Growing up, my mother had a number of superstitions that she inherited from her mother. Don’t pass someone going up the stairs as you go down, don’t cross knives on a plate, in addition to the more commonly known superstitions about walking under ladders and breaking mirrors. And from the state of their injury list, the Brandon Wheat Kings have been violating every one of those superstitions and several others.
The injury bug has sunk its teeth up to the gums into the Wheat Kings over the past week, with the worst news coming after their return from their Alberta road trip. Roger McQueen, the team’s leading goal scorer and point producer at the time of his injury, is out. Carter Klippenstein, who traveled with the team to Alberta in hopes he might play, could not go either day in Medicine Hat or Lethbridge. Captain Quinn Mantei didn’t make the trip at all, nor did forward Nick Johnson. And when the team got back from Alberta, they had another injury waiting for them as Easton Odut is unable to play at the moment.
So, how did a frighteningly banged up Wheat Kings squad respond to all these injuries? They beat the 8-2 Spokane Chiefs 6-3, going up 3-0, letting them tie the score as if just to tease them before putting up three more goals in the late second and early third period.
Even that game, however, had a shadow cast over it by the specter of injury. Forward Dominik Petr had to be helped off the ice after a vicious hit by Matthew Edwards in the final minute of the already-decided game. We’ve sung the praises of the Wheat Kings’ forward depth before on this blog. Now it’s going to get thoroughly tested.
At the very least, the team gets to test their mettle at home. When injuries truly hobbled the team last season, they were on the road for much of the worst of it. And because the rules around recalling players have changed, the Wheat Kings can get a little more use out of young players like Prabh Bhathal and Chase Surkan.
Speaking of which…
- It lacked the headline-grabbing offense of Jaxon Jacobson’s debut in December of last year, but Prabh Bhathal had an excellent first game for the Wheat Kings in my opinion. He took several hits to make plays, one of which resulted in his first WHL point, and after he took those hits he got right back to work. He had good chances around the net and showed no fear, and seemed to have some chemistry with Jacobson. Way too early to think like this but since he and Jacobson have the same draft year (Jaxon is a late-2008 birthday) they could be a very effective duo for quite some time.
- Speaking of Jacobson, safe to say the dam has burst for him. The points that were always going to come have started coming, and he’s riding a three-game point streak. Curiously, after his shot earned him four goals in just seven games last season, most of his points have come from assists. But since his two assists against the Chiefs (both of the highlight-reel variety) left his targets with relatively easy goals, the Wheat Kings aren’t likely to complain. It feels like he’s just getting warmed up.
- A curious statistical note: the Wheat Kings are led by a different player in every major offensive category. Roger McQueen leads in goals (8), Dominik Petr in assists (8), Quinn Mantei in +/- (+8), and Jacobson in shots (33). The Wheat Kings are not a one-man army that’s for sure.
- The other major statistical category among skaters is penalty minutes, and newcomer Ben Binder Nord leads the way there. He’s already been in a few fights as a Wheat King and shows no hesitation whatsoever to mix it up. That’s not to say he’s lacking with his gloves on, either. He’s been working hard in relatively limited minutes, and made himself a pain to play against. Curiously, he always seems to buy trouble with players significantly larger than himself. No one can accuse him of picking his spots.
- Marcus Nguyen is rising up at the time when the Wheat Kings need him most. With two goals and an assist against the Chiefs (including the Wheat Kings’ first shorthanded goal of the season) he now leads the team in points. Sadly, the injuries throughout the forward group necessitate him taking charge a bit, but it’s a relief to see that when the team needs the veteran scorer to lead the way, he can do so. He’s a fixture on the power play and penalty kill, and a top player in every situation you can think of. He’s also got a mean streak that I wasn’t fully expecting. His Forsberg-style reverse hits are becoming a nightly occurrence and that’s just fine with this fan of old school hockey.
- If there’s one thing I would worry about normally against Seattle, it would be an emotional letdown. Spokane came into the Wednesday night showdown with an 8-2 record, and with a high-flying top unit that featured the league’s leading scorer in Shea Van Olm and first round pick of the Seattle Kraken Berkly Catton (and boy, did he live up to the billing with three assists in the span of just over five minutes to start the second period). By comparison, the Thunderbirds don’t have anyone with quite that level of immediate urgency to defend against. But I think the Wheat Kings will come in with some extra motivation all the same. Why? Because last year’s Wheat Kings squad had two points firmly in their grasp in Kent last year against the Thunderbirds, only to watch them slip away in a stunning collapse. They blew a 4-2 lead with under two minutes to play and lost 6-4 in regulation. Don’t think the returning Wheat Kings will let that one pass undetected. This could be a statement game for them.
A win on Friday night over Seattle would be huge for two reasons. One, the Eastern Conference is shaping up to be tight again and while it may be too early to watch the standings too religiously, it’s never too early to stockpile points. Two, it would buy the Wheat Kings some vital time. A lot of players are on the shelf right now, and every day the Wheat Kings can buy themselves to allow those players to heal will be incredibly important. With no Saturday game this week, and no mid-week game next week, the Black and Gold will have a full seven days to rest up, recover, and hopefully receive some badly needed reinforcements. Because in the WHL, teams might sympathize with you if you’re dealing with injuries, but that doesn’t mean they’ll take it any easier on you.
