The Waywayseecappo Wolverines will look to rebound on Saturday night when they conclude their two-game road trip in Winnipeg against the Blues.
On Friday night in Portage, the Terriers came out of the gate guns blazing. After hitting three posts in the first ten minutes, those same Terriers scored a pair of goals in 21 seconds and didn’t really look back.
The Wolverines would come within one goal on two separate occasions with goals from Gerrik Ripley and Conrad Phillips but that would be as close as the team would come. Portage went on to take a 5-2 lead in the third before Logan Wotton scored with one second left to make it a 5-3 game.
Getting back to playing a full sixty minutes will be key if the Wolverines want two points from a tough Winnipeg Blues team on Saturday.
Head to Head
It has been a competitive season series between the Wolverines and Blues. Through five games against the Blues, the Wolverines have gone 2-3-0-0.
The season series could have gone either way with the Wolverines giving up a four-goal lead and Winnipeg scoring a fifth late in the third period to steal a 5-4 win in Waywayseecappo.
In their most recent meeting back on January 11, the Wolverines dominated from start to finish in a 5-0 shutout victory which happened to be Colin Ahern’s first MJHL start, win, and shutout.
The Wolverines did a great job of creating a bit of chaos in front of the opposing net during their last win and will need to do so again on Saturday night to generate as many chances as possible.
Blues Outlook
On Friday night, the Blues dropped an important matchup to the Selkirk Steelers in what was a 4-1 loss. After a scoreless first, Selkirk scored twice in the second and twice in the third before Winnipeg added a late short-handed marker in the third period to make it a 4-1 game.
The Blues sit 10 points back of Selkirk in the eighth and final playoff spot, having played one more game than the Steelers, it’s now or never for the Blues as they will need to almost win
Over their last ten games, the Blues certainly haven’t done themselves any favors in their race for the eighth and final playoff spot going 2-6-1-1 down the stretch.
On most nights, Winnipeg works hard and plays their systems well. Goaltender, Cooper Hatfield keeps his team in just about every game.
News and Notes
Jaymes Knee has had his way with Winnipeg so far this season scoring 4 goals and 5 assists in just 5 games played. Brody Moffatt also has five goals in five games this season against Winnipeg.
The Wolverines held their fifth-place position by two points following Friday night’s loss with Virden also dropping a 7-3 decision to the Dauphin Kings on Friday.
After Saturday night in Winnipeg, the Wolverines will have just 10 games remaining on their regular-season schedule. They will return to home ice on Tuesday night to host the Virden Oil Capitals in a crucial meeting.
Leading into Saturday night, the Wolverines are 4-4-2 over their last ten games and 3-1 in their last four.
Where to Watch
Watch tonight’s game between the Wolverines and Blues live on HockeyTV.com or follow the Wolverines on Twitter @mjhlWolverines for live game updates.