Game 18 - Brandon

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Game 18 - Brandon (accidentally put game 17 on the title)

Wheaties back home, set to play Tips

11/06/06 - Western Hockey League (WHL) Brandon Wheat Kings

Brandon, Manitoba -- The Brandon Wheat Kings won't have much time to sit back, relax and reflect on what was their longest road trip of the 2006-2007 Western Hockey League season that came to an end on Friday night in Red Deer.

The Wheat Kings will begin preparations later today for a busy week that will see the WHL's Eastern Division leaders play three games in four nights, including games against two of the league's elite teams - the Everett Silvertips on Wednesday and the Medicine Hat Tigers on Saturday. As well, Brandon will host the Moose Jaw Warriors in a Friday night battle at the Keystone Centre.

Heading out west riding a 4-game win streak, Brandon finished the 6-day in twelve night excursion with a record of 2-3-0-1, collecting a total of five of a possible 12 points.

The Wheat Kings return home sitting atop the Division with a record of 10-7-0-2, good for 22 points and a three point lead on the second place Swift Current Broncos and a four point cushion on the third place Regina Pats. Brandon is currently 5-1-0-1 on home ice and has managed to collect at least a point in four straight games at the Keystone (3-0-0-1).

Two Wheat Kings - veteran Codey Burki and rookie Juraj Simek - enter this week's play riding 9-game point scoring streaks. During that time, Simek has six goals and 12 points while Burki, who has managed to collect at least a point in sixteen of Brandon's first 19 games, has seven goals and 14 points.

Burki and Simek are two of three Wheat Kings currently sitting among the WHL's top ten scorers. Simek is seventh with thirteen goals and 25 points, Burki is fifth with 14 goals and 27 points while veteran left-winger Mark Derlago leads Brandon and is fourth in the WHL with 28 points including a league leading sixteen goals.

Entering Wednesday's game at the Keystone, coach Kevin Constantine has his Silvertips sitting atop the U.S. Division with an impressive 13-1-0-1 record. Winners of two Division titles since joining the WHL four years ago, the 'Tips are led by the likes of NHL first round draft pics Peter Mueller (8th overall, Phoenix Coyotes) and Leland Irving (26th overall, Calgary Flames). In fact, Everett had four of the first 73 players chosen in last summer's National Hockey League entry draft. Ondrej Fiala was taken by the Minnesota Wild in the second round (40th overall) while Brady Calla was chosen by Florida in the third (73rd overall).

This Wednesday is Don's Photo $500 Snapshot Contest. The first 500 adults in attendance will receive a disposable camera from Don's Photo. Fans having their film developed at Don's (before December 15th 2006) will have a chance to win a $500 grand prize.

Brandon will close out a busy week with a date with Kurt Jory's 6-9-1 Moose Jaw Warriors on Friday and the Central Division leading Medicine Hat Tigers on Saturday, Remembrance Day. The Tigers currently sit atop the Eastern Conference with an impressive 14-5-1 record and sit two points up on second place Red Deer. Saturday's game will include a special Salute to Manitoba Minor Hockey, presented by Koch Fertilizer Canada.

Tickets to all three games are on sale now at the Keystone Centre box office, by calling 726-3555 or online at ticketmaster.ca.

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Brandon Wheat Kings Game Notes
11/08/06 - Western Hockey League (WHL) Brandon Wheat Kings
11/8/2006: Everett Silvertips @ Brandon 19:00, Keystone Centre

