BY Jonathan Huntington
REGINA – The Moose Jaw Winmar Warriors control their own destiny at the Telus Cup Western Regional tournament.
An electric start and dominant third period led the Warriors to a 6-3 victory over the Winnipeg Bruins in the opening game of the four-day tournament. The victory means the Warriors will punch their ticket to the championship final on Sunday with wins in their remaining two round-robin games.
“We talked a lot (this week) about… how important the first game is,” said Moose Jaw head coach Trevor Weisgerber, who watched his club score two goals in the first 5:25 of the opening period.
Captain Ryan Gibbs made it 2-0 when he went top shelf on the blocker side of Winnipeg net-minder Logan German (Kelowna Rockets draft choice). “Getting this win was crucial,” added Gibbs, a Tri-City Americans draft choice.
Winnipeg mounted a comeback in the second period to tie the game at 3-3 – outscoring Moose Jaw in the middle frame. “I think it’s a little bit of human nature,” continued Weisgerber. “They think this might be easy.”
But Moose Jaw responded with an impressive final 20 minutes, scoring three straight. It sets-up another major-league showdown with the Regina Pat Canadians tomorrow night. Regina won the SMAAAHL league title in a hard-fought five-game series against Moose Jaw to end March. “We can’t be in awe (of them),” said Gibbs.
FINISH LINES: Gibbs finished with a game-high four points (two goals, two assists)… Carson Deichert, Maxx Fuessel and Tobin Schaefer also scored for Moose Jaw. The Warriors’ tradition of taking a team photo after every win this season has continued into the Telus Cup Western Regional. The tight-knit team – which features four prospects for the WHL’s Warriors – receives its biggest break of the tournament after Game 1 with 25 hours before Game 2 tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. Moose Jaw will have less than 14 hours between Game 2 and Game 3, as their final round-robin game is Saturday morning at 11:15 a.m.
