to face the Pats on November 8.
