WHL Saskatoon Blades

Crnkovic's First Career Hat Trick Not Enough to Halt ICE

September 28, 2019 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Saskatoon Blades News Release


Saskatoon, SK - Hockey fans were treated to a 13-goal affair on Friday night at SaskTel Centre - unfortunately for the Blades it was the Winnipeg ICE who ended up skating away with a 7-6 win.

Kyle Crnkovic's first career Western Hockey League hat trick, along with two goals from Scott Walford wasn't enough to overcome the ICE who piled on six straight goals between the final minute of the first frame and the half-way point of the final period.

The Blades get off to a hot start with Captain Chase Wouters combining with Walford to give Blades the lead just 7 minutes into the match. A minute later and Riley McKay had the Blades up 2-0 after he kept the puck on an odd man rush, cut across the offensive zone and shot truly.

Though the ICE responded 32 seconds later to make it 2-1, Saskatoon's power play was able to extend the Blades lead to 4-1 with 2 goals both coming from Crnkovic. The first goal for Crnkovic saw Wouters make a play around the net, finding Crnkovic back door for a simple tap-in goal. The goal was Crnkovic's first of the season. Crnkovic scored his second goal coming off the half wall and rocketing a shot bar-down to put Saskatoon up by three. However, Winnipeg were able to halve the Blades lead once more as they added a power play marker of their own with 53 seconds to go in the first period.

In the second it was all Winnipeg as the ICE scored four goals including their third of the game exactly one minute into the period. The ICE then tied the game with the puck bouncing off a Blades defender and into the back of the net. Before the second frame was over, Winnipeg had taken the lead of the game collecting a goal from a rebound off of an odd man rush, followed by adding another goal with 1:34 to go in the period and leaving the Blades trailing 6-4 after two periods.

Saskatoon attempted a comeback in the final frame, however Winnipeg added to their lead with a goal off of an odd man rush just seconds after the Blades hit a post and almost got within one. Zach Huber created the Blades' 5th goal of the night, hitting the post before being collected by Libor Zabransky and dished off to Walford who put in his second goal of the game among the chaos. Crnkovic completed his hat trick with just 22 seconds remaining to pull the Blades within a goal but the comeback was bested by the clock as Winnipeg skated off winners 7-6.

The loss was Walford's second multi-point game as a member of the Saskatoon Blades while Cyle McNabb, Nolan Kneen and Tristen Robins all earned an assist over the course of the night.

Wouters, who had two assists on the night, also won 23 face-offs and now leads the league in face-off wins with 53 as of the morning of Saturday, September 28th.

Saskatoon now heads to Alberta to start a three-game road trip beginning with a Tuesday night clash with the Red Deer Rebels at Westerner Park.

Check out the Saskatoon Blades Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from September 28, 2019


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