Lisowsky’s milestone 30th marker delivers spectacular OT win to Blades

Brandon Lisowsky, right, enjoys his OT winner with Jayden Wiens.

Brandon Lisowsky continues to smash a personal goal and reached a milestone in memorable fashion.

On Wednesday night at the SaskTel Centre, Lisowsky’s Saskatoon Blades went to overtime in their WHL regular season contest against the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes locked in a 3-3 tie. Late in the three-versus-three overtime frame, Lisowsky saw linemate Jayden Wiens steal the puck from a Hurricanes player near the Lethbridge blue-line.

As Wiens jetted down the left wing into the offensive zone, Lisowsky charged straight for the Lethbridge goal creating a two-on-one break. Wiens passed the puck to Lisowsky, who quickly potted the OT winner to give the Blades a 4-3 victory to the delight of the 2,426 spectators in attendance.

Brandon Lisowsky scored twice for the Blades on Wednesday.

The 17-year-old left-winger’s overtime tally was his 30^th goal of the season and second marker of the night.

“That was huge,” said Lisowsky, who has 30 goals and 22 assists appearing in all the Blades 53 regular season games to date. “My personal goal was 25 for the year.

“It is a good individual accomplishment, but we’re super excited to have that big two points and get ready for a big home and home against P.A. this weekend.”

The Blades will face their archrivals the Prince Albert Raiders (22-28-2-1) in a home-and-home series this coming weekend. The two sides go at it on Friday at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert and close the series on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

Jayden Wiens set up the OT winner for the Blades.

Before the Blades could focus on the Raiders, they had to take care of business against a Hurricanes team that game them a battle and wouldn’t go away.

For a short time in the third period, it appeared that Lisowsky’s first goal of the contest might turn out to be the winner.

The Blades and Hurricanes entered the third period locked in a 2-2 draw. Just 2:41 into the frame, Lisowsky blew down the left wing and snapped home his 29^th tally of the season to put the Blades ahead 3-2.

The lead didn’t last.

At the 6:07 mark of the third, the Hurricanes pulled even at 3-3 off a positive bounce goal. Import centre Liekit Reichle attempted a backhanded wraparound, and his shots deflected off the stick of Blades 20-year-old defenceman Rhett Rhinehart into the Saskatoon goal.

Brandon Lisowsky has 30 goals and 22 assists in 53 games.

The Hurricanes applied a tonne of pressure on the Blades in the third holding a 15-5 edge in shots on goal. The Blades got solid work from rookie netminder and local product Ethan Chadwick to get to the extra session.

The Blades regrouped in overtime resulting in Lisowsky’s winner in the extra session.

Blades head coach Brennan Sonne was pleased to see Lisowsky get his 30^th goal in memorable fashion as an overtime winner.

“He has had crazy chances,” said Sonne. “In my opinion, the last three games are probably his best of the season.

Ethan Chadwick made 29 saves for the Blades on Wednesday.

“He is playing really hard and really well. He is looking really fast. He has had a tonne of scoring chances, and only a few have gone in.

“I actually think he could have had more in the last three. He has just faced some good goalies. I’m really happy for him.”

Lisowsky gave credit to Wiens for allowing the overtime goal to happen by getting the steal and making the set up pass to create the overtime winner.

“He (Wiens) is such a hard worker,” said Lisowsky. “I love playing with him.

“With (Trevor) Wong out (with an upper body injury), he (Wiens) is a guy that has stepped up. I love playing with him, and he gets the puck on my stick. He battled on the board and kind of hit my feet (with his set up pass).

Chase Pauls scored the Hurricanes first goal on Wednesday.

“I kind of made a play to get it back on my stick and kind of bury the goal there.”

During the first 40 minutes, the Blades got on the board first scoring on the power play in the first period. Blades overage star left-winger Kyle Crnkovic had the puck by the right side boards in the offensive zone, and he passed to the puck to the front of the net to Wiens.

Wiens tapped the puck past Hurricanes netminder Jared Picklyk with 8:20 remaining in the opening frame.

The Hurricanes evened the score up a 1-1 with 2:59 remaining in the first, when defenceman Chase Pauls floated home an off-speed shot from the point through a screen into the Saskatoon goal.

With 89 seconds remaining in the first, the Blades went back out in front 2-1, when centre Josh Pillar snapped home a shot from the top right faceoff circle. The tally was Pillar’s first goal and point as a member of the Blades.

