Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Saturday, March 9 at Lethbridge
March 9, 2019 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Calgary Hitmen News Release
CALGARY HITMEN (36-23-5-1, 78 pts.) at LETHBRIDGE HURRICANES (37-18-5-5, 84 pts.)
Saturday, March 9, 2019 - 7:00 p.m. MT - ENMAX Centre
TODAY'S GAME
The Calgary Hitmen open a two-game road trip tonight in Lethbridge against the Hurricanes. The Hitmen saw their six-game winning streak halted last night with a 5-1 home ice loss to the Edmonton Oil Kings. Trey Fix-Wolansky scored a pair of breakaway goals to lead the Edmonton attack. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect added an assist to reach the 99 point mark in helping the Oil Kings run their winning streak to seven games. Vince Loschiavo also tallied two goals and an assist for the visitors with Quinn Benjafield rounding out the scoring. Mark Kastelic, with his team leading 46th, and league-leading 24th on the power play, produced the lone marker for Calgary. Edmonton outshot the Hitmen 32-25 and built period leads of 2-0 and 3-1. Dylan Myskiw made 24 saves to pick up the victory while Jack McNaughton recorded 27 stops in the loss.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Radio: Sportsnet 960-The Fan
Webcast: WHL Live at whl.neulion.com
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STREAKS
- Mark Kastelic (4g, 5a) is on a six-game point streak.
- James Malm (10g, 6a) has points in seven of his last eight games.
- Carson Focht (10g, 10a) saw his seven-game point streak end last night against Edmonton while Egor Zamula (10a) and Riley Stotts (1g, 8a) had their six-game run stopped. Dakota Krebs (4a) also saw his three-game point streak snapped while a two-game streak for Kaden Elder (3a) was halted.
NOTEWORTHY
PLAYOFF BOUND: Calgary is heading to the 2019 Western Hockey League Playoffs. Wednesday's 6-5 Hitmen overtime victory in Medicine Hat, coupled with results on the out of town scoreboard, means Calgary has mathematically clinched a post-season berth. This marks the 20th time in the club's 24-year franchise history Calgary will compete for a WHL title. The Hitmen have captured the Ed Chynoweth Cup as WHL Champions on two occasions, in 1999 and 2010. Further information on the 2019 Hitmen playoffs will be announced next week.
VS. LETHBRIDGE: Tonight is the sixth and final regular season meeting between the Hitmen and Hurricanes. Lethbridge leads the series 4-1 with the two teams combining for 48 goals in five games. Mark Kastelic (5g, 4a) is Calgary's top scorer with nine points against the 'Canes while Kaden Elder (4g, 2a) and Jake Kryski (1g, 5a) both have six. Jordy Bellerive (4g, 4a) and Jake Elmer (3g, 5a) lead all Hurricanes' performers with eight points each. Calgary is 4-6-1-0 in their last 11 visits to the ENMAX Centre.
2018-19 SERIES RECAP
Oct. 12/18 in CGY: CGY 6 LET 5...Mark Kastelic led Calgary with two goals and an assist.
Oct. 26/18 in CGY: LET 7 CGY 6... Zach Cox scored with 6:34 remaining to snap a 6-6 tie.
Nov. 9/18 at LET: LET 4 CGY 2...The Hitmen lost despite holding Lethbridge to 19 shots.
Dec. 16/18 in CGY: LET 6 CGY 4...Jordy Bellerive led the 'Canes with three points (2g, 1a).
Feb. 13/19 at LET: LET 6 CGY 2...The Hurricanes scored five times in the first period.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Shots on Goal: CGY 171 LET 147 Power Plays: CGY 2-15 (13.3%) LET 4-17 (23.5%)
WHAT'S LEFT: With three games to go in the regular season, Calgary is third in the Central Division six points behind the Central Division co-leaders in Edmonton and Lethbridge. On the flip side, the Hitmen are eight points up on Red Deer and Medicine Hat, holders of the two Eastern Conference Wildcard spots. Edmonton is off until Sunday afternoon when they host Kootenay. Medicine Hat hosts Brandon tonight while the ICE visit Red Deer.
RACE FOR THE TOP: The Hitmen team scoring title is going down to the wire this season as Mark Kastelic (76pts) and James Malm (76pts) share top spot with three games left. The last time there was a tie for top scorer was the 2013-14 campaign when both Brady Brassart and Greg Chase finished with 85 points. It has happened four times in franchise history with Kyle Bortis and Ryan White both collecting with 72 points in 2007-08, Ryan White and Brodie Dupont shared the lead at 53 points in 2005-06 while Ryan Getzlaf and Andrew Ladd finished with 75 points each in 2003-04.
FAST FACTS: James Malm is on a four-game road goal scoring streak with eight goals in that span...Goaltender Jack McNaughton, with 25 victories, has the most wins by a Hitmen rookie goalie since Brent Krahn recorded 33 in 1999/00...Including today, Calgary has one home game left in the regular season and two on the road...Since January 1, Calgary has posted a record of 26-9-3-0...The Hitmen power play has scored at least once in eight straight games.
