Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Friday, January 31 vs. Brandon
Published on January 31, 2020 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Calgary Hitmen News Release
CALGARY HITMEN (26-15-4-1, 57 pts.) vs. BRANDON WHEAT KINGS (25-19-2-2, 54 pts.)
Friday, January 31, 2020 - 7:00 p.m. MT - Scotiabank Saddledome
TODAY'S GAME
The Calgary Hitmen, winners of four in a row, host the Brandon Wheat Kings tonight in a 7:00 p.m. start at Scotiabank Saddledome. Tonight's game sponsor is Wawanesa Insurance. Visit their concourse booth behind section 227 where representatives will be handing out over 1,800 Wawanesa Insurance mini-sticks and 1,000 draw string bags. It's also CBE Night featuring a first intermission on-ice performance by the Forest Lawn High School Dance Team while the Dr. Martha Cohen School Band will perform on the concourse. Calgary is coming off Wednesday's 3-2 home ice triumph over Winnipeg. Captain Mark Kastelic scored the game winner, snapping a 2-2 tie with 43.6 seconds remaining. The Hitmen, on markers from Dakota Krebs in the first period and Conrad Mitchell in the middle frame, jumped out to a 2-0 lead. The ICE then pushed back, pulling even before the end of 40 minutes on goals from Ben Zloty and Michal Teply. Winnipeg outshot Calgary 26-19 as Hitmen rookie goaltender Brayden Peters made 24 saves to pick up the win while Liam Hughes made 16 saves for the ICE. On the special teams front, Calgary went 0-2 with the man advantage while Winnipeg was 1-6. The Hitmen, at 57 points, hold the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference while the Wheat Kings sit third in the East Division with 54 points.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Radio: Sportsnet 960-The Fan beginning with a 60 minute pre-game show.
Webcast: WHL Live at whllive.com
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STREAKS
- Mark Kastelic (3g, 5a) is on a team leading four-game point streak.
- Riley Stotts (3g, 4a) and Josh Prokop (2g, 2a) are both riding three-game streaks.
- Dakota Krebs (2g) has scored in back-to-back games while Riley Fiddler-Schultz (1g, 1a) has points in two consecutive outings.
- Goaltender Brayden Peters is 7-2 in his last nine starts with a 1.89 goals against average and .926 save percentage.
- Orca Wiesblatt (2g, 2a) saw his four-game point streak end Wednesday against Winnipeg while a three-game streak for Jackson van de Leest (3a) and a two-game run for Jett Woo (5a) were also halted the same night.
NOTEWORTHY
VS. BRANDON: Tonight is the third of four regular season meetings between the Hitmen and Wheat Kings who split their first two matches in Manitoba. Carson Focht (1g, 2a) leads the Hitmen in the season series with three points while Orca Wiesblatt (2g), Jett Woo (2a) and the departed Hunter Campbell (2a) all have two points each. Goaltenders Jack McNaughton (.912) and Brayden Peters (.939) have also posted strong numbers against the Wheat Kings. Cole Reinhardt (1g, 2a) is the top performer for Brandon with three points while four others in Connor Gutenberg (1g, 1a), Duncan Pierce (1g, 1a), Marcus Sekundiak (1g, 1a) and Braden Schneider (2a) all have two points each. Calgary is 2-3-1-0 in their last six home games against Brandon. They will wrap up their season series on Friday, Feb. 28 back here in Calgary.
2019-20 SERIES RECAP
Nov. 22/19 at BDN: CGY 4 BDN 3 OT...Carson Focht netted the winner 3:40 into the extra session.
Jan. 17/20 at BDN: BDN 3 CGY 1...Jiri Patera made 30 saves in a first star performance.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Shots on Goal: CGY 65 BDN 68 Power Plays: CGY 0-4 (0%) BDN 1-9 (11.1%)
ALUMNUS OF THE GAME: This 25h anniversary season, the Hitmen in partnership with Adrenalin Source for Sports, are honouring an alumnus at each home game. Today's alumnus, Rob Trzonkowski spent two seasons with the Hitmen from 2010 to 2012 appearing in 111 games. During that time he notched 16 points (4g, 12a) and recorded 200 penalty minutes. Today is Trzonkowski's 26th birthday.
FAST FACTS: Calgary is 12-4-1-0 against the East Division...The Hitmen have outshot their opponents in six of their last eight games....Calgary has had two or less power play chances in 17 of their 46 games this season...January is the busiest month of the season for the Hitmen with 14 games. They will play 12 in February and nine in March.
POST-GAME AUTOGRAPHS: Meet forward Conrad Mitchell after today's game. Mitchell, who scored his first goal as a member of the Hitmen in Wednesday's win over Winnipeg, will be signing autographs at the Hitmen Booster Club table located behind section 212.
