Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Sunday, March 31 vs. Lethbridge
Published on March 31, 2019 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Calgary Hitmen News Release
CALGARY HITMEN vs. LETHBRIDGE HURRICANES
Game 6 of best-of-seven series. Calgary leads 3-2.
Sunday, March 31, 2019 - 4:00 p.m. MT - Scotiabank Saddledome
TODAY'S GAME
The Calgary Hitmen host the Lethbridge Hurricanes this afternoon in Game 6 of their best-of-seven opening round WHL playoff series. It's a 4:00 p.m. start at the Scotiabank Saddledome for Sunday Funday pricing, presented by Ricky's All Day Grill. Activities include face painters and a post-game family skate that is FREE with a game ticket. Adult tickets are $14.99, kids $9.99 plus applicable fees and taxes. There is also FREE bottomless popcorn for all kids in attendance.
Calgary leads the series 3-2 after last night's 6-5 win in Lethbridge. Captain Mark Kastelic returned from injury to score two goals and added an assist to lead way while Cael Zimmerman, Luke Coleman, and Vladislav Yeryomenko all scored once and added a helper for the Hitmen. The visitors never trailed building leads of 2-0, 3-1, 4-2 and 6-4. Josh Prokop tallied the other Calgary marker with Dakota Krebs chipping in three assists. Jake Leschyshyn led the Hurricanes with a pair of goals with Jordy Bellerive, Nick Henry and Logan Barlage adding singles. Calgary outshot Lethbridge 42-34.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Radio: Sportsnet.ca/960 (Alt Stream)
Webcast: WHL Live at whl.neulion.com
________________________________
STREAKS
- Calgary carries a three-game winning streak into today's Game 6.
- Riley Stotts (1g, 4a), Luke Coleman (3g, 2a), Josh Prokop (3g, 1a) and Egor Zamula (3a) are all riding three-game point streaks.
- Vladislav Yeryomenko (2g, 1a) and James Malm (1g, 1a) have points in back-to-back games.
- Goalie Jack McNaughton has won his last three starts posting a 3.33 goals against average and .902 save percentage.
- Carson Focht (2g, 3a) and Ryder Korczak (1g, 3a) saw their two-game point streaks snapped last night in Lethbridge.
NOTEWORTHY
2019 WHL Playoffs: Round 1 Schedule:
The Hitmen and Hurricanes opening round playoff series is a 2-2-1-1-1 format.
Game 1 'Canes 3 Hitmen 2 OT LET leads series 1-0 ENMAX Centre, Lethbridge
Game 2 'Canes 4 Hitmen 1 LET leads series 2-0 ENMAX Centre, Lethbridge
Game 3 Hitmen 5 'Canes 3 LET leads series 2-1 Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary
Game 4 Hitmen 5 'Canes 2 Series tied 2-2 Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary
Game 5 Hitmen 6 ' Canes 5 CGY leads series 3-2 Nicholas Sheran Arena, Lethbridge
Game 6 Sunday, March 31 4:00 p.m. Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary
Game 7* Tuesday, April 2 7:00 p.m. Nicholas Sheran Arena, Lethbridge
*If necessary
SERIES NOTES: The team scoring first is 4-1...Calgary has outshot Lethbridge by a combined 179-167, outscoring the 'Canes 19-17...There has been only one lead change in the series and that was in Game 1...Eleven different Hitmen have made their WHL Playoff debut this series...Nine Hitmen have four or more points in the series while five Hitmen have two or more goals.
SHOT CLOCK: Carson Focht leads all Hitmen with 20 shots on goal in the series. James Malm is next with 17 while Josh Prokop has 16. Nick Henry tops the Hurricanes with 21 shots. Jake Leschyshyn is next with 19. Dylan Cozens has 18.
FACE-OFF CIRCLE: Calgary is 197-371 on draws this series, operating at 53.1%. Mark Kastelic leads the team with 53 face-off wins. Riley Stotts is next with 53.
PLAYOFF HISTORY: 2019 marks the fifth time in league history the Hitmen and Hurricanes square off in a playoff series. Calgary has won three of the previous four.
2005: CGY 4 LET 1 - Hitmen led by Ryan Getzlaf (8pts), Andrew Ladd (6pts) and Justin Pogge 1.29 GAA
2006: CGY 4 LET 2 - Hitmen led by Fredrik Pettersson (7pts), Craig Lineker (7pts) and Justin Pogge 2.97 GAA
2008: LET 4 CGY 0 - Canes led by Mitch Fadden (7pts), Zach Boychuk (6pts) and Juha Metsola 1.73 GAA
2009: CGY 4 LET 0 - Hitmen led by Brandon Kozun (7pts), Kyle Bortis (7pts) and Martin Jones 1.00 GAA
GAME 5 FACTS: The Hitmen are 12-8 all-time in Game 6's. Their last home Game 6 was on April 28, 2013 when Brooks Macek scored at 6:59 of overtime to lift the Calgary Hitmen past the Edmonton Oil Kings 4-3 to force a Game 7. Calgary erased a 3-1 third period deficit in that game.
