Playoff bound
The Broncos booked their ticket to the WHL post season but it won't be until after a weekend home and home series with Moose Jaw that they know who they will face in the playoffs.
The Swift Current Broncos booked their ticket to the Western Hockey League post-season with a win over Lethbridge Sunday. They will be battling for playoff positioning this weekend during their final two games of the regular season when they face the rival Moose Jaw Warriors at home Friday and on the road Saturday.
Tuesday, the Broncos came up with their biggest win of the season when they scored four third-period goals to stun the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings 4-3. Jay Merkley capped an incredible comeback with the game winner with 2:56 left in regulation. The Broncos had trailed 2-0 early in the third period before Andrew Johnson scored to cut the deficit in half. Edmonton took the life out of the building just 13 seconds later when Henrik Samuelsson scored to restore the two-goal cushion. Playing their fifth game in seven nights, the Broncos refused to fold and got goals 23 seconds apart from Nathan Burns and Colby Cave to tie the game before Merkley netted his 28th of the season to clinch the win. Eetu Laurikainen made 26 saves in the win, while Tristan Jarry stopped 31 shots in the loss.
Friday, the Broncos’ threegame winning streak came to an end in a 4-1 loss to the host Red Deer Rebels.
Graham Black opened the scoring for the Broncos with his 31st goal of the season before Red Deer scored the final four goals.
Patrik Bartosak made 33 saves for Red Deer as he improved to 31-24-1-4. Laurikainen made 20 saves on 24 shots to drop to 23-20-1-5.
Power play opportunities continue to be rare for the Broncos as they finished without a goal on two manadvantages. They also held Red Deer off the scoreboard on four man-advantages.
Saturday, the Broncos clinched a playoff spot with a 5-3 win over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. The win, combined with a Brandon loss that same night, clinched a playoff spot for the second straight season.
The Broncos scored all five goals in the second period led by two-goal outings from Black and Merkley. Coda Gordon had a goal and two assists and Julius Honka added three assists in the win. Tyler Wong, Brady Ramsay, and Jamal Watson replied for the Hurricanes, who lost all four games in the season series. The Broncos trailed twice only to tie it up both times and then score three straight goals to lead 52 after two periods.
Landon Bow made 22 saves on 25 shots to improve to 12-5-2-1. Teagan Sacher al- lowed all five goals on 33 shots to suffer the loss in 40 minutes of work.
Stuart Skinner worked the third period and stopped all nine shots he faced in his first Western Hockey League appearance.
Gordon scored on the power play as the Broncos finished one-for-three on the man-advantage. They held Lethbridge without a goal on four power play opportunities. The Broncos trailed the Regina Pats for the East Division lead and the Kootenay Ice for fifth in the Eastern Conference by three points with a 35-25-3-6 record after the weekend. Lethbridge remained last in the WHL with a 12-52-2-3 record.
The Broncos also hosted the Saskatoon Blades on Wednesday. Visit swbooster.com for results.
The Broncos will conclude their 72-game regular season schedule this weekend with a home-and-away set against the Moose Jaw Warriors beginning Friday in Swift Current and concluding Saturday in Moose Jaw.
The Broncos have a 4-0-02 record against the Warriors this season with three regulation wins and one overtime win.
Black has led the Broncos with two goals and 10 assists in the season series, while Honka has nine points in only four games against Moose Jaw.
Bow is 3-0 against the Warriors with a 1.08 goals against average and a .965 save percentage. Brayden Point and Sam Fioretti each have six points in six games for the Warriors in the season series.
The Broncos finished the weekend 30 points ahead of the Warriors but the Warriors were riding a three-game winning streak with 6-1 and 4-1 upset wins over the Calgary Hitmen and Edmonton Oil Kings. Point leads the Warriors with 86 points in 69 games this season.
Swift Current holds a decided advantage in the special teams battle. The Broncos power play is fifth in the WHL at 23.1 per cent, although they have been afforded the least power play opportunities among all 22 WHL teams. The Warriors are 16th in the league at 19.0 per cent but have had almost 100 more power play opportunities and have scored eight more goals than the Broncos.
The Broncos are right in the middle of the pack on the penalty kill at 79.7 per cent, 11th in the league. The Warriors are ranked 15th at 77.5 per cent while shorthanded. Remaining schedules: Swift Current — vs. Moose Jaw, at Moose Jaw Kootenay — vs. Calgary, at Calgary Regina — vs. Brandon, at Brandon Brandon — at Regina, vs. Regina Red Deer — vs. Edmonton, at Edmonton
BRONCO BITS:
Black, 20, had 15 points during an eight-game point streak. He was eighth in WHL scoring with 91 points in 66 games. Merkley, 18, reached the 30-goal plateau Saturday and had 10 points in his past eight games. Rookie Jake DeBrusk, 17, had two assists Saturday and had registered 10 points in his past seven games. Honka, 18, was second among all WHL rookies with 55 points in 59 games.