Wheat Kings trounce Oil Kings 7-2

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This article was published 07/02/2024 (589 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Nolan Flamand and Dominik Petr each had a pair of goals as the Brandon Wheat Kings beat the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings 7-2 in Western Hockey League action at Westoba Place on Wednesday.

Brandon (25-19-5-1) also received goals from Matteo Michels, Joby Baumuller and Jayden Wiens, with Ty Nash and Gavin Hodnett replying for Edmonton (16-30-2-1).

The Wheat Kings blew a three-goal lead and lost 5-4 to the Oil Kings in overtime at Rogers Place on Jan. 28, so despite a pair of wins earlier in the season series, they were seeking some revenge in the fourth and final meeting between the teams.

“We’re not looking in the past at all but a lot of guys were really upset about the last loss we had against Edmonton in Edmonton,” Flamand said. “We really wanted to take that one back and we definitely showed it tonight.”

The win temporarily moved Brandon into a tie for fifth in the Eastern Conference with the Swift Current Broncos, who have a game in hand.

Brandon hemmed Edmonton into their zone in the early going but failed to create much. It was very different at the other end.

On Edmonton’s first great chance, Brandon defenders failed to cover the middle of the ice and the overage forward Nash put the puck off the inside of the goalpost and past Brandon starting goalie Carson Bjarnason three minutes 24 seconds into the game.

By the six-minute mark, the Oil Kings had weathered the early storm and led 7-1 on the shot clock while consistently beating the Wheat Kings to pucks.

The visitors went up a pair 9:48 into the game when the 17-year-old Winnipegger Hodnett was left all alone by the side of the net and tucked the puck under the bar.

It took the Wheat Kings just 30 seconds to respond, with Flamand chipping in the rebound of his own shot over Edmonton starting goalie Kolby Hay, who was prone on the ice after making the initial save.

“Ship (Luke Shipley) shot one from the point and got a pretty good bounce off the end boards,” Flamand said. “Honestly I probably had a better chance of scoring on the first shot than the second, but luckily enough, it came right back out to me off his helmet and I was able to get another stick on it and it trickled in.”

Hay robbed Petr on a long breakaway off a stretch pass by Quinn Mantei moments later, but on a terrible miscue, Edmonton forward Gracyn Sawchyn made an ill-advised up the middle that was intercepted by Flamand and he fired a shot in off the crossbar for his second goal in less than three minutes.

Brandon head coach and general manager Marty Murray said that was a key moment in the game.

“We got really lose on D-zone coverage on the first two goals,” Murray said. “I thought it was a real big goal by Flamand after the second one. I think it was the next shift, and that was huge. Otherwise, you’re flirting with danger. They’re a dynamic team that can put the puck in the net, and the two goals by Flamand kind of calmed us down and we got into a rhythm after that.”

Petr agreed.

“We had a pretty bad start,” Petr said. “We didn’t want to but then Flam put it in the net and pumped us up and it got back to a game. After that we were better and controlled the game.”

Both goalies had to be sensational in the wide-open period that saw each club put 14 pucks on net, with Hay turning aside a point blank shot by Roger McQueen and Bjarnason denying Roan Woodward on a two-on-one.

It took 96 seconds into the middle period for Brandon to take its first lead in a physically dominant shift for the hosts. Michels was able to jump on a rebound off a shot by Shipley and had an empty net for his 12th goal.

Five minutes later, the Wheat Kings entered the Oil Kings zone and Rylen Roersma went hard to the net. The puck was knocked off his stick but went straight to Petr, who was trailing the play and had an open net for his 11th goal.

“It just an empty net,” Petr said. “Rylen Roersma set it up for me so it was easy to finish.”

The first penalty came 32:14 into the game on a sturdy open-ice hit by Brett Hyland that sent forward John Szabo to the dressing room on unsteady legs. The penalty drew boos from the crowd, although it popped Szabo’s helmet. He didn’t return to the game.

The game took a decidedly angrier turn after Hyland exited the penalty box, with a number of unpenalized infractions in the next minute and four more penalties in the last five minutes of the period.

While Bjarnason had less work in the second period, he made a terrific save on Woodward on a backdoor feed a few minutes into the third period as the Oil Kings pressed to get back into the game.

Brandon struggled with Edmonton’s pressure early on, but when they responded, they did it in highlight reel fashion.

Roersma made an incredible open-ice move that sent an Edmonton defender falling to the ice, and after a no-look, backhand pass, Baumuller ripped a one-timer into the net to give his team a 5-2 lead.

They extended the lead again on an unselfish play by Caleb Hadland, who chose to pass rather than shoot and found Wiens on the backdoor. Just 41 seconds later, Roersma sent a brisk pass into the middle that Petr tipped by Hay to make it 7-2.

It was Roersma’s third assist of the game.

“There were some really nice plays,” Murray said. “If you go over the goals, there were some real nicely executed plays and some nice shots. It’s fun. You have nights when some lines just kind of pick it up, and we had at least two going tonight. It’s nice to have that depth.”

Bjarnason and Hay both made 32 saves, and both clubs went 0-for-2 on the power play.

Flamand said with 18 games remaining in the regular season, and a tight playoff race, his team will need to bring a similar approach every night.

“Especially with teams below us in the standings, those are big games for us,” Flamand said. “We’re all in playoff mode right now. It’s a tight push so we’re going to be coming ready every night for the rest of the year. It’s going to be good.”

ICINGS: Brandon skated without Nick Johnson (upper body, week to week) and healthy scratch D Seth Tansem … Flamand, Roersma, Hadland and Shipley each had four shots to lead the Wheat Kings … The game took a speedy two hours, 11 minutes to play … In the faceoff circle, Brandon won 28-27 … Brandon has just seven home games remaining in the regular season. The Wheat Kings return to action on Friday when the Lethbridge Hurricanes visit Westoba Place for the final time this season. The puck drops at 7.

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