Broncos show strength in overtime victories
The Swift Current Broncos found a winning recipe last week as they took five of six points from a three-game home stand, including a pair of overtime wins over the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Edmonton Oil Kings.
Tuesday, the Broncos held a late lead, but eventually lost 2-1 in a shootout to the visiting Kootenay Ice.
Looking to snap a seven-game losing streak, the Broncos led on a first period breakaway goal from Ethan Regnier as the Broncos outshot the Ice 20-6 in the frame.
A late penalty allowed Brett Davis to score with 4:11 left on the clock to force overtime.
Both Peyton Krebbs and Brett Davis scored in the shootout, while Alec Zawatsky and Max Patterson were both turned aside for the Broncos.
Joel Hofer took the loss with 28 saves, while Jesse Makaj earned his first career win with 41 saves.
Friday, the Broncos earned their first home win with a dramatic 5-4 comeback overtime victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
The Broncos displayed plenty of resiliency on ‘Bronco Strong’ night as they played from behind most of the way. Defenseman Noah King was the overtime hero to give the Broncos their second win of the season.
“It felt pretty good,” said King. “I don’t consider myself a very offensive guy, but it was nice to score one.”
The Broncos came out flying in the first half of the first period but were unable to capitalize. Lethbridge quickly turned the momentum and capitalized with goals 2:50 apart from Calen Addison and Noah Boyko. The Broncos salvaged the period when Patterson tipped home a point shot with 11 seconds remaining for a 2-1 deficit after one period.
The Hurricanes took another twogoal lead when a power play shot banked off Jadon Joseph midway through the second period. Andrew Fyten got the Broncos back within a goal when his wrist shot beat Reece Klassen high to the blocker side 54 seconds later.
Rookie Ben King batted home the tying goal with 8:14 remaining after Patterson had forced a turnover.
The Hurricanes took advantage of two late power plays with a Ty Kolle marker to take a 4-3 lead.
The Broncos pulled their goaltender early and earned power play. They took advantage with a Connor Horning goal to force overtime, his third of the season, with only 35.4 seconds left on the clock.
Noah King notched the game winner when he helped stopped Dylan Cozens on one end and then received a late pass and fired it high to the glove side for the game-winner.
“Obviously it is great and wearing those jerseys there’s no better night to do it. We played our game all night and came out with the W,” said Ben King.
Hofer earned the win with 42 saves.
Saturday, the Broncos won for a second straight night in overtime when Fyten wired a wrist shot home from the high slot only 41 seconds into the three-on-three overtime period.
Unlike the previous evening, the Broncos led most of the way, but surrendered a third-period lead to set the stage for more overtime heroics in a 4-3 victory over the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings.
After a scoreless first period, the Broncos took advantage of their first power play when Patterson tipped home a point shot for his fourth goal of the season 1:02 into the second period.
The Broncos added to the lead when Ethan Regnier kept the puck on a twoon-one and snapped it high to the blocker side of Dylan Miskew for his fourth of the campaign.
The Oil Kings also capitalized on their first power play when Trey Fixwolansky danced through the Broncos and then set up Jalen Luypen for an easy goal.
The Broncos replied only 22 seconds later when Zawatsky collected a puck in the slot and fired it home for his seventh goal of the season. The Oil Kings cut the lead to one goal for a second time when Brett Kemp fired home a low shot with 33.6 seconds left in the middle stanza.
The Oil Kings tied the game in controversial fashion early in the third period when the officials missed an obvious interference infraction that allowed Matthew Robertson to score the tying goal.
Isaac Poulter made 42 saves for his first career victory. “It’s a lot of adrenaline right now,” admitted Poulter. “It’s great to get the first win and have everything just go our way tonight.”
“We don’t get to the win tonight without Poults, he was unbelievable,” said Head Coach Dean Brockman. “Our goaltending has been unbelievable all year. It was great to see him get the win, but also, more importantly, see our team get the win.”
“I think we can take everything away from it. We just need to make sure we keep playing the way we’ve been playing these games, don’t stop what we’re doing right, and fix what we’re doing wrong and keep working hard,” added Poulter.
The Broncos will play three road games in as many days this weekend. They visit the WHL leading Prince Albert Raiders on Friday and the Regina Pats on Saturday. The Broncos will also host the Red Deer Rebels on Sunday at 4 p.m.