BY Jonathan Huntington
REGINA – In the biggest showdown of the year – so far – in the SMAAAHL, the Regina Pat Canadians scored three unanswered goals in the third period to defeat the Moose Jaw Winmar Warriors 7-6 on Wednesday night in the Queen City.
The victory gives Regina a five-point first place cushion over Moose Jaw with eight games remaining in the regular season.
“It’s absolutely huge; we had this game marked on the calendar,” said Regina’s 15-year-old sensation Maddox Schultz, while standing outside the dressing room after the game.
As usual, Schultz led the Regina charge with five points, including playing an instrumental role in the game-winning goal with 1:25 remaining,
Buzzing in the Moose Jaw zone, Schultz took a high-stick to the head with 2:02 left in the final frame – giving Regina its first power play of the night. To no surprise, Schultz then set-up the winning tally by controlling the puck while rushing through the neutral zone to open ice for his teammates – directly leading to Ryker Doka scoring the winner with a bullet from just inside the blue line.
“(Schultz) gives me more space as a D-man,” said Doka, before describing the game-winning goal. “I saw a guy closing in, so I did a toe-drag and the saw the goalie going down (before I shot).”
The stars from both teams came out to play – as both clubs realized the significance of the late-season match-up.
Moose Jaw’s Ryan Gibbs scored three goals to pace the Warriors to a 4-2 lead midway through the second period. In fact, when Riley Brown scored with five minutes left in the second, the Warriors had a 5-2 lead with apparent total control.
But Regina scored five of the next six goals to stun the Warriors for their seventh consecutive victory. The Pat Canadians are now 32-2-2-0 in 36 games,
FINISH LINES: While Regina’s comeback stole the show, there were some other wild moments inside the Co-operators Centre. Nathan Gardiner scored Regina’s fourth goal with just one second left in the middle frame to cut Moose Jaw’s lead to 5-4… When Doka scored the winning goal, the near sell-out crowd of more than 1,000 fans erupted with people rushing to shake the glass. The jubilation led to chaos, though, as two sheets of glass smashed onto the ice surface – leading to a 35-minute delay and the game eventually resuming for the final 85 seconds with a sheet of plywood to cover the damage… Moose Jaw goalie Steven Wawryk lost for the first-time in regulation this year… The game within the game was on full display with six minutes to play in the third period. With Regina gaining momentum and Moose Jaw holding a one-goal lead, the Warriors iced the puck. Without the ability to make a line change, Moose Jaw head Trevor Weisgerber called a 30-second timeout. On the next shift, Regina scored to tie the game… Gibbs now leads the league with 33 goals in 32 games… Gardiner’s two goals on Wednesday gives him 30 on the season so far… Schultz’s five point night gives him 56 points in 20 games.
