TIED FOR FIRST IN VITERRA DIVISION
Courtesy of Steven Wilson, discoverweyburn.com
The Weyburn Red Wings are now tied for first in the Viterra Division, with three games in hand, after their 8-2 win over the Ice Wolves in La Ronge Wednesday night. The win is the eighth in a row for the streaking Wings, who have outscored their opponents 41-14 over the stretch.
Erik Olson and Shae Kiryk scored twice in the win, while Cole Woodliffe extended his point streak to nine games with a goal and an assist. Arik Weersink picked up his fifth win in the net of the season for the Red Wings.
The scoring for the Wings started with just under 13 minutes on the clock in the first period. Olson scored his fourth of the year, with Cade Kowalski and Landon Walters picking up the assists. Just over two minutes later, it became a 2-0 game, when Ben Hiltz, assisted by Olson and Mike Eskra, scored his eighth of the year on the power play.
With 2:30 left in the first, the Red Wings found themselves shorthanded, when Woodliffe had the chance to break out of the defensive zone. He carried the puck down the ice along the left wing, and came in, using his backhand to beat La Ronge goalie Merek Pipes with the first shorthanded goal of the season for the Red Wings.
On the same power play, though, the Ice Wolves got on the board. During a scramble at the top of the crease, Drayton ThunderChief beat Weersink for his fourth of the year.
In the second period, the Wings kept pressing, looking to expand the lead. It happened when Kowalski picked up the puck off the boards from Hiltz and snuck it past Pipes on the short side for the second power-play goal of the game for Weyburn. Ty Brown was credited with the other assist.
Just over a minute later, a bizarre play gave La Ronge their second goal of the game while short-handed. Eskra was coming out from behind his own net and went to fire a pass down the ice. Ice Wolves forward Tanner Brewster had been shadowing him from the front of the goal, and the pass went off his skate, and redirected past Weersink, making it a 4-2 game.
In the third period, Weyburn began to open up.
Garrett Szeremley was credited with his first goal in the SJHL at the 6:34 mark, with Dawson Atamanchuk and Calder Newson, credited with the assists. Just under two minutes later, Kiryk would score his first of the game, and the season, with Eskra and Sean Olson, credited with the assists. For Kiryk, the goal came while playing in the Mel Hegland Uniplex for the first time since being traded by the team in the off-season.
Erik Olson would score his second of the game with 3:31 left on the clock with a shot from the right point. Hiltz and Woodliffe were credited with the assists. Kiryk rounded out the scoring just moments later, with a goal originally disallowed but given to the team after discussion by the officials. Szeremley assisted on the goal.