Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Wednesday, December 9 at Regina
December 9, 2015 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Calgary Hitmen News Release
CALGARY HITMEN (19-11-1-1, 40 pts.) at REGINA PATS (14-11-2-1, 31 pts.)
Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2015 - 6:00 p.m. MT - Brandt Centre
TONIGHT'S GAME
The Calgary Hitmen play their second game in as many days as they visit the Regina Pats tonight. Calgary is coming off last night's 6-4 come-from-behind victory in Brandon. Trailing 4-2 with just over 10 minutes remaining, the Hitmen scored four unanswered goals. Jordy Stallard (2g, 1a), Jake Bean (3a) and Carsen Twarynski (1g, 2a) all had three points to lead the visitors who also received goals from Jakob Stukel, Radel Fazleev and Tyler Mrkonjic. Nik Amundrud made 26 saves to record the victory in his Hitmen debut after joining the team in a trade from Saskatoon on November 30th. Calgary, at 40 points, not only leads the WHL's Central Division by two points over Red Deer and Lethbridge but also tops the Eastern Conference by a single point over Prince Albert. Regina, who holds the first wild card spot, is fourth in the East Division with 31 points, four points behind the third place Moose Jaw Warriors.
HITMEN BROADCAST INFORMATION
Radio: Sportsnet 960-The Fan
Webcast: WHL Live at whl.neulion.com
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STREAKS
- Travis Sanheim (1g, 6a) is riding a five-game point streak.
- Jordy Stallard (4g, 1a) has goals three consecutive games.
- Jakob Stukel (8g, 3a) and Radel Fazleev (2g, 12a) both have points in seven of their last eight games while Pavel Karnaukhov (2g, 5a) has at least a point in five of his last six games.
- Tyler Mrkonjic (3g) has goals in three of his last four contests
- Cody Porter has won his last two starts while posting a 1.00 goals against average and .941 save percentage.
- Layne Bensmiller (3a) saw his two-game point streak end last night in Brandon.
NOTEWORTHY
VS. REGINA: Tonight is the fourth and final regular season meetings between the two teams. Calgary leads the season series picking up five of a possible six points. Travis Sanheim (2g, 5a) tops the Hitmen with seven points against the Pats while Jake Bean (2g, 3a) and Radel Fazleev (1g, 4a) have five points each. Jake Leschyshyn (3g) leads the Pats against Calgary with three points. Adam Berg (1g, 1a), Taylor Cooper (2a), Connor Hobbs (2a) and Sergey Zborovskiy (2a) all have two points each. Over the last five seasons, Calgary is 14-2-1-2 against Regina including a 7-1-0-1 record at the Brandt Centre.
2015-16 REGULAR SEASON SERIES RECAP Oct. 4/15 at REG: CAL 3 REG 0... Lasse Petersen 19 save shutout in his WHL debut. Oct. 18/15 at CAL: CAL 5 REG 1...Jake Bean (2g, 1a), Radel Fazleev (1g, 2a) & Travis Sanheim (3a). Nov. 27/15 at CAL: REG 4 CAL 3 OT...Jake Leschyshyn scored three times including the winner.
INSIDE THE SERIES Shots on Goal: CAL 98 REG 77 Power Plays: CAL 7-15 (46.7%) REG 1-15 (6.7%)
LIFE IS A HIGHWAY: The Hitmen, who have won three of their last four games away from the Scotiabank Saddledome, are tied with Regina and Kootenay for the most road games played in the Eastern Conference at 17. Tonight will be their conference leading 18th game in an enemy rink.
INSIDE THE STREAK: Calgary has picked up 21 of a possible 24 points going 10-1-1-0 in their last 12 games. They have outscored their opponents by a combined 51-29 while outshooting them 403-288.
TEETER TOTTER: Calgary has been through a series off three different runs this season. They started the 2015-16 schedule 5-1-0-1 before going 4-9-0-0 in their next 13 games. Since then, they've posted a record of 10-1-1-0.
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS: Two Calgary Hitmen have been invited to try out for their home country for the 2016 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship. Travis Sanheim is one of 30 players invited to participate in Canada's National Junior Team Selection Camp December 10-14 at the MasterCard Centre in Etobicoke, ON. Sanheim is also one of 10 players from the Western Hockey League to receive an invitation and one of 11 defencemen. Meanwhile Radel Fazleev is one of 29 players and 16 forwards invited to attend Russia's Preparation Camp at the Novogorsk facility near Moscow. Both Sanheim and Fazleev will depart for their respected camps on Thursday.