HOME AND AWAY COMPARISON: Calgary is 14-7-1-1 at home, grabbing points in 11 of their last 14 games while posting a 9-3-1-1 record at the "Dome. Brandon is 11-12-0-0 on the road, coming off Wednesday's 5-4 setback in Red Deer.
DRAFT WATCH: NHL Central Scouting named two Hitmen players to its midterm rankings list ahead of the 2020 NHL Draft. Defenceman Luke Prokop makes the list at number 86 among North American skaters while goaltender Jack McNaughton is ranked 14th among North American goalies.
MAYFAIR DIAGNOSTICS INJURY REPORT: Kyle Olson (lower body, week-to-week), Egor Zamula (upper body, 3-to-4 months). Total man-games lost: 122
HITMEN MONTH-BY-MONTH: September (3-0-1-0), October (5-3-0-0), November (6-4-1-1), December (3-4-2-0), January (9-4-0-0).
TOP PROSPECTS REWIND: Defenceman Luke Prokop played in the 2020 Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game on Jan. 16 in Hamilton, becoming the 27th Hitmen player to compete in the event. Jake Bean was the last to appear, suiting up in 2016. Prokop played a regular shift for Team White in their 5-3 victory over Team Red. He finished with one shot on goal and was +1. The game was a showcase for the top CHL players eligible for the upcoming NHL Draft.
ROSTER MOVES: The WHL Trade Deadline passed on Jan. 10. Calgary acquired a fifth-round pick in the 2021 Western Hockey League Bantam Draft from the Kelowna Rockets in exchange for 18-year-old forward Jonas Peterek. They also recalled 16-year-old defenceman Tyson Galloway from the BCHL's Merritt Centennials and 19-year-old defenceman Andrew Viggars from the BCHL's West Kelowna Warriors. Both players will remain with the team for the remainder of the season. In a separate transaction, 18-year-old forward Tye Carriere was reassigned to Canmore of the AJHL. The Hitmen made a pair of trades on Jan. 9. In the first move, they added 18-year-old forward Conrad Mitchell and a sixth-round pick in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft in exchange for 18-year-old forward Hunter Campbell. The second deal of the day had Calgary acquire 18-year-old forward Connor Gabruch from the Spokane Chiefs in exchange for a fifth-round pick in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft.
HITMEN ALUMNUS: Dylan Yeo is playing pro hockey in Germany with the Schwenningen Wild Wings. The 33-year-old defenceman has 12 points (2g, 10a) in 39 games. Yeo spent parts of three seasons with the Hitmen from 2004-07 recording 53 points (17g, 36a) in 140 games. He is also the only player in franchise history to sing the national anthem performing at both a Hitmen and Flames game.
IN THE COMMUNITY: On Tuesday, Hitmen players Tyson Galloway, Devan Klassen, Brayden Peters and Evan Toth all attended the Calgary Zoo for a promotional photo shoot. They are serving as Zoo ambassadors asking people to recycle their old cell phones at the Calgary Zoo in an effort to help preserve gorilla habitat in the wild. Check the Zoo website for more information or contact cellphones@calgaryzoo.com.
PROSPECT PROFILE: The Hitmen selected Ethan Buenaventura in the fourth-round, 77th overall in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft. Buenaventura is a 6'1", 165-pound goaltender from Winnipeg, MB who is playing Midget Prep with Rink Hockey Academy in Winnipeg. In 12 games he has a 2.94 goals against average and .890 save percentage.
UPCOMING GAMES
All times MT. Schedule subject to change.
Date Opponent Time Broadcast
Sat., Feb. 1 vs. RD 1:30 PM Sportsnet 960-The Fan
Fri., Feb. 7 vs. PA 7:00 PM Sportsnet 960-The Fan
Sat., Feb. 8
at RD
7:00 PM
Sportsnet.ca/960 Sun., Feb. 9
vs. LET
4:00 PM
Sportsnet 960-The Fan Wed., Feb. 12
vs. REG
7:00 PM
Sportsnet.ca/960 PROMO CALENDAR Hitmen single game tickets are on sale at all Ticketmaster locations. Upcoming home game highlights include:
- CBE Night on Jan. 31 vs. BDN. Game Sponsor: Wawanesa Insurance. - "Every Child Matters' on Feb. 1 vs. RD presented by Siksika Health Services in partnership with Siksika Child & Family Services and First Nations Health Consortium. - Feb. 7 vs. PA presented by Canada Life. - Sunday Funday, presented by Ricky's All Day Grill on Feb. 9 vs. LET. - TELUS BE BRAVE #EndBullying Game on Feb. 27 vs. WPG. CAREER MILESTONE WATCH
- Riley Stotts is one assist away from 100. - Mark Kastelic is one point behind Ryan Getzlaf for 10th spot on the clubs all-time points list. Getzlaf tallied 215. Kastelic eclipsed 100 career assists on Sunday against Red Deer. - Jack McNaughton is 54 saves behind Cody Porter for ninth place on the clubs all-time saves list. Porter has 1,734.
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
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