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WHL Tri-City Americans

Patterson Lifts Blades Over Tri-City 6-4 In Battle Of Conference's Best

January 3, 2010 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Tri-City Americans News Release


KENNEWICK, WA - In a battle of conference elites, the Tri-City Americans came up a bit short.

Gaelan Patterson recorded his first WHL hat trick and Derek Hulak and Walker Wintoneak each had three-point nights to lead the Saskatoon Blades (28-7-1-3, 60 pts) past the Tri-City Americans (29-10-0-1, 59 pts) 6-4 in front of 3,797 fans at the Toyota Center. With the win, Saskatoon took over the top overall spot in the WHL standings and improved to 4-0 on their U.S. Division swing. They also stretched their overall winning streak to five games. Meanwhile, Tri-City suffered their first loss at home since Nov. 28 vs. Everett, a span of five straight games, and has now lost three of their previous four match-ups with the Blades.

Saskatoon wasted little time getting the scoring started on Sunday, as the two squads exchanged goals in the first period. Just 48 seconds into the contest, Patterson collected his first of the night when he beat Drew Owsley up high with a backhander. But, two and a half minutes later, Kruise Reddick tied the game when his shot from the right circle beat Steven Stanford between the pads.

Five minutes later, Patterson struck again, this time on the power play to put the Blades back on top by one. With 2:09 remaining in the period, Reddick also used a power play to collect his second of the night. By the end of the first 20 minutes, Tri-City had outshot the Blades 14 to 6, but the score was knotted at 2.

The second period was a different story, however, as Saskatoon turned the tables on the Americans. Nearing the midway point of the period, Travis Toomey took off as part of a 2-on-1 breakaway. With the Tri-City defenseman down in a slide, Toomey elected to shoot the puck, beating Owsley at the near post on the stick side, to put the Blades back on top. Then, with 4:04 left in the period and on the power play, Hulak's shot found a spot between Owsley's pads to make it a 4-2 game, which also chased Owsley from the game.

Down, but not out, Tri-City went back on the power play just 2:21 into the third period. But, in back-breaking fashion, Patterson took a stretch pass from Wintoneak and beat Alexander Pechurskiy, completing the hat trick and increasing the Tri-City deficit to three.

Unwilling to go quietly, the Americans pulled themselves to within one over the final minutes. The first came on the power play at the 8:01 mark of the period, when Lazo tallied his team-leading 24th goal of the season. Then, with 3:40 left in regulation, the Americans went back on the power play. Only this time, they made it a 6-on-4 advantage after pulling Pechurskiy for the extra attacker. Although Saskatoon killed off the penalty, Brooks Macek connected 33 seconds later when he redirected a wrist shot from Tyler Schmidt.

Still on top by one in the final seconds, Saskatoon's Jeremy Boyer was able to get off a clearing pass that bounced off the boards and traveled some 100+ feet, eventually sliding across the goal line for the empty net tally and capping the scoring in the contest.

Stanford, who came in as the League leader in goals against average, stopped 20 of the 24 shots he faced to collect his fourth straight win. Meanwhile, Owsley and Pechurskiy, who took the loss, combined for 20 saves in the loss. Tri-City finished the night 3-for-6 on the power play, while Saskatoon went 2-for-8 on the man-advantage.

After playing five games in their first eight days back from the Winter Break, Tri-City will use the upcoming week to rest and prepare for a tripleheader weekend. The weekend kicks off on Friday, January 8 when the B.C. Division's Prince George Cougars visit the Toyota Center. Game time is 7:05 p.m. It is the final game in the four-game regular season series between the two clubs. The Americans, who have taken the first three games vs. the Cougars, will be looking to sweep the season series for the second straight season. Tri-City will also be trying to avoid losing three straight games for the first time this season. Meanwhile, the Cougars will be looking for their first win in Kennewick since Nov. 2, 2003, a span of 12 consecutive games. Tickets are available through all Ticketmaster outlets, including the Toyota Center box office, all Fred Meyer outlets, or online at ticketmaster.com. The game will also be broadcast live on NewsTalk 870 AM, starting with the Sterling Savings Bank Warm-up Show at 6:45 p.m.

Applebee's 3 Stars:

1, Gaelan Patterson, Saskatoon

2, Kruise Reddick, Tri-City

3, Derek Hulak, Saskatoon

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