WHL Calgary Hitmen

Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Friday, November 29 vs. Regina

Published on November 29, 2019 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Calgary Hitmen News Release


CALGARY HITMEN (13-6-2-1, 29 pts.) vs. REGINA PATS (5-15-2-0, 12 pts.)

Friday, November 29, 2019 - 7:00 p.m. MT - Scotiabank Saddledome

TODAY'S GAME

The Calgary Hitmen, riding a three-game winning streak, return to Scotiabank Saddledome ice tonight for the first time in 21 days to host the Regina Pats. It's Christmas Miracles for SHINE FM featuring Christmas Carol-oke. The Hitmen are coming of a season long six game road trip which saw the team collect nine of a possible 12 points by posting a record of 4-1-1-0. The swing culminated last Saturday with a 4-1 victory in Moose Jaw. Defencemen Jett Woo and Egor Zamula led the way with two points each. Woo notched a goal and an assist in his 200th career game in the Western Hockey League while Zamula recorded a pair of assists. Jonas Peterek, Orca Wiesblatt and Mark Kastelic also scored for the Hitmen. Cole Jordan was the only Warrior to beat Hitmen rookie goaltender Brayden Peters who made 17 saves in the victory. Adam Evanoff added 27 stops in the loss for Moose Jaw.

BROADCAST INFORMATION

Radio: Sportsnet 960-The Fan begins with a 60 minute pre-game show at 6:00 p.m.

Webcast: WHL Live at whllive.com

ATTACHMENTS

Media Kit

STREAKS

- Egor Zamula (6a) and Jett Woo (2g, 3a) are both on four-game point streaks.

- Orca Wiesblatt (3g, 1a) has points in three consecutive games while Carson Focht (1g, 2a) is riding a two-game point streak.

- Goaltender Jack McNaughton has won his last three starts, posting a 1.96 goals against average and a .930 save percentage.

- Riley Stotts (2g, 4a) has points in five of his last six games.

NOTEWORTHY

VS. REGINA: Tonight is the third of four regular season meetings between the Hitmen and Pats. Calgary is 2-0 outscoring the Pats by a combined 9-6. Mark Kastelic (4g, 2a) leads the Hitmen in the season series with six points. Egor Zamula (4a) is next with four while 11 different Hitmen have picked up at least a point. Austin Pratt (2g, 1a) and Ty Kolle (1g, 2a) are the Pats top performers with three points each. Calgary is 1-2-3-0 in their last six home games against Regina. Their final meeting is once again in Alberta, this time on Wednesday, Feb. 12.

2019-20 SERIES RECAP

Oct. 22/19 at REG: CGY 5 REG 4 OT...Carson Focht scored the winner 59 seconds into extra time.

Nov. 20/19 at REG: CGY 4 REG 2...Captain Mark Kastelic scored twice and set up two others.

INSIDE THE SERIES

Shots on Goal: CGY 81 REG 60 Power Plays: CGY 2-6 (33.3%) REG 0-9 (0%)

FAST FACTS: Egor Zamula is fourth among defencemen in league scoring with 23 points...Mark Kastelic is tied for fifth in goals in the WHL with 15 and leads the league with three shorthanded markers...The Hitmen have played more games against East Division opponents this season, tonight is their 12th, than the eight meetings against teams from their own Central Division.

GAME DATA: This is an Eastern Conference matchup; this season the Hitmen have a record of 12-5-1-1 against Eastern Conference foes and a record of 8-2-1-0 against the East Division.

REGINA TIES: Four Hitmen have immediate ties to Regina. Carson Focht and Adam Kydd both grew up in the Queen City. Egor Zamula played 38 games of his rookie campaign with the Pats in 2017/18 before he was claimed by the Hitmen off WHL Import Waivers while Blake Allan started this season with the Pats before an October, 22 trade to Calgary. That deal saw the Hitmen surrender for a conditional eighth-round pick in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft. In 13 games with the Hitmen, Allan has six points (3g, 3a) and has a plus/minus rating of +3.

POINT PARADE: Calgary has recorded at least a point in seven of their last eight games posting a record of 5-1-1-1.

DOWN TO THE WIRE: Ten of Calgary's last 14 games have all been within a goal in the final 90 seconds.

REGULAR SEASON MILESTONE WATCH: Jett Woo, who played career game 200 last Saturday in Moose Jaw, needs two assists for 100. Luke Prokop is two games away from 100. Dakota Krebs needs one point to reach 50. Egor Zamula, who needs three points for 100, played game 150 on Nov. 20 in Regina. Mark Kastelic passed the 100 goal total Nov. 16 in Saskatoon and now has 104. Kastelic is also 14th on the clubs all-time points list with 189, four points behind Kenton Smith who holds 13th place. Jack McNaughton needs 64 saves to pull even with Gerry Festa for 12th spot on the clubs all-time saves list.

HOME AND AWAY COMPARISON: Calgary is 6-4-0-1 at home this season, going 1-0-0-1 in their last two games at the 'Dome. Regina is 3-7-0-0 on the road. Tonight is game four of a six game road swing for the Pats which started with wins in Swift Current and Brandon before a 4-1 loss in Lethbridge on Wednesday.

HITMEN MONTH-BY-MONTH: September (3-0-1-0), October (5-3-0-0), November (5-3-1-1).

