MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM -- The Moose Jaw Warriors have lost more than their share of close games during their six-game Western Hockey League losing streak, but Friday was not one of those nights.
The Warriors fell behind 3-0 in the first 11 minutes of the game and had no answer the rest of the way in a 6-0 loss to the Kelowna Rockets in Kelowna to open their five game road trip through the B.C. Division.
Moose Jaw fell to 3-8-0-2 and with a Prince Albert win over Wenatchee, dropped into last place in the Eastern Conference. Kelowna improved to 5-6-0-1 and moved from last in the Western Conference into a four-way tie for seventh place.
Essentially, the Warriors had no answer for Tij Iginla and Andrew Cristall on the night, as Iginla finished with a hat trick and four points, while Cristall had a goal and four points.
Kelowna opened scoring 8:25 into the game when Iginla took a feed into the high slot from Cristall and got off a one-timer from the point that found the low left corner. The goal came after a series of sustained pressure in the Moose Jaw zone as the Warriors struggled to gain any offensive momentum of their own.
The Warriors had chances as the period progressed -- including one of the rush by Rilen Kovacevic, who nearly scored on his former team after returning from a couple weeks off due to injury -- but Jake Pilon would make a handful of big saves to preserve the lead.
Jackson Unger was just as effective at the other end of the ice, facing what has become a career-usual barrage of shots and making 16 stops in the opening frame.
The Warriors had opportunities early in the second to tie things up, but Kamloops would extend their lead instead.
Iginla jumped on a turnover in the Moose Jaw zone and sent a pass cross-ice to Cristall, who had all the time he needed to send the return pass back to Iginla past a scrambling Unger, and a quick tap-in later made it 2-0 with 7:29 gone in the second.
Cristall then made it 3-0 at the 10:46 mark, taking a breakaway pass from Iginla and jamming the puck home five-hole.
Iginla then finished off his hat trick with 4:12 remaining in the period, taking a feed from Cristall to the point and getting off a shot through traffic that found the net for his second three-goal game of the season.
Jackson Gillespie scored his first of the season to make it a 5-0 game with 9:17 gone in the third period and Brent Calhoon scored with 19 seconds remaining to close out the offence on the night.
Unger turned aside 28 shots in the first two periods before giving way to Dimitri Fortin, who stopped 12 in the final frame. Pilon was far less busy at the other end of the ice on his way to his first career shutout, with 17 saves total.
Kelowna had a rare penalty-free game and were 2-for-3 on the man advantage themselves.
The Warriors are back in action on Saturday night when they’re in Kamloops to face the Blazers. Game time is 7 p.m. Moose Jaw time.
