Brady Turko, Jaxon Jacobson cause havoc for goalies
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 23/12/2023 (740 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Imagine you are a goalie, and you see Brady Turko and Jaxon Jacobson coming your way on a two-on-one break.
What do you do to defend against these two Brandon Wheat Kings on their offensive juggernaut during the 2023-24 campaign?
So far with the advent of the Manitoba U18 AAA Hockey League’s Christmas break, few netminders have come up with a solution to keep these smooth-skating forwards at bay.
Wheat Kings forward Brady Turko (7) scores his league-best 22nd goal, the second of two in Brandon's 8-3 victory, on Pembina Valley Hawks goalie Ryler Gates. Teammate Easton Odut (16) looks on Thursday night during third-period action at J&G Homes Arena. (Photo Jules Xavier/The Brandon Sun)
And Wheat Kings coaches Travis Mealy, Michael Ferland and Paul Mandziuk have reason to smile from their perch on the Brandon bench as they watch those two and the rest of their players play tenaciously and with high pace in all zones of the ice.
Just ask second-place Southwest Cougars goalie Kelby Diehl or netminder Ryler Gates with the seventh-place Pemina Valley Hawks. Both felt the wrath of their passing and shooting skills in back-to-back triumphs for the first-place Wheat Kings.
First, Diehl saw Turko put four pucks past him, with Jacobson earning three assists in his team’s 4-1 loss on Wednesday in Souris.
At the Christmas break, the Cougars (18-6-0-0) are 11 points back of the Wheat Kings (23-0-1-0) in the 12-team league.
Gates saw 48 pucks fired his way on Thursday at J&G Homes Arena, with Turko striking twice, while Jacobson again assisted on three goals as Brandon prevailed 8-3.
Seven minutes into the game, the Wheat Kings used their quick-passing power-play to give Gates headaches, with Jacobson recording his first two assists as the host team went up 2-0. Jonah Lemoine and Colten Worthington benefitted from their teammates’ passes or shots by deflecting the puck or jumping on an errant rebound.
Despite the early success, the Hawks were persistent and after 40 minutes the score was knotted at 2-2. Lane Apperly, who had two goals in the game, and Sam Delaquis beat Wheat Kings goalie Matthew Michta, who saw 26 shots at his net.
It was all Brandon in the final 20 minutes, with Dustin Bell, Loughlan McMullan scoring. It looked to be a 6-3 final as the announcer announced the last minute to play in the game.
Nash Henwood scored two more goals for Brandon, 12 seconds apart, to send the Wheat Kings fans home with the perfect Christmas gift.
With Turko and Jacobson causing headaches for opposing goalies in their last two games of 2023, there were shifts in the league’s scoring race.
With his five goals, plus an assist in his final two games, Turko is now on top in the scoring race with 45 points. Jacobson is runner-up with 44.
Known for his offensive exploits, Brandon Wheat Kings sniper Jaxon Jacobson (9) plays a 200-foot game, battling hard along the boards to retrieve pucks he dishes off to teammates. Here, he battles with Pembina Valley Hawks defenceman Spencer Sabourin (6) for position Thursday night, retrieving the puck and recording one of his three assists moments later after setting up Brady Turko. (Photo Jules Xavier/The Brandon Sun)
When it comes to the top goal scorer, Turko is first with 22 goals. He’s four points better than Mason Mykichuk of the sixth-place Winnipeg Thrashers.
Jacobson is tied with Thrashers forward Rohan Guevarra when it comes to recording assists, both with 28, while Turko is third with 23.
Michta is first among his puck-stopping peers with a tidy 1.83 GAA, while teammate Burke Hood is third with a 2.24 GAA. Cougars goalie Micky Gross is second with a 2.23 GAA.
When it comes to wins for goalies, both Hood and Michta are tied with 11 each.
Gross has the best save percentage of those patrolling between the pipes, sporting a league-best .930.
Michta is third with a .929 save percentage, while Hood is seventh at .915.
The Wheat Kings return to the ice to burn off their Christmas holiday calories with the advent of 2024, when the 10th-place Parkland Rangers arrive Jan. 3 at J&G Home Arena for a 7:30 p.m. tilt.
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