Tigers Fall to Rebels, 3-1
WHL Medicine Hat Tigers

Tigers Fall to Rebels, 3-1

Published on September 26, 2026 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Medicine Hat Tigers News Release


Red Deer, AB - The Medicine Hat Tigers took a trip up north for their first of eight matchups this season with the Red Deer Rebels on Saturday, September 26th in the Marchant Crane Centrium.

The 2-0 Tigers ran into a hearty opponent in the Rebels to kick off their third game of the season as Red Deer outshot them 14-10 in the first frame.

Although Medicine Hat received the first power play of the game just 0:40 after puck drop, Red Deer stood tall and put the pressure back on the Tabbies.

Red Deer's efforts amounted to Patrick Sopiarz finding the back of the net for his first of the year at 7:38 to give the Rebels a 1-0 lead.

The second period saw a lot more action from the Tigers although the shot clock may show a different story.

Red Deer may have outshot Medicine Hat 13-8 in the middle frame but the Tigers controlled the game on both ends of the ice.

While a 5:00 penalty kill at 5:33 was looking to make things harder for the Tigers, their special teams kept their zone locked down, covering all of the open areas. Red Deer spent most of the power play regrouping after Medicine Hat continued to dump the puck and force them to reset.

The best scoring chance of the 5:00 penalty actually came from Markus Ruck. Although the Tigers were down a man, he jumped on a loose puck and crashed the crease, nearly tying the game at 1-1.

On another penalty kill later in the period, Liam Ruck found himself with a breakaway after a stretch pass from his brother Markus. The Penguins prospect made no mistake in all alone and scored his first of the year at 13:09 shorthanded to tie the game.

The third period saw the Tigers outshoot their opponent 11-8 and dominate the physical game, but the Rebels outscored the Tigers in the end, capitalizing on a few high-danger chances.

The red hot Beckett Hamilton, coming off of a hat-trick one night prior, scored his fourth of the season to put the Rebels ahead by one at 14:07.

Poul Anderson doubled the Rebels lead with his first of the season at 17:23 on an odd man rush.

The Tigers pressed hard to claw back into the game but a late penalty sent them back on the penalty kill for the fifth time of the evening and Red Deer finished with a 3-1 victory.

Carter Casey got the start in net on Saturday night for the Tigers, debuting some sharp new pads as well. He stopped 32 of 35 shots faced.

Special Teams:

PP: 0/0 - 0.0%

PK: 5/5 - 100.0%

Stringam Law Three Stars:

Beckett Hamilton (1G, 1A) - Red Deer

Liam Ruck (1G) - Medicine Hat

Patrick Sopiarz - Red Deer

The Tigers are back in action on Sunday, September 27th for an afternoon game as they take on the Edmonton Oil Kings in Rogers Place at 4:00pm MT.

Check out the Medicine Hat Tigers Statistics

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Western Hockey League Stories from September 26, 2026


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