JERSEY AUCTION: On Mar. 3 the Hitmen hosted Kootenay for RE/MAX Presents: WHL Suits up with Don Cherry to Promote Organ Donation. During the game the Hitmen wore limited edition jerseys designed as a Don Cherry sports jacket. Those jerseys are now up for auction at https://elevateauctions.com/DonCherryJerseys2019. Fans can also bid on a one-of-a-kind Don Cherry-autographed jersey. The online auction closes Sunday, Mar. 10 at 8:00 p.m., with all proceeds going to the local chapter of the Kidney Foundation.
ROSTER MOVES: On Thursday, the Hitmen recalled prospect Sean Tschigerl. The 15-year-old has been playing midget in the CSSHL this season with OHA Edmonton Prep. In 28 games, he has 47 points including 21 goals. It's his third appearance with the Hitmen this season after making his WHL debut at home on Friday, Jan. 4 against Red Deer. On Monday, the Hitmen returned 15-year-old prospect Zac Funk to the BCMMHL's Fraser Valley Thunderbirds. Funk leads the T-Birds in scoring with 55 points (33g, 22a) in 36 games but appeared in three games for the Hitmen recording eight shots on goal. Funk was taken by Calgary in the second round, 43rd overall, in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft. Both transactions leave the Hitmen with seven defencemen, two goalies and 14 forwards.
DID YOU KNOW?: Mark Kastelic is the first Hitmen player to score 46 goals in a season since Adam Tambellini reached 47 in 2014-15. Prior to Tambellini, Joel Broda scored 53 goals in 2008-09. Kastelic's 87 career markers have him 14th on the clubs all-time goal scoring list, trailing Brett Sonne by two goals for 13th spot. Brad Moran holds the franchise record with 204.
HITMEN ALUMNUS: Jake Bean, who played parts of four seasons with the Hitmen from 2014-18, is in the AHL with the Charlotte Checkers. The Carolina Hurricanes prospect has 35 points (11g, 24a) in 57 games. He has also played two games with the 'Canes this season. Bean sits 16th all-time on the franchise's regular season points list with 175. That is fourth among defenceman trailing only Matt Kinch, Kenton Smith and Michael Stone.
UPCOMING GAMES
All times in MT. Schedule subject to change.
DATE OPPONENT TIME BROADCAST
Mar. 16 at Edmonton 2:00 p.m. Sportsnet.ca/960 (Alt Stream)
Mar. 17 vs. Edmonton 2:00 p.m. Sportsnet 960-The Fan
PROMO CALENDAR
Upcoming home game highlights include:
- Hitmen Player Awards, Fan Appreciation and Sunday Funday presented by Ricky's All Day Grill on Mar. 17 vs. EDM
- 2019 WHL Playoffs with dates, times and ticket information TBD.
CAREER MILESTONE WATCH
- Carson Focht is two games away from 200. He passed the 100 point mark Wednesday in Medicine Hat.
- Vladislav Yeryomenko is three points away from 100.
- Riley Stotts needs three goals for 50.
- Jack McNaughton reached 1,000 saves on Feb. 27 against Swift Current.
- Devan Klassen scored his first career WHL goal Feb. 23 in Swift Current.
Western Hockey League Stories from March 9, 2019
- Hurricanes Net 7 in Win over Hitmen - Calgary Hitmen
- Broncos End Road Trip with Loss to Blades - Swift Current Broncos
- Pats Topped by Moose Jaw, 6-1 - Regina Pats
- Blades Try for Sixth Straight Hosting Broncos - Saskatoon Blades
- Winterhawks Game Day Preview: Portland at Prince George - Game #65 - Portland Winterhawks
- ICE Begin Final Road Trip of Season in Red Deer - Kootenay Ice
- Game 65 vs Brandon - Medicine Hat Tigers
- Blades Suit up with Don Cherry Tonight - Saskatoon Blades
- Blades and Warriors Set to Tango in Round One of 2019 #WHLPlayoffs - Saskatoon Blades
- Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Saturday, March 9 at Lethbridge - Calgary Hitmen
- Rebels Rally to Dump Wheat Kings - Brandon Wheat Kings
- Game Day Preview: Pats Visit Moose Jaw to Close out Season Series with Warriors Saturday - Regina Pats
- Warm Breaks Franchise Single Season Save Record - Tri-City Americans
- Struggles in Prince Albert Continue for Broncos - Swift Current Broncos
- Americans Shut out by Silvertips at Home - Tri-City Americans
- Ross Robs Royals for T-Birds Victory - Seattle Thunderbirds
- Giants Fall 4-1 to the Spokane Chiefs Friday on the Road - Vancouver Giants
- Portland Power Play Costs Cougars - Prince George Cougars
- Instead of Rest, Wolf Provides Another Shutout - Everett Silvertips
- Three Power Play Goals Lift the Hawks on the Road - Portland Winterhawks
- Rebels Rally to Post Crucial Victory over Wheat Kings - Red Deer Rebels
- Royals Upended by Thunderbirds - Victoria Royals
- Tigers Outlasted 5-3 by Hurricanes - Medicine Hat Tigers
- Anderson-Dolan Extends Goal Streak as Chiefs Down Giants, 4-1 - Spokane Chiefs
- Blazers Tip Rockets in Shootout - Kelowna Rockets
- Hitmen Fixed by Oil Kings - Calgary Hitmen
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.
