Broncos enjoy two-win weekend
The Swift Current Broncos won two of three games over the weekend as they got the better of the Regina Pats during a home-and-away set.
Friday, the Broncos won the special team battle with three power play goals and another while shorthanded in a 7-5 win over the visiting Pats.
The Broncos broke the game open early in the second period with two power play goals and a shorthanded marker over 2:02 and then held on to win despite a spirited comeback attempt from the Pats.
Ethan Regnier led the Broncos with a goal and three assists. Jaxan Kaluski added a pair of goals, including a shorthanded marker. Sam Mcginley scored his first WHL goal during a three-point outing. Defenseman Kasper Puutio picked up three assists, while Tyler Smithies and Hayden Ostir added a goal and an assist each.
Isaac Poulter earned the win with 44 saves. Max Paddock took the loss with 15 saves on 21 shots over 40 minutes. Donovan Buskey made three saves in 18:35 of relief work.
Saturday, Regnier scored the only goal of the shootout as the Broncos earned their second win over the host Pats in as many days with a 5-4 win.
Reece Klassen made 36 saves and then stopped all three Regina skaters in the shootout for his first win with the Broncos.
The Broncos fell behind when Carson Denomie scored twice for the Pats in the first period. They responded in the second period with goals from Eric Houk and Garrett Sambrook to draw even.
Kye Buchanan gave the Broncos their first lead with his first Western Hockey League goal and then Regnier added an insurance marker midway through the final frame.
The Pats forced overtime with power play goals from Drew Englot and Zach Wytinck.
Paddock took the loss with 22 saves on 26 shots. “There’s a lot of positives. I thought we did a lot of good things,” said Head Coach Dean Brockman. “We’ve scored some goals and our power play got some chances and looks. There is a lot of good things happening.”
The Broncos scored 11 goals in the two wins over the Pats.
“Our understanding and distribution of pucks, the game can be pretty simple, the more pucks you get on net, the more opportunities and chances you have to score,” said Brockman.
The power play also looked improved throughout the weekend.
“It’s always a focus I guess. It’s just a matter of sometimes you’ve got to back off and let guys think about it and figure it out. It’s about execution and sometimes guys’ heads are not quite in it. But when they are there’s some good things,” explained Brockman.
Sunday, the winning streak came to an end in a 4-2 loss to the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds. Playing their third game in as many days, the Broncos allowed three straight goals after opening the scoring.
The Broncos took the lead in the first period when rookie Aiden Bulych scored via a nifty behind the back deflection on the man-advantage for his ninth goal of the season. The Thunderbirds quickly tied the game with an Andrej Kukuca goal.
Seattle took the lead when Connor Roulette sent a screened shot home early in the middle stanza. Keltie Jeri-leon fired home an insurance goal for the Thunderbirds early in the third period on a lengthy three-on-two rush.
The Broncos made things interesting when Kaluski scored to make it a one-goal game with 4:54 remaining in regulation. Jeri-leon scored an empty net goal to seal the win with 1:21 left on the clock.
“I didn’t mind it,” said Brockman of his team’s play. “I know it’s three in three and we had to keep it simple, but we complicated it at times. We didn’t have enough guys pulling on the same rope. When you don’t have that happen in three in three it’s tough.”
Poulter took the loss with 33 saves to fall to 8-17-1-1 for the Broncos. Roddy Ross made 29 saves to improve to 10-12-3-1.
The Broncos fell to 9-25-1-2, while Seattle improved to 15-20-2-1 with a 2-1 record during a weekend trip through the Central Division.
The WHL trade deadline is on Friday.
“For us it’s about trying to get better, whether it’s marginally or for the future, we’ll try. I like a lot of our guys right now, they’re playing hard. The focus is still down the road and we have to make sure we look after ourselves now and in the future,” said Brockman.
The Broncos will face another difficult weekend as they visit the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Saturday and the Calgary Hitmen on Sunday. They also host the Hitmen on Wednesday.
Bronco Bits: Forward Braeden Lewis made his WHL debut on Sunday. The 16-year-old was a sixthround pick in 2018. He has 37 points 30 games with the Southwest Midget AAA Cougars this season.