COMEBACK TRAIL: Twice in franchise history the Hitmen have rebounded from a 0-2 playoff series deficit to win. In the 2010 post-season they lost both games on home ice before bouncing back to defeat the Moose Jaw Warriors in seven games in the opening round. During the 2007 WHL Playoffs, Calgary dropped the first two games of their second-round set with Brandon on the road then came roaring back with four straight wins to capture the series in six.
PLAYOFF RECORD: Calgary has a lifetime playoff record of 134-107. The Hitmen have competed in 43 series prior to this one. They have won 26 and lost 17. Calgary is 30-20 all-time in post-season overtime games.
HITMEN CAREER PLAYOFF LEADERBOARD:
Games Played: Michael Stone 62
Goals: Pavel Brendl 35
Assists: Brandon Kozun and Brad Moran 48
Points: Brad Moran 82
Wins: Martin Jones 32
PUCKS FOR PAWS: The Hitmen in partnership with WEB Consulting Ltd., are donating $12,180 to the Four Feet Companion Foundation through the seventh annual Pucks for Paws. The program saw the Calgary Hitmen Foundation and WEB Consulting Ltd. each contribute $10 for every point collected this past regular season by Riley Stotts. The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect finished the 2018-19 Western Hockey League campaign with 57 points. Funds were also received through an online auction organized by WEB Consulting Ltd., 50-50 proceeds and money raised through calendar sales at the Pucks for Paws game on Dec. 14 between Calgary and Kelowna. Additionally, WEB Consulting Ltd. is donating $10 per Stotts point for a total of $570 to Southwood Veterinary Hospital.
SCORING DEPTH: For the first time since the 2013-14 season, Calgary had four players with 25 or more goals in a regular season with Mark Kastelic (47), James Malm (34), Kaden Elder (27) and Carson Focht (26). In 2013-14 they were Jake Virtanen (45), Brady Brassart (35), Greg Chase (35) and Pavel Padakin (27).
ALUMNI WATCH: Travis Sanheim, who played three seasons with the Hitmen from 2013-16, is in the NHL with the Philadelphia Flyers. In 78 games this season the sophomore defenceman has 34 points (9g, 25a). Sanheim played 186 career games in Calgary and is fifth on the club's all-time defenceman scoring list with 162 points.
ONE TICKET ONE TREE: The Hitmen announced Friday that $9,956 will be donated to Tree Canada to purchase and plant 2,489 trees to assist with the Alberta forest recovery process. Funds were collected through the One Ticket, One Tree pilot project first announced at the Calgary Zoo on National Tree Day Sept. 26, 2018. As part of this initiative, Hitmen players were educated on ways to reduce their ecological footprint. They also raised awareness to local environmental issues. Highlights included Hitmen Go Green videos on upcycling, city cleanup, water conservation and alternative energy along with recycling and composting.
PROMO CALENDAR
& TICKET INFO
- Sunday, Mar. 31 vs. LET, Game 6 of the Hitmen 2019 WHL Playoffs
- Sunday Funday pricing, presented by Ricky's All Day Grill, will be in effect and includes face painters and a post-game family skate that is FREE with a game ticket. Adult tickets are $14.99, kids $9.99 plus applicable fees and taxes. There is also FREE bottomless popcorn for all kids in attendance.
- Also available is the Calgary Co-op Family Playoff Pack which includes four tickets, four hot hogs, four soft drinks and one popcorn for $74.99. This deal can be purchased at all Calgary Co-op locations.
PLAYOFF WATCH
- The Hitmen have a combined 234 games of playoff experience.
- Kaden Elder leads all players with 51 post-season games played. He also tops the Hitmen in career playoff points with 11.
- Luke Coleman is next with nine points.
Western Hockey League Stories from March 31, 2019
- Tigers Season Ends in Overtime - Medicine Hat Tigers
- Hurricanes' OT Goal Spells Game Seven - Calgary Hitmen
- Round 1 Game 6 vs Edmonton - Medicine Hat Tigers
- Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Sunday, March 31 vs. Lethbridge - Calgary Hitmen
- Dominating Performance Closes Series for Tips - Everett Silvertips
- Silvertips Advance to Second Round of WHL Playoffs in 4-1 Series Win - Everett Silvertips
- Giants Punch Their Ticket to Round 2 with a 5-1 Win in Game 6 - Vancouver Giants
- Royals Victorious over Blazers in Game 5 - Victoria Royals
- Chiefs' Second Round Schedule Versus Everett Announced - Spokane Chiefs
- Americans' Season Ends with Loss in Everett - Tri-City Americans
- Chiefs Advance to Second Round with 4-1 Win over Portland - Spokane Chiefs
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.