GAME NOTES: The WHEAT KINGS return to the friendly confines of the Keystone Centre Wednesday night and will play host to the U.S. Division leading EVERETT SILVERTIPS...BRANDON is coming off a 6-game in 12 day western road swing...Tonight's game will be BRANDON'S first game since dropping a 5-2 decision in RED DEER last Friday and the WHEAT KINGS first on home ice since October 21st (4-1 victory over KOOTENAY)...The WHEAT KINGS currently lead the Western Hockey League's Eastern Division with a record of 10-7-0-2, after posting a 2-3-0-1 record out west...BRANDON outscored its oppon ents 24-20 during the trip...Wins came in KELOWNA against the ROCKETS and PRINCE GEORGE vs. COUGARS...Twelve of BRANDON'S first 19 games have been played away from home...WHEAT KINGS are currently 10-7-0-2, good for 22 points and a slim one point lead on the second place SWIFT CURRENT BRONCOS, who upset KOOTENAY 3-2 in Overtime Tuesday night...BRANDON is 5-1-0-1 at home this season while posting a 5-6-0-1 on the road...Tonight's game is the first of a 3-game home stand and first of three games in four nights...BRANDON hosts MOOSE JAW Friday and MEDICINE HAT on Saturday night...In games against Western Conference teams this season, the WHEATS are 2-2-0-1...they're 5-3-0 against Central Division teams and 3-2-0-1 vs. Eastern Division rivals...BRANDON was 5-12-1-1 and sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Division through the first nineteen games of the 2005-06 campaign.


LAST GAME: RED DEER built up a 3-0 second period lead thanks to a pair of shorthanded goals as the REBELS skated to a 5-2 win Friday night at the Enmax Centrium...BRET SUTTER scored once and set up two others as RED DEER outshot the WHEAT KINGS 49-32...ANDREW CLARK and rookie JURAJ SIMEK scored in a losing cause for the WHEAT KINGS, who went 2-9 with the man advantage...In making his 16th appearance of the season, netminder TYLER PLANTE made 44 saves including 15 in the first and nineteen in the third period of play.


TIP TOP TAILORS PLAYER OF THE MONTH: COLORADO AVALANCHE second round draft choice CODEY BURKI has been named BRANDON'S first TIP TOP TAILORS PLAYER OF THE MONTH of the season...A 19-year old Winnipeg product, BURKI enters tonight's game sitting in fifth place in the WHL scoring race with fourteen goals and 27 points...As well, he is currently riding a 9-game point scoring streak (7-7-14) and has managed to collect at least a point in sixteen of BRANDON'S first 19 games...BURKI, ANDREW CLARK and DUSTIN KOHN have been named to WHL all star team that will face the RUSSIANS in the 2006 ADT CANADA RUSSIA CHALLENGE...A special jersey presentation will be made before tonight's game by ADT'S Manitoba Sales Manager BEV CAMPBELL.


MILESTONES: Rookies CALE JEFFERIES and JAY FEHR scored their first ever WHL goals in last Wednesday's lopsided win over the COUGARS...Netminder TYLER PLANTE has moved past TREVOR KIDD and into sole possession of fifth place on the club's all time list for games played (126) and to within five games of JAMIE HODSON. As for minutes played, PLANTE is fourth all time (7,270)...Captain TEEGAN MOORE, the club's active leader with 277 career WHL games, has moved to within two games of ERIC FEHR and 10th place on the team's all time list. He's also eight points shy of the century mark...With his career high 5-assist effort last week against the COUGARS, defenceman DUSTIN KOHN eclipsed the 100-point plateau in his WHL career (17-85-102).


NUMBERS: MARK DERLAGO, who leads the club in scoring with 16 goals and 28 points is currently 4th in the WHL scoring race...His sixteen goals leads the WHL...BURKI is fifth in the WHL (14-13-27) while JURAJ SIMEK is seventh (13-12-25)...The Slovakian right-winger is also third in rookie scoring but leads all first year players in goals...ANDREW CLARK is third in the WHL with a +12 ranking...THERAN YEO leads the league with 90 penalty minutes...RYAN REAVES is fourth in the WHL with two shorthanded goals...DUSTIN KOHN (2-19-21) is third in scoring among blueliners and fourth in the entire league with 19 assists...Netminder TYLER PLANTE is fourth in the WHL with ten victories while leading the WHL with 487 saves...BRANDON continue s to own the WHL's best powerplay, having clicked on 27.3% of its chances this season...Penalty killing, WHEATS have been 82.7% efficient, good for ninth place..


