Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Saturday, November 21 vs Everett
November 21, 2015 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Calgary Hitmen News Release
CALGARY HITMEN (12-10-0-1, 25 pts.) vs EVERETT SILVERTIPS (11-7-0-1, 23 pts.)
Saturday, Nov. 21, 2015 - 7:00 p.m. - Scotiabank Saddledome
TONIGHT'S GAME
The Calgary Hitmen put their three-game winning streak on the line tonight as they welcome the Everett Silvertips to the Scotiabank Saddledome. The Hitmen are coming off Wednesday's 3-1 home-ice victory over the Prince George Cougars. Jake Bean and Layne Bensmiller scored 69 seconds apart early in the third period to break a 1-1 tie. Keegan Kanzig also scored for the Hitmen who outshot the Cougars 38-15. Cody Porter made 14 saves to record the win. Calgary sits third in the WHL's Central Division at 25 points, one point back of the second place Lethbridge Hurricanes. Everett is third in the US Division with 23 points, two points back of second place Spokane.
HITMEN BROADCAST INFORMATION
Radio: Sportsnet 960-The Fan
Webcast: WHL Live at whl.neulion.com
SN960 pre-game show begins at 6:00 p.m.
STREAKS
- Cody Porter has won his last three starts, posting a 1.33 goals-against average and .924 save percentage.
- Jackson Houck (1g, 6a) has points in four of his last five games while Radel Fazleev (2g, 2a) has points in three of his last four.
- Keegan Kanzig is plus-5 with one goal over four games since returning from the AHL's Stockton Heat.
- Taylor Sanheim (3a) and Colby Harmsworth (1g, 1a) both had their two-game point streaks snapped Wednesday against Prince George.
NOTEWORTHY
VS. EVERETT: Tonight is the first and only regular season meeting between the two teams. Last season, Calgary dropped a 7-2 decision to the Silvertips at the Comcast Arena in Everett on Feb. 27. Goaltender Carter Hart made 41 saves in a first-star performance while Carson Stadnyk (2g, 1a) and Ivan Nikolishin (3a) had three points each. The Hitmen actually outshot the Silvertips 43-29 while playing their fifth game in eight days on their US road trip. Over the last five years, Calgary is 2-2 against the Silvertips including a 1-1 record when playing at the 'Dome. Everett's last visit to the Scotiabank Saddledome ended with a 1-0 victory on Nov. 23, 2013. Austin Lotz made 25 saves for the shutout with Joshua Winquist providing the lone goal. Everett has won two-straight over the Hitmen with Calgary's last win, a 5-1 triumph over the Silvertips, on Feb. 8, 2013 in Everett. Jake Virtanen scored twice that night with Victor Rask adding a pair of assists.
INSIDE THE STREAK: Calgary has won three games in a row, tying their longest streak this season set when they opened the 2015-16 campaign 3-0. During their last three wins, they have outscored their opponents by a combined 13-4 while outshooting them 102-53.
HOME COOKING: Tonight is Game 4 of a five-game homestand for the Hitmen. Calgary is currently in the midst of a stretch that sees them play eight of 11 at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
DIVERSE ATTACK: Calgary's last 16 goals have been scored by 11 different players.
GIANT IMPACT: Since arriving in a trade with the Vancouver Giants on Oct. 27, Jackson Houck, Jakob Stukel and Cody Porter have all made significant contributions. Houck has points in seven of his nine games with Calgary, collecting four goals and 10 assists. Stukel has seven points in nine games (5g, 2a) while Porter has notched a record of 5-2 with a 2.74 goals-against average.
SHOT CLOCK: Calgary is 10-1 this season when outshooting their opponents. They have outshot the opposition in each of the last three games, averaging 34 shots.
ROSTER MOVE: On Nov. 13, the Hitmen placed 20-year-old goalie Brendan Burke on waivers. The move leaves the team with the WHL maximum of three 1995-born players on its roster in forward Jackson Houck and defencemen Colby Harmsworth and Keegan Kanzig.
TRADE WINDS: On Nov. 10, the Hitmen acquired 19-year-old forward Tyler Mrkonjic (mer-CON-jick) from the Prince George Cougars in exchange for a sixth-round pick in the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft. Mrkonjic, in his third WHL season, has appeared in 154 career games collecting 36 points (14g, 22a).