Josh Pillar scored his first goal as a member of the Blades.

The Blades picked up Pillar in a deal just before the WHL’s trade deadline on January 17. The Warman, Sask., product was dealing with an illness, and Wednesday’s contest was just his sixth game with the Saskatoon side.

The Hurricanes potted the only goal of the second period as associate player call up and local product Trey Wilke snapped home a midrange shot from the front of the Saskatoon net for his first career WHL goal. The 15-year-old Wilke was playing in his first career WHL contest having been called up from the Saskatoon Blazers under-18 AAA team.

Wilke has piled up 17 goals and 29 assists in 44 regular season games with the Blazers. The Hurricanes selected Wilke in the second round and 29^th overall in the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft.

Hurricanes goalie Jared Picklyk tracks the puck in traffic.

The Blades outshot the Hurricanes 32-16 after 40 minutes.

“It was tough,” said Sonne. “We didn’t get the run support early.

“They are just right there, so one mistake and it is an even game. We faced a good goalie. They are a desperate team.

“We have to take some things that we can from this one, learn and turn the page, because we have P.A. coming up right way.”

Still, Lisowsky scored his two goals at key times in the third and in overtime to ensure the Blades got the win.

Chadwick stopped 29 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Blades (31-18-3-2). Picklyk turned away 37 shots to take the extra setback in net for the Hurricanes (23-26-3-1).

The Hurricanes get back at it on Friday when they venture down to Regina to take on the Pats (7 p.m., Brandt Centre).

The Blades celebrate their OT win on Wednesday.

The Blades now shift their focus to the Raiders, who have won three in a row.

“They (the Raiders) are playing good hockey right now,” said Sonne. “I was just watching them last night.

“(Raiders head coach) Marc Habscheid has them dialled in. We have to be really diligent to have success against them on Friday.”

Lisowsky said it is always easy for the Blades to get up for games with the Raiders.

“They are always games you get up for whether it is Art Hauser or back here at home,” said Lisowsky. “Fans come for both games for either team.

“They are games you get up for. Exciting games are always good games.”

WHL leading Oil Kings win 12^th straight, other notes

Justin Sourdif scored twice for the Oil Kings on Wednesday.

The Edmonton Oil Kings are trying to leave no doubts that they are one of the top teams in the WHL as well as the CHL.

On Wednesday, the Oil Kings won their 12^th straight game when they traveled to Medicine Hat and downed the host Tigers 7-3 before 1,837 spectators at Co-Op Place. The win improved the Oil Kings WHL leading record to 42-11-2-1, and their current 12-game winning streak is a franchise record.

Earlier in the day, the Oil Kings were rated first in the CHL’s Top 10 Rankings for a third straight week.

In the win over the Tigers, Justin Sourdif and Josh Williams both had two-goal nights for the Oil Kings, while Cole Miller, Hayden Wheddon and Jalen Luypen all netted singles. Oren Shtrom scored twice for the Tigers, while Logan Barlage had a single.

Oil Kings defenceman Logan Dowhaniuk and Tigers centre Oasiz Wiesblatt engaged in a second period fight.

Rookie Kolby Hay stopped 21 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Oil Kings. Garin Bjorklund turned away 32 shots to take the setback in goal for the Tigers (10-39-3-1).

The Oil Kings last loss came back on February 4, when they dropped a 6-1 decision to the Blades in Saskatoon.

• Saskatoon Blades star left-winger Kyle Crnkovic and Red Deer Rebels overage right-winger Arshdeep Bains are tied for the lead in the WHL’s scoring race with 82 points. Crnkovic has his 82 points coming off 35 goals and 47 assists appearing in all of the Blades 53 regular season games. Bains has his 82 points coming off 30 goals and 52 assists skating in all of the Rebels 55 regular season games.
• Back during the first month of the current WHL season some people were wondering what was wrong with Regina Pats 16-year-old phenom centre Connor Bedard as he was fighting to average a point a game. Bedard now has 34 goals and 35 assists for 69 points in 45 appearances this season for the Pats.
• I put together new content for the Gordie Howe Sports Complex’s Howe Happenings blog that went live on Wednesday. I put together a piece called “User groups pumped to use K+S Potash Canada Multi-sport Centre,” which can be found by clicking right here. That piece focuses on the newest main building being in action on the Complex grounds. I also put together a photo round up that can be found by clicking right here.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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