DID YOU KNOW? BRANDON is 8-2-0-1 when it scores the first goal and unbeaten (6-0-0) when they at least tie its opponents in shots on goal...WHEATS have been outshot in thirteen of 19 games this season...BRANDON has lost 28 man games to injury...Tonight's game is only the second appearance of the SILVERTIPS at the Keystone Centre. EVERETT was a 2-1 winner two years ago...MARK DERLAGO leads the MTS CONNECT 3 Star standings (40 points)

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Tips win 10th straight

BRANDON, Manitoba - The streak has reached double digits. The Everett Silvertips chalked up their 10th straight victory, defeating the Brandon Wheat Kings 3-2 Wednesday night.

Peter Mueller, Jonathan Harty and Kyle Beach scored goals as Everett (15-1-0-1) continued its rampage through the Western Hockey League's East Division. The Silvertips have won all five of their games during their swing through the East, with only Friday's game at Swift Current remaining.

Everett goaltender Leland Irving made 17 saves, including several big stops in the final 10 minutes as the Tips had to kill off three straight penalties against the best power-play team in the league.

Everett center Zach Hamill had an assist, but still saw his consecutive games with a point streak snapped. Hamill lost his assist in Tuesday's 3-1 victory over Moose Jaw due to a scoring change, thus ending his streak at 15 games.

Brandon (10-8-0-2) was considered Everett's toughest test on the trip. The Wheat Kings are in first place in the East Division and feature the league's most-efficient power play, scoring at a 27-percent clip.

But Everett staked itself to an early lead. The Tips scored first on the power play at 17 minutes, 56 seconds of the first period. On the faceoff immediately following a penalty, Hamill won the puck back to Mueller, who floated a shot through a screen and into the net to give the Tips a 1-0 lead.

Everett made it 2-0 6:03 into the second period with a controversial goal. Wheat Kings goalie Tyler Plante became tangled up with Beach, allowing Harty to score into an unguarded net from the point as the crowd howled in protest.

However, the Wheat Kings showed just why they have the best power play in the league later in the period. First, at 9:48 while on a five-on-three advantage, good puck movement helped create an open shot that Daryl Boyle buried to cut the lead to 2-1. Then at 14:14 with the Wheat Kings again on the power play, Juraj Simek was allowed to walk out front and stuff the puck past Irving, tying it up at 2-2.

But Everett grabbed the lead back just 24 seconds into the third period. The Tips were on a short power play and Mueller's shot from the point deflected off Beach's leg and in to make it 3-2.

Silvertips 3, Wheat Kings 2

Everett 1 1 1 - 3

Brandon 0 2 0 - 2

First Period-1, Everett, Mueller 6 (Hamill), 17:56 (pp). Penalties-Irving, Everett (interference, served by Beach), 1:26; Erb, Brandon (delay of game), 13:00; Yeo, Brandon (interference), 14:49; Dittmer, Brandon (interference), 17:52.

Second Period-2, Everett, Harty 2 (Gutierrez), 6:03. 3, Brandon, Boyle 3 (Burki, Kohn), 9:48 (pp). 4, Brandon, Simek 14 (Burki, Derlago), 14:14 (pp). Penalties-Reaves, Brandon (interference), 2:06; Yeo, Brandon (unsportsmanlike conduct), 6:03; Sonne, Everett (interference), 8:27; Fransoo, Everett (holding), 8:43; Yeo, Brandon (checking from behind), 11:12; Alic, Everett (tripping), 13:55; Beach, Everett (tripping), 17:48; Tolpiko, Brandon (holding), 18:24.

Third Period-5, Everett, Beach 9 (Mueller, Doyle), 0:22 (pp). Penalties-Mueller, Everett (delay of game), 10:28; Everett bench (too many men, served by Beach), 13:10; Harper, Everett (tripping), 16:46.

Shots on goal-Everett 9-13-3-25. Brandon 6-7-6-19. Power-play opportunities-Everett 2 of 7. Brandon 2 of 8. Goalies-Everett, Irving 12-1-0-1 (19 shots, 17 saves). Brandon, Plante 9-6-0-2 (25 shots, 22 saves). A-3,149.