WHL Brandon Wheat Kings

Wheat Kings, Chiefs set to do battle

Published on January 18, 2007 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Brandon Wheat Kings News Release


Brandon, Manitoba -- Two Western Hockey League teams with a lot on the line will kick off the weekend Friday night at the Keystone Centre in Brandon.

While the Wheat Kings will be hoping to tighten their grip on top spot in the WHL's Eastern Division, the Spokane Chiefs will be looking to vault past Seattle and into second place in the U.S. Division.

The Chiefs enter weekend play with a record of 24-15-3-2, good for 53 points and trail the T-Birds by one point. The Wheat Kings meanwhile are 23-15-2-6, good for 54 points and a six point lead on the second place Swift Current Broncos, who will be in Brandon on Saturday night.

This is an important weekend for the Wheat Kings. Following this 2-game home stand, they will hit the highway for a 4-game western road swing, beginning Tuesday night in Medicine Hat against the Central Division leading Tigers. Following Tuesday's game, Brandon will play in Lethbridge on Wednesday, Calgary on Friday and Cranbrook on Sunday.

The Wheat Kings enter Friday riding a 2-game win streak and are coming off an impressive 5-2 victory over the Warriors in Moose Jaw on Wednesday. Codey Burki snapped a 13-game goal scoring drought by leading the club with two goals and an assist. Newly acquired left-winger Robert Klinkhammer picked up his first two points as a Wheat King - assisting on goals by Tyler Dittmer and Theran Yeo. Captain Mark Derlago rounded out the scoring with his league leading 30th of the season.

Friday's game will feature the return of former Wheat King blueliner Stephane Lenoski to the Keystone Centre. A 20-year old Winnipeg product, Lenoski was traded by Chilliwack to the Chiefs earlier this month and has been excellent since joining Spokane. In eight games with the Chiefs, Lenoski has three assists and is a +4.

Lenoski spent three seasons in a Wheat King uniform, scoring five goals, 42 points and accumulating 131 penalty minutes in 194 games.

Lenoski is one of three Manitobans on Spokane's roster, joining netminder Kevin Armstrong (Winnipeg) and defenceman Justin Falk (pictured player) of Snowflake.

A former member of the Saskatoon Blades, Armstrong has allowed a goal or less in three of his last four games and during his last 17 games, he has a sparkling 2.36 goals against average and a stellar .916 save percentage.

At the other end of the rink, Tyler Plante has compiled a 1.84 goals against average during his last six starts and has moved to within two appearances of tieing Robert McVicar for third place on the club's all tie list for games played.

Friday's game is a presentation of the Brandon Sun, who reminds fans to be watching this Saturday's edition for a special 2-page pullout retrospective poster featuring the greatest players and Brandon Sun headlines from the past 40 years.

Tickets to Friday's game are on sale now at the Keystone Centre box office, by calling 726-3555 or online at ticketmaster.ca.

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Western Hockey League Stories from January 18, 2007


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