An offence surge by the Brandon Wheat Kings in the second period was too much for the Saskatoon Blades to overcome, losing 5-2 Wednesday at Westoba Place.
The Blades and Wheat Kings are now tied for first place in the East Division with 75 points. Both sides have five games remaining in the regular season, including one more meeting in Brandon on Wednesday, March 19.
Rookie forward Zach Olsen and overage winger Tanner Scott were the goal scorers for Saskatoon. Goalie Ethan McCallum’s record fell to 11-11-0-3 after _-save performance in the loss.
Wheat Kings defenceman Luke Shipley broke the ice 10:36 into the opening frame with his 15th goal of the season. The 20-year-old blueliner’s tally stood as the lone goal in the first period.
The second period was all Wheat Kings forward Marcus Nguyen. The 20-year-old forward put Brandon out to a 3-0 lead with back-to-back goals at 4:05 and 7:28 into the frame, the second coming on one of two Brandon powerplays in the period.
Olsen brought the Blades within two a little over halfway through the second with his tenth goal of the season. The Calgary, AB native returned to action after serving a three-game suspension. Olsen also has nine assists on the year, giving him 19 points in 55 games.
Nguyen completed the second-period hat-trick 45 seconds later to give Brandon a 4-1 lead. The former Portland Winterhawk leads the Wheat Kings in goals with 33 in 63 games and is second in team scoring with 60 points, three back of forward Nolan Flamand.
Scott cashed in on the Blades second man-advantage of the period to cut the deficit to two. The Sherwood Park, AB native buried a puck that came off the backboards for his 14th goal of the season. Saskatoon needed a big 20 minutes to keep sole possession of first place in the East Division.
Wheat Kings forward Caleb Hadland scored the third-period goal into an empty net while the Blades had an extra attacker out.
What’s Next?
The Blades try to go 3-0 on their road trip Friday at InnovationPlex when they visit the Swift Current Broncos.
Puck drop is 7:00 pm CST.
