Preview: Warriors Set for Another Key Battle against Hitmen
Published on January 6, 2023 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Moose Jaw Warriors News Release
After picking up a key Eastern Conference win on Wednesday in Lethbridge, the Moose Jaw Warriors will face another foe breathing down its neck in the WHL Playoff race.
The Warriors play host to the Calgary Hitmen on Friday night with just two points separating the teams in the battle for fourth place.
Warriors head coach Mark O'Leary said they're expecting a tough test from Calgary.
"Very similar to Lethbridge, a team that's nipping on our heels and that's playing pretty good hockey right now on their road trip," he said.
The Warriors have won back-to-back games and three out of four since returning from the Christmas break.
The team put together a strong 60-minute effort on Wednesday in Lethbridge to score a 5-3 win over the Hurricanes.
"We're playing a simple North-South game," Warriors forward Atley Calvert, who had two goals and four points on Wednesday, said. "We're a hard team to play against if we play honest, we've got a lot of skill in that room, so eventually we grind teams down and that's when our skill can take over."
Wednesday's win gave the Warriors some separation on Lethbridge, who are now three points back in sixth place. Calvert said that's a key win for the team.
"It's big, anytime you can pick up two points on a team that's right on your heels, it's huge and it's huge right now, but it may end up being pretty big at the end of the year," he said.
The Warriors have split its two meetings with Calgary so far this season with the home team winning each time back in December, including a 9-2 win for Moose Jaw in the last meeting.
"The last time they played in this building, it was a one sided game, we expect a much different game here," O'Leary said.
"They come at you hard and we'll need to be ready."
Calvert added that the Warriors need the same mentality heading into Friday night's matchup with the Hitmen that they had in Lethbridge.
"Calgary's a good team, it's going to be a battle," he said.
The Warriors and Hitmen face-off on Friday night at 7 p.m. at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.
Tune into all the action on Country 100 and WHL Live. The night kicks off with the Pre-Game Show on IKS Media Warriors Live, streaming on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, starting at 6:45 p.m.
The Warriors will also host the Western Conference-leading Seattle Thunderbirds coming up on Saturday.
Western Hockey League Stories from January 6, 2023
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