For the first 25 minutes of their game against the Red Deer Rebels on Saturday night, the Moose Jaw Warriors looked like they might be the first Western Hockey League team to take a win off their unbeaten opponents.
But you don’t win 15 straight games to start the season without knowing how to stage comebacks -- and the Rebels would do just that, scoring four unanswered goals to overcome a 2-0 deficit and take a 4-2 victory at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.
Thing is, more than any other game this season, the Warriors had a feeling of beating themselves. That’s thanks to four straight penalties in the second period that robbed the home side of all the momentum they’d built up, led to Red Deer scoring their first goal of the game and turned the tables on what had been a solid Moose Jaw showing to that point.
“For the most part we played a really good hockey game, but it’s the self-induced mistakes in the second period that killed us,” said Warriors assitant coach Gord Burnett. “We talked about it before the game that it was going to be a tough game and we’d have to be disciplined and stay out of the box, and for the most part we did a good job except for the second period.”
The Warriors only needed 1:14 to get on the board, when Brayden Yager pounced on a rebound at the side of the net off a shot by Eric Alarie and put a quick shot past Rebels goaltender Kyle Kelsey.
Atley Calvert extended the Warriors’ lead to 2-0 with 3:06 gone in the second, taking advantage of Moose Jaw’s second power play to get off a shot from the top of the left faceoff circle and beat Kelsey blocker side.
Things started to go awry for the Warriors not long after, though -- and it was thanks to the penalties they took over the next 10 minutes. It was on the third opportunity that Red Deer broke through, as Kai Uchaz scored his league-leading 14th goal, tipping a shot from the point past Connor Ungar to get his team back within one with 7:14 to play in the second.
The Warriors had a chance to take the lead with a power play midway through the third, but it would be the Rebels who struck shorthanded. Jace Isley picked up the puck on a turnover at the blueline and went in alone on Ungar before getting off a backhand top corner to tie the game 2-2 with 9:32 to play.
Three minutes later, Isley gave Red Deer the lead for good, redirecting a Jayden Grubbe point shot that was going wide into the right corner of the net.
Another Red Deer penalty with 3:05 to play gave Moose Jaw a chance to tie the game, and the Warriors even pulled Ungar for the 6-on-4, but would only manage to get a couple of scoring chances.
Immediately after the power play expired, Uchaz scored his 15th of the season into the empty net to close out the game and give Red Deer their 4-2 win.
Having the early lead and carrying the play as well as they were left the Warriors wondering what could have been if they had continued rolling along.
“They play a real good hockey game, a real disciplined style, and when we played that way we were right there with them,” Burnett said. “Lately, we’ve played a lot of teams like that, Red Deer, Everett, Tri-City, they’re all disciplined hockey teams. So we’re there, but we’re not at the same time. Maybe we end up on the right side when we play them next time, but it still hurts right now because we beat ourselves that’s what hurts the most.”
Ungar finished with 24 saves on the night, Kelsey stopped 21.
Jagger Firkus picked up a pair of assists on the Warriors’ two goals.
Moose Jaw fell to 9-6-0-0 with the loss and are now tied for fourth place in the Eastern Conference with the Calgary Hitmen, six points back of the Saskatoon Blades.
The Rebels continued their record-setting start to the season and are now 15-0-0-0.
The Warriors won’t have a lot of time to dwell on the tough loss, as they’re right back in action against the Edmonton Oil Kings on Tuesday night. Game time is 7 p.m. at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.
Overtime… The Warriors were without head coach Mark O’Leary, defenceman Marek Howell and forward Lynden Lakovic, with all three currently at the World U17 Hockey Championship… forward Owen Berge and defenceman Brady Ness have been called up to fill the spots opened by Howell and Lakovic.
