The Regina Pats showed plenty of fight Friday night, but ultimately came up short in a 6-3 loss to the Brandon Wheat Kings, with two late empty-netters putting the game out of reach.
Regina came out with some jump and opened the scoring just over six minutes in, as Maddox Schultz buried his 14th of the season off a rebound created by a strong drive from Zachary Lansard. But the lead didn’t last long, with Brandon answering just 24 seconds later and eventually grabbing control late in the second period. Goals from Nigel Boehm and Prabh Bhathal, less than a minute apart, gave the Wheat Kings a 3-1 edge heading into the third, despite a fairly even game through 40 minutes.
The Pats didn’t fold, though. They came out flying in the third and erased the deficit in a hurry. Schultz struck again early to make it a one-goal game, and just under a minute later, captain Ephram McNutt wired home the equalizer to suddenly make it 3-3.
Later on, off an offensive zone faceoff, Dylan Ronald blasted a one-timer past Marek Schlenker midway through the period to restore the Wheat Kings’ lead. From there, the Pats pushed but couldn’t find another equalizer, and two late empty-net goals from Joby Baumuller sealed it.
Schlenker finished with 30 saves on the night, while Jayden Kraus turned aside 24 at the other end. Schultz led the way offensively for Regina with a pair, while McNutt added the other in what was a strong push that ultimately came up short.
Now, it all comes down to the regular season finale, with the Pats still looking to lock up their playoff spot.
FINAL: Brandon Wheat Kings 6, Regina Pats 3
THE GOALS
First Period
Pats 1-0 — #19 Maddox Schultz (14), assisted by #57 Zachary Lansard & #25 Ruslan Karimov at 6:05 // Lansard made a beautiful move to drive past the Wheat Kings defender, banking the puck off Jayden Kraus' pad before Schultz cleaned up the rebound to open the scoring early.
📺 Schultz scores his 14th goal of the season!
🍎 Lansard
🍏 Karimov pic.twitter.com/gEGkXHrf9c— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) March 21, 2026
Wheat Kings 1-1 — #22 Brett Wilson (3), assisted by #7 Brady Turko at 6:29 // Wilson wrapped the puck around the Regina net, sneaking the puck off a skate and into the net to tie the game.
Second Period
Wheat Kings 2-1 — #12 Nigel Boehm (2), assisted by #17 Joby Baumuller & #33 Jayden Kraus at 18:05 // Boehm received a pass out of the penalty box and walked in on the right wing side, ripping the puck under the glove of Marek Schlenker for their first lead of the game.
Wheat Kings 3-1 — #8 Prabh Bhathal (8), assisted by #26 Luke Mistelbacher at 18:46 // Mistelbacher picked up the puck behind the Pats' net and sent a centring pass to the slot where Bhathal ripped it home to extend the lead.
Third Period
Pats 3-2 — #19 Maddox Schultz (15), assisted by #57 Zachary Lansard at 1:38 // Lansard walked in from the far corner and sent a low shot that Kraus kicked aside to Schultz, who made no mistake to make it a one-goal game early in the third.
🎥Schultz ✌️of the night! pic.twitter.com/VF4TRnO8gU
— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) March 21, 2026
Pats 3-3 — #55 Ephram McNutt (13), assisted by #24 Jace Egland & #18 Zach Moore at 2:36 // McNutt was fed the puck in the slot and ripped it off the bar and in to tie the contest, 3-3 early in the third, less than a minute after the Schultz goal.
🔊 McNutt 🚀 pic.twitter.com/3bR3PmJ8fx
— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) March 21, 2026
Wheat Kings 4-3 — #5 Dylan Ronald (5), assisted by #6 Cameron Allard & #62 Nicholas Johnson at 10:30 // After an attacking zone faceoff win by Brandon, Ronald blasted home a one-timer from the point past Schlenker to make it a one-goal lead.
Wheat Kings 5-3 — #17 Joby Baumuller (39), unassisted at 18:05 (EN) // Baumuller grabbed the puck at his own blueline and sent the puck down ice into the empty net.
Wheat Kings 6-3 — #17 Joby Baumuller (40), assisted by #62 Nicholas Johnson at 19:33 (EN) // Baumuller picked up his second empty netter of the night, scoring from neutral ice to put the game away with the empty netter.
Shots on Goal
- Pats: 10 – 5 – 12 — 27
- Wheat Kings: 15 – 8 – 13 — 36
Power Plays
- Pats: 0/2
- Wheat Kings: 0/2
Goaltending
- Pats: Marek Schlenker — 30 saves on 34 shots
- Wheat Kings: Jayden Kraus — 24 saves on 27 shots
Three Stars
- First Star: #55 Ephram McNutt (1G)
- Second Star: #27 Caden Brown
- Third Star: #19 Maddox Schultz (2G)
COMING UP
The Regina Pats will gear up for their final regular-season game on Saturday, March 21, in Brandon against the Wheat Kings. A single point, or a Moose Jaw Warriors or Red Deer Rebels loss, would clinch a playoff spot in the Easter Conference.
Pats head coach Brad Herauf spoke following the loss and said that they are already looking ahead to tomorrow.
Pats head coach Brad Herauf chats following tonight’s game against Brandon:#ReginaPatsHockey | #REGvsBDN pic.twitter.com/Isaw8Ux9iy
— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) March 21, 2026
