The Richardson Pioneer Weyburn Red Wings are on the road once again for Game 6 of the SJHL playoff quarterfinals tonight against the Battlefords North Stars. The Red Wings lead the series 3-2, and have the chance to advance to the second round on the road against the North Stars. Besides the 4-3 win at Crescent Point Place on Game 1, the last 4 games have been won by the visiting team. A deviation from the normal that head coach and general manager, Cody Mapes, is fine with given the Red Wings success on the road.
"We've been good on the road all year. I'm not sure why, it's very different from the last couple years where we have been really, really good at home and this year's very different. Our 18-8 record on the road during the regular season and 17-11 at home. I mean they're both really good records but to have that record on the road is definitely a huge plus and I think our guys feel comfortable and we've had some success here. So, we just hope to continue that success into this Game 6."
The Red Wings beat the North Stars at the Access Communications Centre with a 5-3 win Game 4 last Tuesday and a 4-3 OT win in Game 5 on Wednesday before dropping Game 6 at home 4-3 in OT. Forward Liam Fitzgerald was the overtime hero for the Red Wings last Wednesday, who's focused on closing out this series on the road.
"We thought we were really close in Game 5 all things considered. We thought it was a pretty good effort and it could've gone either way. So, we're really just focused on coming in here, playing as complete of a 60 (minutes) as we can and hopefully the result goes our way. I think you try going to the other team's rink and play the spoiler, try and quiet their crowd as much as we can. They've done it in our rink, we've done it in their rink, so we got to come out here, try to get a jump on them early and hopefully keep their fans quiet and play the best we can."
The Red Wings face the North Stars in Game 6 tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Access Communications Centre. Catch all the action on Great Plains Ford Red Wing Radio Country 106.7 with Dylan Fiessel and John Prette starting at 7:15 p.m. with the pre-game show.