A back-and-forth game ended with Denton Mateychuk scoring the shootout winner for the Moose Jaw Warriors.
The Warriors captain lifted Moose Jaw to a 5-4 win over the Medicine Hat Tigers at Co-op Place, taking the first half of their weekend home-and-home set.
“Real good win, tough road win,” Assistant coach Scott King said. “Quick turnaround tomorrow for both teams, but it should be another good one.”
The win improves the Warriors’ record to 11-6-0-0 this season. These two teams will now meet for a rematch in Moose Jaw on Saturday night.
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Mateychuk and Brayden Yager scored in the shootout, while Harper Lolacher, Eric Alarie, Atley Calvert and Jagger Firkus found the back of the net in regulation.
“We came out and had a good start, lots of energy, played well,” King said. “Credit them, they could have easily packed it in, but they came out in the second period and took it to us and played a really hard game.”
Connor Ungar made 34 tough saves in regulation and overtime, and then two more in the shootout to secure the win for the Warriors.
“Connor had to battle with traffic, with bodies, with people in the blue paint and still found a way to make saves, so credit him, he was real good,” King said.
Lolacher opened the scoring just 4:45 into the game when he tipped home Max Wanner’s point shot for his first Western Hockey League goal.
Less than five minutes later, Eric Alarie found a rebound in front and made it 2-0 just 9:21 into the game.
Oasiz Wiesblatt pulled the Tigers within one just 3:36 into the second period, but Calvert answered back with his team-leading ninth of the season at 9:51 to restore the two-goal lead.
Tyler MacKenzie made it a one-goal game again 1:21 later and then Wiesblatt tied the game 2:28 after that.
In the third period, Firkus put on a one-man show to score his ninth of the season midway through the frame.
Just as the momentum swung the Warriors’ way, Bogdans Hods tied the game again only 1:49 after that.
In overtime, the Warriors killed off the final 1:55 of the extra frame shorthanded to send the game to the shootout.
The Warriors and Tigers will meet again at the Moose Jaw Events Centre on Saturday night. Puck drops at 7 p.m.
You can get ready for the game with the Pre-Game Show on IKS Media Warriors Live on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook at 6:45 p.m. Also tune in after the game for reaction from the locker room on the Post-Game Show.