The vast majority of times the Moose Jaw Warriors have gone through struggles this season, they’ve had many chances to score and all sorts of opportunities to see a better result.
The overarching theme was ‘what would happen if those chances started to pay off?’
The last two games have answered that question.
One night after scoring six goals in the second period and going on to a 9-4 victory over the Tri-City Americans, the Warriors scored four in the first and six in the second against the Spokane Chiefs, building a 10-2 lead through two before going on to a 12-3 win in Spokane.
The game was the halfway mark of their eight-games-in-14 nights road trip, and saw Moose Jaw improve to 36-19-0-2. Thanks to Swift Current taking an overtime win over Medicine Hat, the Warriors are now a point up on the Tigers for second place in the Eastern Conference
The win was also the first for the Warriors in Spokane since 2004, dating back to the days of Kyle Brodziak, Aaron Rome and Thomas Fleischmann.
The 12 goals were the most scored by a WHL team this season, and the most scored in a Warrior game in the modern era dating back to the 1996-97 season.
After giving up an early goal the previous night, the Warriors took absolutely no time to get on the board in Spokane.
Brayden Yager forced a turnover at the Warriors blueline and sent Atley Calvert in on a breakaway, and while Spokane goaltender Cooper Michaluk was able to make the initial save, Lynden Lakovic was right behind him to slam home the rebound. The goal came only 55 seconds into the proceedings.
Only 2:22 later, Rilen Kovacevic forced another turnover and eventually got off a shot from the right faceoff circle that went off Brayden Schuurman and in.
The Warriors then extended their lead to three with 10:48 to play in the period, and it was a product of Pavel McKenzie showing just why the NHL Central Scouting Bureau took notice of him earlier this fall. McKenzie took a feed at the blue line and beat a pair of Spokane defencemen before putting a shot top shelf blocker side on a play that will undoubtedly be part of WHL highlight reels next week.
Only 46 seconds later, Atley Calvert scored on a long breakaway to make it a 4-0 game, extending his point streak to 16 games.
All told, the Warriors would outshoot Spokane 24-5 in the opening 20 minutes
The Warriors kept things going right off the hop in the second period, this time when Denton Mateychuk absolutely hammered a slap shot from the right face-off circle that snuck through Michaluk.
Martin Rysavy extended the lead to 6-0 at the 4:19 mark, taking a pass from Schuurman out front and putting a shot home, and six minutes later Lakovic scored his second of the game with a hard-angle shot top shelf.
Spokane got one back from Connor Roulette at the 10:18 mark, but the mauling continued not long after.
A penalty to Savoie put the Warriors shorthanded at 11:11, but Rysavy would go in on a breakaway with Calvert chasing, sending a spinarama pass at the top of the crease to the Prairie Hockey Academy grad for his 40th of the season.
No sooner did the penalty end than did Savoie go in on a breakaway, and he’d make it 9-1 at 13:22.
Chase Harrington scored for Spokane with 5:53 to play in the second, but McKenzie picked up his second of the game as time wound down, and the Warriors had their 10-2 lead after two periods.
Things calmed down for much of the third period, and Berkly Catton got Spokane back within seven with 10:27 gone.
Just over two minutes later, Calvert would finish off his hat trick and pick up his fifth point of the game as the Warriors took an 11-3 lead.
That set the stage for the biggest point of the season for Firkus, as his perfect shot from the slot with 2:17 remaining was his 45th goal and 100th point of the season, making the WHL scoring leader the first in the league to hit that milestone this season.
Jackson Unger had a relatively simple night with 22 saves, while the Warriors had 16 shots in the second and 12 more in the third for 52 on the night. Michaluk stopped 27 shots before being pulled after the ninth goal, and Dawson Cowan had 13 stops in the remaining 26:38.
Kovacevic capped his night with four assists, while Lakovic and McKenzie had three points each.
The Warriors are now off until Wednesday when they take on the Western Conference-leading Portland Winterhawks.