HITMEN PLEDGE: 'The Hitmen Pledge powered by ENMAX' is here. As part of the 25th anniversary season fans and members of the community are asked to take the pledge and donate 25 volunteer hours to a charitable cause. One lucky winner will receive $25,000 to gift to a registered Southern Alberta charity of their choice. Full details can be found at https://hitmenhockey.com/pledge.

WORLD STAGE: Hitmen forward Sean Tschigerl was a member of Canada Black at the 2019 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge co-hosted earlier this month between Medicine Hat, AB and Swift Current, SK. Tschigerl served as an alternate captain and finished the eight team tournament with two points (1g, 1a) in five games.

ONE YEAR IMPROVEMENT: Calgary is 11 points ahead of their start through 22 games last season when they owned a record of 8-12-2-0.

MAYFAIR DIAGNOSTICS INJURY REPORT: James Malm (upper body, week-to-week), Riley Fiddler-Schultz (lower body, week-to-week), Tye Carriere (lower body, two-three weeks), Cael Zimmerman (lower body, indefinite).

ROSTER MOVES: Today, the Hitmen added forward Wil Kushniryk to the roster as an affiliate player. The 19-year-old has split this season between the WHL's Tri-City Americans and BCHL's Prince George Spruce Kings. He broke into the WHL in 2017-18 with the Kelowna Rockets. On Monday the Hitmen returned 16-year-old forward Zac Funk to the Okanagan Rockets of the BCMML. Funk, who has played eight games with Calgary this season, has 10 points (7g, 3a) in 10 games with the Rockets.

TEDDY BEAR TICKETS: Due to overwhelming demand, press-level seating for the Dec. 1 ENMAX Teddy Bear Toss is now open. Game time is 4:00 p.m. against the Red Deer Rebels. General admission tickets in the third level are available for only $9.99 for kids 12 and under and $14.99 for adults (plus applicable fees and taxes). They can be purchased at Ticketmaster, the Scotiabank Saddledome box office or by phone at 1-855-985-5000. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the toss in Calgary with the goal of taking back the world record for most bears tossed in a single game. The AHL's Hershey Bears set a new mark last season of 34,798. It would also accomplish the greater goal of helping more than 70 local agencies this holiday season including the Alberta Children's Hospital and Salvation Army. All interested charities are encouraged to contact info@hitmenhockey.com to request their number of bears.

HITMEN ALUMNUS: Vladislav Yeryomenko, who played three seasons with the Hitmen from 2016 to 2019, is in the KHL with Minsk Dynamo. The 20-year-old from Vitebsk, Belarus has six points (2g, 4a) in 24 games. During his time in Calgary, Yeryomenko notched 99 points (26g, 73a) in 188 games to sit 15th all-time among defencemen.

HITMEN IN THE COMMUNITY: This holiday season the Hitmen are once again partnering with the Calgary Zoo for ZOOLIGHTS. Hitmen players will visit the Zoo's outdoor rink on four occasions for public skating. The next visit is Tuesday, Dec. 4 when Hunter Campbell and Cael Zimmerman will pop in from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. Riley Fiddler-Schultz and Jack McNaughton will then participate the following night at the same time on Wednesday, Dec. 4. Fans can take advantage of a special Hitmen/ZOOLIGHTS Family Pack. For $99.99 plus GST receive four Hitmen ticket vouchers and four ZOOLIGHTS tickets (2 Adults, 2 Child). Full details available at hitmenhockey.com/zoolights

UPCOMING GAMES

All times MT. Schedule subject to change.

Date Opponent Time Broadcast

Sat., Nov. 30 at EDM 2:00 PM Sportsnet.ca/960 (Alt Stream)

Sun., Dec. 1 vs. RD 4:00 PM Sportsnet 960-The Fan

Fri., Dec. 6 vs. EDM 7:00 PM Sportsnet 960-The Fan

Sat., Dec. 7 at EDM 7:00 PM Sportsnet.ca/960 (Alt Stream)

Sun., Dec. 8 vs. EVT 4:00 PM Sportsnet 960-The Fan

PROMO CALENDAR

Hitmen single game tickets are on sale now at all Ticketmaster locations. Upcoming home game highlights include:

- Christmas Miracles for SHINE on Fri. Nov. 29 vs. REG

- ENMAX Teddy Bear Toss on Sun. Dec. 1 vs. RD

- Carols for Christmas on Fri. Dec. 6 vs. EDM

- Sunday Funday, presented by Ricky's All Day Grill on Dec. 8 vs. EVT

- Sunday Funday, presented by Ricky's All Day Grill on Dec. 15 vs. LET

- Soccer Day on Mon. Dec. 30 vs. EDM

CAREER MILESTONE WATCH

- Jett Woo, who played career game 200 last Saturday in Moose Jaw, needs two assists for 100.

- Luke Prokop is two games away from 100.

- Dakota Krebs needs one point to reach 50.

- Egor Zamula, who needs three points for 100, played game 150 on Nov. 20 in Regina.

- Mark Kastelic passed the 100 goal total Nov. 16 in Saskatoon and now has 104. Kastelic is also 14th on the clubs all-time points list with 189, four points behind Kenton Smith who holds 13th place.

- Jack McNaughton needs 64 saves to pull even with Gerry Festa for 12th spot on the clubs all-time saves list.

Check out the Calgary Hitmen Statistics

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Western Hockey League Stories from November 29, 2019


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