Despite a determined third-period surge and a 39-shot effort, it wasn’t enough to emerge victorious on Friday night as the Regina Pats dropped a tight 2-1 decision to the Tri-City Americans at the Toyota Centre.
Both teams took their time feeling each other out, with chances on both sides throughout the opening half of the first period before Tri-City would open the scoring at 13:21. After Regina failed to clear the zone, Tomas Racz found Charlie Elick at the blue line, and Elick fired a quick one-timer that redirected off the stick of Alexander Laing and past Pats goaltender Matthew Hutchison to make it 1-0. Three minutes later, in a similar fashion to the opening goal, Racz would this time set up Dylan LeBret at the right point, and while his shot was stopped, Grady Martin jumped on the rebound and scored at 16:20 to make it 2-0.
In the middle frame, the Pats controlled the play, outshooting Tri-City 17-8 and generating several quality chances. But despite the pressure, Regina couldn’t solve Tri-City netminder Xavier Wendt, and the period was scoreless as both goaltenders came up with key saves down the stretch to keep the score 2-0 entering the final 20 minutes of action.
However, in the third, the Pats wasted little to no time cutting into the deficit. With sustained pressure in the Americans' zone, standing in the slot, Ruslan Karimov was able to get his stick on the puck from a point shot, tipping it past Wendt at 2:53 to bring the Pats within one. Regina would later be granted a brief 5-on-3 opportunity, but the club couldn't capitalize. From then on out, Americans' Wendt shut the door and came out on top in this goaltending duel, helping Tri-City hold onto a narrow 2-1 victory on home ice despite a strong push from the Pats in the third period.
With the result on Friday, Regina moved to 9-11-2-1 on the season. Pats' Hutchison was stellar, stopping 27 of 29 shots and Americans' Wendt was also incredible between the pipes, making 38 saves on 39 shots, with the final shots on goal being 39-29 in favour of Regina. On special teams, neither team found the back of the net on the power-play, with Regina going 0-for-5 and Tri-City finishing 0-for-2. Most notably, with another flawless night on the penalty kill for the Blue Brigade, the Pats have now gone a perfect 16-for-16 on the kill since November 9.
FINAL: Tri-City Americans 2, Regina Pats 1
THE GOALS
First Period
Americans 1-0 —#20 Alexander Laing (2), assisted by #77 Charlie Elick & #88 Tomas Racz at 13:21
Racz fed Elick at the blue line, and Elick quickly unleashed a one-timer that deflected off the stick of Laing and into the net to open the scoring at 13:21.
Americans 2-0 —#28 Grady Martin (1), assisted by #2 Dylan LeBret & #88 Tomas Racz at 16:20
Similarly, Racz slid a pass to LeBret at the right point, and his drive was turned aside, only for Martin to bury the rebound at 16:20.
Second Period
No scoring.
Third Period
Pats 2-1 — #25 Ruslan Karimov (3), assisted by #21 Ellis Mieyette & #24 Jace Egland at 2:53
With plenty of traffic in front, Karimov was able to redirect a point shot to cut the deficit in half at 2:53.
Shots on Goal
- Pats: 8 – 17 – 14 — 39
- Americans: 16 – 8 – 5 — 29
Power Plays
- Pats: 0/5
- Americans: 0/2
Goaltending
- Pats: Matthew Hutchison — 27 saves on 29 shots
- Americans: Xavier Wendt — 38 saves on 39 shots
Three Stars
- First Star: #30 Xavier Wendt (38 saves)
- Second Star: #31 Matthew Hutchison (27 saves)
- Third Star: #88 Tomas Racz (2A)
COMING UP
The Pats finish their weekend action on Saturday, November 22, at 8:05 p.m. against the Seattle Thunderbirds. They'll then kick off the second half of their U.S. road trip on Wednesday, November 26, at 9:00 p.m. with a matchup against the Everett Silvertips.
