Pachal Nets OT Winner Against Hitmen
March 11, 2018 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Prince Albert Raiders News Release
Prince Albert, SK - The Prince Albert Raiders (32-25-9-2) continue to pile up the wins after a 4-3 victory in overtime against the Calgary Hitmen (21-36-9-2) on Saturday night at the Art Hauser Centre.
Brayden Pachal played the overtime hero, scoring with 51 seconds remaining in the extra frame to extend the Raiders' winning streak to nine games. The Raiders also moved seven points ahead of the Saskatoon Blades for the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference with a Blades loss to the Brandon Wheat Kings.
The Hitmen opened the scoring with 6:14 remaining in the opening period. Mark Kastelic tapped in a backdoor pass to record the only goal of the first.
Early in the second, Jordy Stallard tied the game with his 43rd goal of the year. He finished off a great passing play at the 1:27 mark with Curtis Miske and Cole Fonstad setting up the Winnipeg Jets draft pick. The Hitmen restored their lead with 3:47 to play in the second. Carson Focht's quick-release wrist slot fooled Ian Scott to put Calgary ahead 2-1 after 40 minutes.
The Raiders came out firing in the third and eventually broke through Matthew Armitage. Vojtech Budik tied the game at the 5:51 mark with a blast from the point on the power play. Less than a minute later, Stallard won an offensive zone faceoff right to Curtis Miske, who made to mistake to put the Raiders ahead.
With an assist on Miske's goal, Stallard recorded his 200th career point in the WHL.
Midway through the period, the Hitmen retied the game. Kastelic tallied his second of the game on a wraparound attempt on a power play.
The Raiders kept the pressure up in the third, but were unable to pull ahead before the end of regulation. Prince Albert fired 26 shots on Armitage in the final frame.
In overtime, Stallard recorded his third point of the night when he left the puck for Pachal in the offensive zone. The defenceman from Estevan cut to the net and beat Armitage through the five hole to end the game
Scott earned his 24th win of the year with a 20-save performance. Armitage finished the game with 40 saves for the Hitmen.
The Raiders hit the road for the next two games. On Tuesday, they are in Moose Jaw to take on the Warriors at Mosaic Place. The following night, the Raiders head to Regina to tangle with the Pats at the Brandt Centre. Both games begin at 7 p.m.
The next Raiders' home game is also the regular season home finale on Friday, March 16 against the Saskatoon Blades. Puck drop is 7 p.m. Tickets are available at tickets.raiderhockey.com, the Raider Office, or by calling 306-764-5348.
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