WHL NOD: Forward Jackson Houck is the WHL Player of the Week for the week ending Nov. 15. The 20-year-old recorded six points (6a) in two games leading Calgary to a pair of victories. On Friday, Nov. 13 against the Kootenay ICE, Houck tallied a pair of assists in a 6-0 victory. The following night, Houck was named the game's second star, recording four assists in a 4-3 comeback win against the Tri-City Americans.
ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT: As part of the WHL's 50th Season celebrations, the Hitmen presented two distinguished graduates with Alumni Achievement Awards on Nov. 13. Former Hitmen captain and current Anaheim Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf was recognized in the professional hockey category while two-time WHL Scholastic Player of the Year Chris Nielsen, now a senior orthopaedic surgery resident, was honoured in the scholastic category.
CANADA RUSSIA SERIES: Two Hitmen took part in the 2015 CHL Canada Russia Series. Defenceman Jake Bean had an assist for Team WHL while Radel Fazleev had an assist for Team Russia in a pair of Team WHL wins.
HITMEN VS: (BDN 1-0), (EDM 0-2), (EVT 0-0), (KAM 1-0), (KEL 0-1), (KTN 3-0), (LET 0-0), (MH 0-1), (MJ 0-2), (POR 0-0), (PA 0-1), (PG 1-2), (RD 1-0-0-1), (REG 2-0), (SAS 1-0), (SEA 1-0), (SPO 0-1), (SC 0-0), (TC 1-0), (VAN 0-0), (VIC 0-0).
DYNAMIC DUO: The Hitmen have two of the top 10 scoring defencemen in the WHL in Travis Sanheim and Jake Bean. Sanheim's 22 points (6g, 16a) is tied for third in the league while Bean (9g, 9a) is 10th with 18 points. Bean's career-high nine goals tops all blueliners while his five power play markers is tied for first among all rearguards.
FAZ'S FRIENDS: The Calgary Hitmen Hockey Club has announced details on a new community program, Faz's Friends presented by MEG Energy. The initiative will see Hitmen centre Radel Fazleev and MEG Energy partner with Kids Cancer Care, a charitable organization that helps families fighting childhood cancer in Alberta. Throughout the season, families will receive tickets to attend a Hitmen home game, custom Faz's Friends t-shirts and concession vouchers. Following the game, the Faz's Friends guests will meet Fazleev for photos and autographs. The program will see close to 200 Kids Cancer Care guests benefit this season.
SPECIAL TEAMS: Calgary's power play is seventh in the WHL at 21.4%. The Hitmen penalty kill has killed 28 of its last 31 shorthanded situation and overall, is sixth in the league at 83.0%. Calgary is tied for the third-most shorthanded goals in the league at four. Prince George leads the way with seven.
NHL IMPACT: There are currently 12 Hitmen grads on NHL rosters: Karl Alzner (Washington), Johnny Boychuk (NYI), Ryan Getzlaf (Anaheim), Martin Jones (San Jose), Andrew Ladd (Winnipeg), Paul Postma (Winnipeg), Victor Rask (Carolina), Jeff Schultz (Los Angeles), Michael Stone (Phoenix), Brad Stuart (Colorado), Jake Virtanen (Vancouver) and Ryan White (Philadelphia).
WHL TOP 125: The Western Hockey League has unveiled its list of the Top 125 players in WHL history as selected by a committee of League historians. Among them are seven Calgary Hitmen grads: Karl Alzner, Pavel Brendl, Ryan Getzlaf, Brandon Kozun, Andrew Ladd, Brad Moran and Brad Stuart. As part of the WHL's 50th Season celebrations, fans can now vote for the selection of the Top 50 Players of All-Time. Fans can visit Top50.WHL.ca to cast their ballots once per week from the 125-player list. Voting closes Sunday, Dec. 20.
MO BROS 2 FOR $25: The Calgary Hitmen, together with Tommy Gun's Original Barbershop, are proud to support Movember, a month-long campaign committed to changing the face of men's health. During the month of November for the seventh season in a row, Hitmen players and coaches are growing moustaches to raise funds and awareness for prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health issues. In addition, the Hitmen have unveiled a special ticket package. Fans can purchase tickets to any two Hitmen home games during the month for $25 with $5 from each ticket pack sold going to support Movember. To support the Hitmen Movember team, visit moteam.co/calgary-hitmen.
POST-GAME AUTOGRAPHS: Meet defenceman Jake Bean after the game at the Booster Club table located on the concourse by section 212.
Western Hockey League Stories from November 21, 2015
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