The middle 35 minutes were very good for the Saskatoon Blades…but the beginning and end were not, hence a 5-4 overtime loss to the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors on Sunday.
Ryder Korczak finished off a 2-on-1 rush just 28 seconds into the extra period, before 3,051 fans at SaskTel Centre, as Moose Jaw ended a six-game winless skid (0-5-1) to improve to 6-6-1 for the season. The loss ended a three-game home-ice winning streak for the Bridge City Bunch (8-6-2). The Warriors overcame the opening goal from Chase Wouters to lead 2-1 after the first period, out-shooting the Blue and Gold 9-8 in the opening 20 minutes. From there, the Blades out-shot Moose Jaw 22-6 and held a 4-3 lead with five minutes remaining in the third period, thanks to a second goal from Wouters and a pair of tallies from Riley McKay. But, Bryden Kiesmen’s first W-H-L goal forced extra time, setting the stage for Korczak’s O-T heroics, while Anaheim Ducks’ first round draft pick Brayden Tracey accounted for the other three Warriors’ markers. Tracey also fed Korczak for the winner after Saskatoon opened the overtime with a 2-on-1 rush that ended when Scott Walford’s pass bounced off Wouters’ skates and caromed away to Tracey. The Bridge City Bunch are off until next weekend when they visit the Edmonton Oil Kings Friday and the Calgary Hitmen Saturday. Following is the official game summary from the W-H-L…
Moose Jaw Warriors 5 (OT) at Saskatoon Blades 4 – Status: Final OT
Sunday, October 27, 2019 – SaskTel Centre – Saskatoon, SK
Moose Jaw 2 1 1 1 – 5
Saskatoon 1 2 1 0 – 4
1st Period-1, Moose Jaw, Tracey 2 (Korczak), 7:08. 2, Saskatoon, Wouters 9 (Dach, Zabransky), 13:12. 3, Moose Jaw, Tracey 3 15:04 (PP). Penalties-Alarie Mj (tripping), 3:28; Hardy Mj (major-fighting), 13:40; Wouters Sas (unsportsmanlike cnd., major-fighting), 13:40; Benson Mj (cross checking), 17:07; Schmidt Sas (tripping), 17:07; Zabransky Sas (tripping), 18:58.
2nd Period-4, Moose Jaw, Tracey 4 (Korczak), 0:26 (PP). 5, Saskatoon, Wouters 10 (Zabransky, McKay), 7:12. 6, Saskatoon, McKay 7 (Kjemhus, Kneen), 11:51. Penalties-Robins Sas (tripping), 18:07.
3rd Period-7, Saskatoon, McKay 8 (Walford), 5:04. 8, Moose Jaw, Kiesman 1 (Anderson, Gardiner), 15:31. Penalties-Tracey Mj (tripping), 0:45; Zabransky Sas (delay of game), 8:29.
OT Period-9, Moose Jaw, Korczak 6 (Tracey), 0:28. Penalties-No Penalties
Shots on Goal-Moose Jaw 9-2-3-1-15. Saskatoon 8-12-10-0-30.
Power Play Opportunities-Moose Jaw 2 / 4; Saskatoon 0 / 2.
Goalies-Moose Jaw, Brkin 6-5-1-0 (30 shots-26 saves). Saskatoon, Maier 6-5-1-1 (15 shots-10 saves).
A-3,051
Referees-Fraser Lawrence (10), Brian MacDonald (7).
Linesmen-Tanner McGregor (55), Devan Thiessen (94).
