With a run of tough Alberta opponents on deck, the Brandon Wheat Kings started it off on the right foot against the Edmonton Oil Kings on home ice.
Adam Belusko, Marcus Nguyen, Giorgos Pantelas, and Joby Baumuller all scored, and Carson Bjarnason was stellar with 46 saves as the Wheat Kings took a 4-1 win. Both teams fired from everywhere, as the final shots read 47 to 40 for Edmonton.
“It was kind of high flying, a lot of chances both ways and a lot of shots on net,” said Wheat Kings head coach and GM Marty Murray. “They’re pretty high-octane, their high end is really good, so we gave up a little more than we wanted to but we generated some good scoring opportunities of our own as well.”
Off a quick strike from the point, the Oil Kings opened the scoring. Blake Fiddler let the shot go from the right point, and Gracyn Sawchyn parked in front redirected it past Bjarnason for the first of the game.
Thanks to a defenseman of their own, however, the Wheat Kings tied the score about as late as possible. Jaxon Jacobson shot for a rebound and got one, which Belusko hammered bar-down from the left wing wall with only .4 seconds on the clock.
Early in the second period, the Wheat Kings took their first lead of the evening. Luke Shipley worked the puck around the offensive zone and handed it off to Nguyen at the top of the left circle. Nguyen let loose a bullet of a shot to make it 2-1 and give him both 30 goals on the season and 100 goals in his career.
Another rookie defenseman got in on the scoring for Brandon next. Following the rebound of a Dominik Petr shot, Pantelas went right to the net and fired home his fourth of the season.
Belusko got back in the scoresheet in the third period. After a won faceoff, he took a feed from Nigel Boehm and sent it into the slot, where Baumuller was waiting to one-time it past Alex Worthington.
Both goaltenders stood on their heads at times from there, with each coming up with some excellent saves. Bjarnason and the Wheat Kings, however, would have the last laugh as they won 4-1.
The Wheat Kings stay on home ice for their next contest, a battle with the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Friday night at 7:00.
