Through the first few weeks of the WHL season it seems like we have a new team on top of the Eastern Conference standings every Monday, and somehow it’s not the Brandon Wheat Kings.
This week’s top team is the Prince Albert Raiders. Winners of four straight, the Raiders finished their Western Conference swing by scoring a goal with 14 seconds left for a 1-0 win at Kootenay on Saturday. They lead the Wheat Kings by three points in the standings despite the fact Brandon has not lost in regulation for six straight games.
How are the Raiders doing it? Well, they’ve had a scorching start from Reid Gardiner, who has registered 19 points in 11 games. Their goaltending has been solid and rookie Ian Scott is making an early impression. He made 33 saves for the shutout in Kootenay and has four wins in his last five appearances.
While they don’t have the guns to hang with Brandon in the long haul, the Raiders do seem like a team that’s going to be in the playoff mix all year.
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Here are the rest of this week’s WHL musings:
Happy landing for Austin Lotz
You had to feel bad for goalie Austin Lotz. The 20-year-old had spent his first four years with the Everett Silvertips and played his heart out every night. He won 73 games for the Silvertips and was one of the most consistent back stops in the league. Despite all that, he lost his starting spot to 16-year-old Carter Hart last year and suddenly found himself in a backup role heading into his final year in the WHL.
Everett came into this season with four over-agers and with Hart in net, Lotz was the odd man out. He was released last week and quickly picked up by the Medicine Hat Tigers and wasted no time endearing himself to his new team and fans.
Friday night he picked up a win against the Ice and followed that up Saturday by making 27 saves for his 11th career shutout as Medicine Hat blanked Calgary 6-0. Lotz could end up being a gift of a pick up for the Tigers, who found themselves with a quality goalie without having to give up any assets.
Hitmen rebound
The Calgary Hitmen picked up a solid 5-1 win over Regina Sunday evening to salvage what was looking like a nightmarish week for them.
Moose Jaw came into Calgary on Thursday last week and walked all over the Hitmen, blasting them 10-2. They followed that ugly performance up by getting blanked by the aforementioned Lotz on Saturday. In a matter of three days the Hitmen lost two games by a combined score of 16-2. Those scores are surprising for a team that usually is strong on the blueline like the Hitmen are.
They are missing the presence of 20-year-old goalie Brendan Burke, who’s been out with an injury. They’ve had to rely on youngsters Kyle Dumba and Lasse Petersen in Burke’s absence and so far, they’ve been inconsistent. The good news for the Hitmen is that Burke was listed out for a week and could be back soon which should help them avoid any future blowouts like they saw this week.
Calgary also has to be watching the Vancouver Canucks season with some interest. Jake Virtanen has stuck with the Canucks so far but there is a school of thought that suggests Vancouver might eventually return him to junior. That would be a huge boost for the Hitmen and would put them in a good position to win the Central Division.
Surging Thunderbirds
The Seattle Thunderbirds had to wait a bit to get Mathew Barzal back from the New York Islanders, but since rejoining Seattle just prior to the start of the NHL season the Thunderbirds haven’t lost.
Barzal is playing on a line with Ryan Gropp, a second-round pick of the New York Rangers, and Keegan Kolesar, a Columbus Blue Jackets third-round pick. Those three have sparked the Thunderbirds to four straight wins and first place in the U.S. Division while combining to score eight goals and 19 points in four games played together.
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There were high expectations for Seattle coming into the season, and the big question mark was whether its inexperienced goaltending would hold up. So far the tandem of Logan Flodell and Taz Burman has been good enough as Seattle is only allowing 2.50 goals per game.
Player of the week
Tyler Wong, Lethbridge Hurricanes: The Hurricanes have been good this year and Wong is one of the reasons why. He potted four goals in two games this week – including a hat trick against Regina on Wednesday – for a five-point week. The Cochrane, Alta., product has been a goal scoring machine so far this season and now has nine goals in his last five games and 12 on the year.
2016 Draft Eligible of the week
Zach Sawchenko, G, Moose Jaw Warriors: Sawchenko is as big a reason as any for the resurgence of the Moose Jaw Warriors to start the season. He picked up two wins this week, allowing a pair of goals in each contest. So far on the season Sawchenko is 5-0-1-1 with a save percentage of .924 and a goals-against average of 2.67. He may have also had the quote of the week after it was pointed out to him he was one of only two Warriors not to register a point during their 10-2 win at Calgary. He told the Calgary Sun’s Scott Fisher “I’ve gotta work on that, I’m not going to lie.”