WHL Calgary Hitmen

Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Friday, December 11 at Moose Jaw

Published on December 11, 2015 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Calgary Hitmen News Release


CALGARY HITMEN (20-11-1-1, 42 pts.) at MOOSE JAW WARRIORS (15-10-4-1, 35 pts.)

Friday, Dec. 11, 2015 - 6:00 p.m. MT - Mosaic Place

TONIGHT'S GAME

The Calgary Hitmen will play the third of five straight games on the road when they visit the Moose Jaw Warriors tonight. Calgary, who started the trip with a 6-4 win in Brandon on Tuesday, is coming off Wednesday's 4-3 triumph in Regina. Carsen Twarynski scored the winner, breaking a 3-3 third period tie with 10 minutes remaining. Travis Sanheim, Jakob Stukel and Layne Bensmiller all had a goal and an assist for the Hitmen while Radel Fazleev and Jake Bean added two assists each. Cody Porter made 30 saves to pick up the win as the Pats outshot the Hitmen 33-30. Calgary, at 42 points, not only leads the WHL's Central Division but also the Eastern Conference by two points over the Red Deer Rebels. Moose Jaw is third in the East Division with 35 points, four points behind Prince Albert and Brandon who share first place.

HITMEN BROADCAST INFORMATION

Radio: Sportsnet 960-The Fan

Webcast: WHL Live at whl.neulion.com

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STREAKS

- Travis Sanheim (2g, 7a) is riding a six-game point streak.

- Jordy Stallard (4g, 2a) is on a career-high four-game streak.

- Carsen Twarynski (2g, 2a) has goals in back-to-back games.

- Jake Bean (5a) is on a two-game point streak.

- Jakob Stukel (9g, 4a) and Radel Fazleev (2g, 14a) both have points in eight of their last nine games. Layne Bensmiller (1g, 4a) has points in three of his last four games..

- Cody Porter has won his last three starts while posting a 1.67 goals against average and .927 save percentage.

NOTEWORTHY

VS MOOSE JAW: Tonight is the third of four regular season meetings between the two teams. Moose Jaw leads the season series 2-0 having outscored Calgary by a combined 16-5. Brayden Point (3g, 4a) tops Moose Jaw with seven points against Calgary while Noah Gregor (4g, 2a) is next with six. The departed Chase Lang (1g, 1a) and Elliott Peterson (2a) have two points each for the Hitmen in the season series. Over the last five seasons, Calgary is 12-5-1-0 against the Warriors including a 5-3-1-0 record in Moose Jaw. Their next meeting is not until Friday, January 22 in Calgary.

2015-16 REGULAR SEASON SERIES RECAP Oct. 3/15 at MJ: MJ 6 CAL 3...The Warriors scored four powerplay goals. Oct. 15/15 at CAL: MJ 10 CAL 2...Brayden Point had two goals and two assists.

INSIDE THE SERIES Shots on Goal: CAL 63 MJ 63 Power Plays: CAL 1-11 (9.1%) MJ 6-15 (40%)

IT AIN'T OVER TIL IT'S OVER: During Calgary's last three contests, the Hitmen have trailed a total of seven times but they've come back to win all three games.

LIFE IS A HIGHWAY: The Hitmen, who have won four of their last five games away from the Scotiabank Saddledome, have played the most road games of any team in WHL at 18. That marks the mid-point of their road schedule for the entire season. By comparison, the Kamloops Blazers have played a league-low nine road games.

INSIDE THE STREAK: Calgary has picked up 23 of a possible 26 points going 11-1-1-0 in their last 13 games. They have outscored their opponents by a combined 55-32 while outshooting them 433-321.

ONE YEAR AGO: Calgary is one point ahead of last year's team that finished first in the Central Division with 95 points. Though 33 games during the 2015-15 season, the Hitmen had 41 points and sported a record of 19-11-1-2. This season, Calgary has scored 21 fewer goals but they have also given up two less.

TEETER TOTTER: Calgary has been through a series off three different runs this season. They started the 2015-16 schedule 5-1-0-1 before going 4-9-0-0 in their next 13 games. Since then, they've posted a record of 11-1-1-0.

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS: Two Calgary Hitmen have departed to try out for their home country for the 2016 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship. Travis Sanheim is one of 30 players at Canada's National Junior Team Selection Camp while Radel Fazleev is one of 29 players attending Russia's Preparation Camp at the Novogorsk facility near Moscow. Both Sanheim and Fazleev left on Thursday.

BEAR FACTS: On Sunday, the Calgary Hitmen held their 21st annual Petro-Canada Teddy Bear Toss. Fans tossed a record 28,815 stuffed toys, to bring the total number of teddy bears collected since the inaugural event, held in 1995 to 299,419. This year's game was also played in front of the first-ever teddy bear toss sellout of 19,289 fans. Among the over 50 local agencies to benefit this season; Calgary Food Bank, Stephen's Backpacks, Salvation Army and Siksika Children's Services.

FLYING FAZLEEV: Third year Hitmen forward Radel Fazleev not only leads Calgary in scoring this season but his 42 points (14g, 28a) rank tied for fifth in the league scoring race with Reid Gardiner of the Prince Albert Raiders.

GAME-WORN JERSEY AUCTION: During the 21st annual Petro-Canada Teddy Bear Toss, the Hitmen wore red-themed teddy bear jerseys that are now up for bid in an online auction. It began Monday and closes on Sunday, Dec. 13 at 9:00 p.m. Fans can bid on the game-worn jerseys by visiting www.elevateauctions.com. Proceeds from the jersey auction will support the CBC Calgary Suncor Food Bank Drive. New this year, each jersey is accompanied by a custom-made teddy bear. The auction bears, dressed in a one-of-a-kind Hitmen T-shirt, each come with a $25 gift card, courtesy of Build-A-Bear Workshop, and a personalized player voice message.

NHL DRAFT WATCH: Hitmen defenceman Jake Bean, forward Beck Malenstyn and goaltender Cody Porter have all been named to the National Hockey League's Players to Watch list for November in advance of the 2016 NHL Draft. The list, compiled by NHL Central Scouting Service, groups prospects by league and gives each player an individual rating. Bean, one of 49 players from the Western Hockey League on the list, received an "A" ranking which indicates a first-round candidate. Malenstyn and Porter received "C" ratings, indicating a fourth, fifth or sixth-round selection.

DYNAMIC DUO: Calgary has two of the top five scoring defencemen in the WHL in Travis Sanheim and Jake Bean. Sanheim (8g, 23a) has 31 points to lead the league while Bean's 29 points (12g, 17a) is tied for third among defencemen. Bean's career-high 12 goals top all blueliners while his five power play markers is tied for first among all rearguards. Sanheim's 23 assists rank tied for second.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Calgary's power play, which has is a combined 4-10 in the last two games, is 10th in the WHL at 20.5%. The Hitmen penalty kill is sixth in the league at 83%.

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: Collin Bowman, who played one season with the Hitmen (2011-12), is in the ECHL with the Colorado Eagles. The 24-year-old defenceman has 15 points (6g, 9a) in 23 games. Bowman appeared in 61 career games for Calgary, collecting 40 points (11g, 29a).

HOLIDAY CHEER: The Calgary Hitmen are offering a special ticket package during the holiday season. Fans can purchase tickets to two holiday games for $25. There are four games to pick from which include; Dec. 19 vs. MH, Dec. 28 vs. KTN, Dec. 30 vs. LET and Jan. 3 vs. BDN. For full details visit hitmenhockey.com.

Check out the Calgary Hitmen Statistics

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Western Hockey League Stories from December 11, 2015


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