FLYING FUR: On Sunday, the Calgary Hitmen held their 21st annual Petro-Canada Teddy Bear Toss. Fans tossed a record 28,815 stuffed toys, to bring the total number of teddy bears collected since the inaugural event, held in 1995 to 299,419. This year's game was also played in front of the first-ever teddy bear toss sellout of 19,289 fans. Among the over 50 local agencies to benefit this season; Calgary Food Bank, Stephen's Backpacks, Salvation Army and Siksika Children's Services.
GAME-WORN JERSEY AUCTION: During the 21st annual Petro-Canada Teddy Bear Toss, the Hitmen wore red-themed teddy bear jerseys that are now up for bid in an online auction. It began Monday and closes on Sunday, Dec. 13 at 9:00 p.m. Fans can bid on the game-worn jerseys by visiting www.elevateauctions.com. Proceeds from the jersey auction will support the CBC Calgary Suncor Food Bank Drive. New this year, each jersey is accompanied by a custom-made teddy bear. The auction bears, dressed in a one-of-a-kind Hitmen T-shirt, each come with a $25 gift card, courtesy of Build-A-Bear Workshop, and a personalized player voice message.
NHL DRAFT WATCH: Hitmen defenceman Jake Bean, forward Beck Malenstyn and goaltender Cody Porter have all been named to the National Hockey League's Players to Watch list for November in advance of the 2016 NHL Draft. The list, compiled by NHL Central Scouting Service, groups prospects by league and gives each player an individual rating. Bean, one of 49 players from the Western Hockey League on the list, received an "A" ranking which indicates a first-round candidate. Malenstyn and Porter received "C" ratings, indicating a fourth, fifth or sixth-round selection.
WHL SCORING RACE: Third year Hitmen forward Radel Fazleev not only leads Calgary in scoring this season but his 40 points (14g, 26a) rank tied for seventh in the league scoring race with Brayden Burke of the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
TYLER'S TALLY: Since joining the Hitmen in a trade from the Prince George Cougars on November 10th, Tyler Mrkonjic has eight points (6g, 2a) in 12 games. The 19-year-old is also a plus-7.
TRADE WINDS: On Nov. 30, the Hitmen acquired 18-year-old goalie Nik Amundrud (am-un-DROOD) from the Saskatoon Blades in exchange for a sixth-round pick in the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft. Amundrud is in his second WHL season and has appeared in 44 career games.
HITMEN VS: (BDN 2-0), (EDM 0-2), (EVT 1-0), (KAM 1-0), (KEL 0-1), (KTN 3-0), (LET 0-1), (MH 0-1), (MJ 0-2), (POR 0-0), (PA 2-1), (PG 1-2), (RD 1-0-0-1), (REG 2-0-1-0), (SAS 3-0), (SEA 1-0), (SPO 0-1), (SC 1-0), (TC 1-0), (VAN 0-0), (VIC 0-0).
DYNAMIC DUO: Calgary has two of the top 10 scoring defencemen in the WHL in Travis Sanheim and Jake Bean. Sanheim (7g, 22a) has 29 points to sit second in scoring while Bean's 27 points (12g, 15a) is tied for sixth among defencemen. Bean's career-high 12 goals top all blueliners while his five power play markers is tied for first among all rearguards. Sanheim's 22 assists rank tied for second.
SPECIAL TEAMS: Calgary's power play, which has scored at least once in 16 of their 32 games this season, is 10th in the WHL at 20.0%. The Hitmen penalty kill is fifth in the league at 83.3%.
HOLIDAY CHEER: The Calgary Hitmen are offering a special ticket package during the holiday season. Fans can purchase tickets to two holiday games for $25. There are four games to pick from which include; Dec. 19 vs. MH, Dec. 28 vs. KTN, Dec. 30 vs. LET and Jan. 3 vs. BDN. For full details visit hitmenhockey.com.
Western Hockey League Stories from December 9, 2015
- Pats Return Home to Calgary Loss 4-3 - Regina Pats
- Pats Unveil Christmas Sweater Jersey - Regina Pats
- Brett Pollock Earns Contract with Dallas Stars - Edmonton Oil Kings
- Broncos Add Miller - Swift Current Broncos
- Game 28: December 9 vs. Red Deer - Medicine Hat Tigers
- Calgary Hitmen Game Preview - Wednesday, December 9 at Regina - Calgary Hitmen
- Hitmen Rally to Dump Wheats - Brandon Wheat Kings
- Hitmen Blow past Brandon 6-4 - Calgary Hitmen
- Oil Kings Extend Win Streak with 2-1 Win over Raiders - Edmonton Oil Kings
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