Remarkable night for Moose Jaw forward… Maddox Schultz returns from injury… Estevan keeps rolling…
BY Jonathan Huntington
SASKATOON – In a season that has been dominated – so far – by chatter about Maddox Schultz and Liam Pue of the Regina Pat Canadians, Carson Deichert changed the narrative and skated into the spotlight Saturday night in the marquee match-up of the month in the SMAAAHL.
The 17-year-old forward scored FOUR goals – including the OT winner – to lead the Moose Jaw Winmar Warriors to a 7-6 victory over Regina.
“Four goals in a game is an incredibly rare accomplishment and to score his fourth in OT was a special moment for him and a big win for our hockey team,” said Moose Jaw head coach Trevor Weisgerber.
Added Deichert: “I hadn’t scored an OT goal in a long time.”
The Estevan native is a three-year veteran on the Warriors and gets full marks from his coach for elevating his game this season. “We have seen him mature as a player and a person,” continued Weisgerber. “He has been a big part of our success the first half of the season.”
Moose Jaw has only lost once in regulation time in 19 games this year and sits five points behind Regina in second place with three games in-hand.
ICE CHIPS: Lost in the shuffle of Moose Jaw’s big victory on Saturday night was the fact Schultz returned from injury to notch four points for Regina. The 15-year-old now has a staggering 34 points in just 11 games. “He’s a special player,” said Deichert, who is more than qualified to make that statement after playing more than 120 SMAAAHL games in the last 2.5 seasons. “He has a release that not a lot of guys have.”
FINISH LINES: The Estevan Bears took three out of four points from the Tisdale Trojans on the weekend, running their streak to 10 games without a regulation loss… Regina hasn’t lost in regulation time in their last 16 games… Five teams between 4th and 8th in the standings are separated by three points. In order, those teams are: Estevan, Saskatoon Blazers, Battlefords Stars, Warman Wildcats, Prince Albert Mintos… The last word this week goes to Deichert. After getting a taste of the WHL last year with five games for the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors, he hasn’t been called-up for a game so far this year. But instead of letting any frustration or sourness sneak into his game or off-ice attitude, Deichert has used it as fuel for next year. “I’m going to put in the work (after this season) to crack the Warriors roster in the WHL as an 18-year-old.” In the top 15 in league scoring at almost the half-way point of the year, the WHL club has to be liking what they are seeing from their 2023 third-round pick.
