Kent, WA – The Moose Jaw Warriors held off a late push from the Seattle Thunderbirds to capture their fifth straight win on Saturday night.
The Warriors continued their march through the U.S. Division with a 4-2 win over the Thunderbirds at the accesso ShoWare Center.
“Not an ideal finish, but at the end of the day, two points in a hard building to play in, the fans were great, the atmosphere was incredible, so it was fun for our guys to experience something like that,” Warriors assistant coach Curtis Pereverzoff said.
Moose Jaw has now won all five games against the U.S. Division and will look to finish off their run in Wenatchee on Sunday.
Pereverzoff said the team is going to lay it all out there to finish the road trip off on a high note.
“There’s nothing to save it for, we’ve got a 16-hour bus ride back home, so empty the tank and I like our chances if we continue to do the right things,” he said.
Jagger Firkus led the charge for the Warriors with two goals, while Atley Calvert picked up a goal and two points to extend his point streak to a Western Hockey League high 18 games.
Kalem Parker also chipped in with two assists in the win.
Dimitri Fortin turned away 29 shots to earn his fourth win of the season and first since Dec. 3. He also picked up an assist on the night.
“Forts was battling hard in there, it’s been a long time since his last start and he’s been working really hard in practices and showing up with a good attitude, so we wanted to get the job done for him,” Pereverzoff said.
The Warriors controlled the game early on, generating a number of quality chances before finally breaking through with 1:53 to go in the first period as Firkus scored his 48th goal of the season.
Moose Jaw added to its lead only 1:19 into the second period when Calvert lifted home his 42nd of the season and 100th career WHL goal.
Firkus made it 3-0 for the Warriors late in the second period when he potted his second of the night with 2:06 to go in the frame.
While the Warriors were in full control heading into the third, the Thunderbirds didn’t quit and put together a strong final frame.
Nico Myatovic got Seattle on the board with 9:43 gone in the third period and then less than five minutes later, Sawyer Mynio made it a one-goal game.
With the Thunderbirds continuing to press and their net empty in the final minute, Brayden Yager raced up ice and slide home his 30th of the season to seal the win.
“Give Seattle a lot of credit, they really pushed back in the third period, especially coming off a long travel day, getting in early this morning so credit to them for pushing back, but at the end of the day, we’ve got to be happy we come away with two points,” Pereverzoff said.
The Warriors outshot the Thunderbirds, 38-31, overall, but Seattle was able to outshoot Moose Jaw, 16-11, in the third period.
Moose Jaw went 1-for-4 on the power play and didn’t give the Thunderbirds an opportunity to work with their power play.
The Warriors will now finish up their eight-game road trip in Wentachee on Sunday at 5 p.m. Saskatchewan time.