Brandon prepares for Alberta invasion

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This article was published 17/11/2023 (791 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Brandon Wheat Kings will be meeting the best and worst of the Central Division this weekend, and aren’t taking either one for granted.

The sixth-place Edmonton Oil Kings (6-12-0-1) visit tonight, with the Central Division and Eastern Conference-leading Medicine Hat Tigers (13-5-2-0) skating into Westoba Place on Saturday. Both Western Hockey League games start at 7 p.m.

Wheat Kings rookie forward Carter Klippenstein, who ended a 14-game goalless drought against Moose Jaw last week, said the Oil Kings and Tigers still have one big common denominator.

“There is a pretty big skill difference between the two teams but they are both going to come and play so we have to expect the best out of both of them,” Klippenstein said.

It will be the first meeting of the season for Brandon against both teams. In their only Central Division action so far, the Wheat Kings fell 4-3 to the visiting Calgary Hitmen on Oct. 7 and beat the host Lethbridge Hurricanes 1-0 in overtime on Oct. 11.

Brandon head coach and general manager Marty Murray said the lack of familiarity with the two teams means their approach has to be a little different.

“They are two teams we haven’t seen yet,” Murray said. “You have to worry about yourself, almost like at the start of the year. That’s the focus, worrying about your own game. We’ll do some work to pre-scout them but we have to focus on our game and some of the good things we’ve been doing as of late and some things to correct.”

Brandon’s record in its last 10 games is the hockey equivalent of a Rorschach test: If you want find the positives, they’re on display. And if you’re looking for the negatives, they’re easy to find.

The team is 3-3-3-1 dating back to an 11-1 drubbing on Oct. 18 at the hands of the Portland Winterhawks during their trip west and 8-8-4-1 overall.

That means in their last 10 games they have 10 points, and in 21 games this season, they have 21 points.

“The games we’ve been on, we’ve been rolling, but I think we have to be more consistent throughout the games,” said Klippenstein, who turns 17 later this month and has six points in 20 games.

“We have a good couple of periods but we have to finish it out every single game hard, including in overtime. We’ve had a couple of bad bounces there but we’ll be better this weekend and more consistent too.”

Defenceman Seth Tansem, who joined the team for the first time in Lethbridge as they started their West Coast trip, agrees with Klippenstein.

“We’ve been getting those points but there have been a few games where we just kind of threw it away at the end,” Tansem said. “We know we can win those games and get those points, which are crucial right now. I think it’s just sticking to what we know we can do and we’ll be fine.”

Edmonton, which sold heavily to win the 2022 WHL championship, is continuing to rebuild but has some terrific young pieces in players such as 16-year-old defenceman Blake Fiddler and 17-year-old forward Gavin Hodnett of Winnipeg.

“They’re another division team and these are big points for us,” Tansem said. “We know a little bit about them but it’s going to be a bit of a different game because we don’t play them all the time. It should be fun.”

The Tigers are a different kind of challenge.

While they lost 6-3 to the Swift Current Broncos in their last game on Wednesday, they’re one of the league’s highest-scoring teams with 87 goals in 20 games. They are led up front by Cayden Lindstrom, Andrew Basha, Oasiz Wiesblatt and sensational 16-year-old Gavin McKenna.

In net, their three goalies include Brandon’s Ethan McCallum.

“You definitely see them in the standings,” Tansem said. “They’re doing pretty good but that doesn’t really mean anything out on the ice. It’s going to whoever comes to play that night. I’m looking forward to it.”

The 17-year-old defenceman, who was acquired from the Prince Albert Raiders for a draft pick, has suited up in 10 games. He said he’s finding his way with the club.

“I feel like I’ve been settling in pretty good,” Tansem said. “Everything has been great. The games have been good but we obviously want to win a few more. We’re pushing.”

Brandon has played well at home, earning points in seven of its name games at Westoba Place with a record of 5-2-2-0. On the road, they’re 3-6-2-1.

“We’ve been good this year at home and we need to keep doing that,” Klippenstein said. “The road wins will come but this weekend we’re focused on winning in this barn here.”

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