Rankin settles in, scores for Hitmen
In his first five games with the Calgary Hitmen, Connor Rankin recorded just one assist.
The 19-year-old forward tripled his output for his new team on Sunday with a goal and an assist during a 3-2 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oil Kings.
“It was very exciting, but at the same time it would have been nice to get another one in overtime,” Rankin said. “It kind of sucks that my first goal was in a loss, but it’s still a nice feeling.”
Edmonton forward Mitchell Moroz scored at 3:34 of the extra frame when he swatted a rebound past Calgary goalie Chris Driedger.
Moroz and Henrik Samuelsson both finished the game with a goal and two assists. Dysin Mayo also scored for Edmonton, while goalie Tristan Jarry finished with 20 saves to pick up the win.
It was second-straight victory for Edmonton (34-13-1) over Calgary (3112-6) after winning 7-3 on Saturday night at Rexall Place. The Oil Kings take over top spot in the WHL’s Eastern Conference as a result.
Jake Virtanen also scored for the Hitmen, while netminder Chris Driedger finished with 24 saves.
Calgary acquired Rankin on Jan. 9 — just one day before the WHL trade deadline — from the Tri-City Americans in exchange for 17-year-old defenceman Josh Thrower.
“It was a little bit surprising, but it’s also exciting,” said Rankin, who picked up an assist during a 3-2 road loss to the Regina Pats in his first game with the Hitmen the night after he was dealt.
The six-foot, 200-pound left winger then went the next four games without a point before scoring once and setting up another on Sunday in front of 11,700 fans at the Saddledome.
“We’re starting to get a better feel for him and learn a bit more about him,” said Hitmen coach Mike Williamson. “He was a little sore tonight, but he fought through that and played and had a good game for us.”
With his first-period tally, Rankin snapped a nine-game goal less drought dating back to Dec. 27 when he scored for Tri-City during a 3-2 overtime loss to the Portland Winterhawks.
“It’s definitely a monkey off the back, that’s for sure,” Rankin said. “It’s been awhile. Usually I like to score those goals, but it hasn’t come. It was a huge relief to score again and hopefully the floodgates open.”
The Oil Kings jumped out to a 1-0 lead over the Hitmen when Mayo onetimed a pass from Samuelsson past Driedger at 13:27 of the first period.
Before the end of the opening frame, Rankin took a pass from Adam Tambellini and wired a shot into the net behind Jarry just under the crossbar.
The Hitmen took a 2-1 lead at 13:39 of the second period when Virtanen tapped a perfect feed from Rankin past Jarry.
Samuelsson tied the game at 2-2 when he fired a shot into the top corner over Driedger’s glove hand with just 20.5 seconds left in the middle frame.
The Oil Kings then outshot the Hitmen 8-4 in a scoreless third period.
The Hitmen will continue their three-game homestand when Rankin’s old team pays a visit to the ’Dome on Wednesday before Calgary gets set to host the Brandon Wheat Kings on Friday. Both games start at 7 p.m.