The chances were there, again.
For long stretches Wednesday night at the Brandt Centre, the Regina Pats did enough to believe Game 4 could have swung in their favour. They had the early pressure, the better looks in the opening period, and enough offensive-zone time to put Medicine Hat on its heels. But in playoff hockey, chances alone don’t win games. Finishing does.
And that was once again the difference as the Pats dropped a 4-2 decision to the Medicine Hat Tigers, falling behind 3-1 in their first-round WHL playoff series.
Regina’s frustration wasn’t about effort. It wasn’t about being outclassed. It was about not cashing in when the game was there to be grabbed.
“I think that, much like last night, we score on some of those chances, it’s a different game,” Pats head coach Brad Herauf said. “It gives us some juice, gives us some motivation.”
That theme was evident from the opening shift. The Pats came out with urgency and had three clean looks in the opening four minutes, including a pair of glorious opportunities for Dayce Derkatch alone in front. Tigers goaltender Carter Casey stood tall, keeping the game scoreless and allowing Medicine Hat to weather the early storm.
Regina finally broke through at 8:28 of the first when Cohen Klassen led a crisp transition rush and found Zachary Lansard on the left side for a finish that gave the Pats a 1-0 lead.
It should have been a springboard. Instead, it became another example of missed momentum.
The Pats were handed three power plays in the opening period but failed to convert any, despite numerous chances. Minutes after Lansard’s goal, a failed zone entry at the end of a man advantage turned into a Tigers rush the other way, with Kade Stengrim finishing a one-timer to tie the game 1-1.
Late in the period, a turnover at the Regina blue line ended up on Gavin Kor’s stick alone in front, and the Tigers' rookie made no mistake, slipping the puck five-hole on Taylor Tabashniuk for a 2-1 lead heading into the intermission.
It was a cruel twist for a Pats team that had controlled much of the opening 20 minutes and outshot the Tigers 12-9.
The opportunities were there. The scoreboard told a different story.
“That’s kind of how it felt tonight,” forward Keets Fawcett said. “Give them an inch, they’ll take a mile and score most of their chances.”
That contrast only grew in the second period. Regina generated two shorthanded breakaway looks while killing off an early penalty, but neither Zach Moore nor Jace Egland could solve Casey. Moments later, Medicine Hat made them pay.
Liam Ruck pushed the Tigers' lead to 3-1 at 11:57, and Noah Davidson added a power-play marker just 1:24 later to make it 4-1.
Suddenly, the game had tilted sharply, not because Regina stopped generating chances, but because Medicine Hat was far more clinical in finishing theirs.
The Pats showed life late in the middle frame when Ruslan Karimov continued his strong series, using speed and persistence on an individual rush before tucking home a wraparound to cut the deficit to 4-2.
But even in the third, when Regina continued to press, Casey was the difference.
Egland was robbed on a two-on-one midway through the period when Casey sprawled across the crease and kicked up the pad for one of the game’s biggest saves.
That was the story in one moment. The chance was there. The finish wasn’t.
“I think maybe we’re gripping our sticks too hard,” Fawcett said. “We just got to finish it when it’s there.”
The Pats finished with 30 shots, matching the Tigers, and created enough quality looks to make a push. Herauf pointed to that as the reason belief remains inside the room.
“The true definition of a scoring slump is not getting scoring opportunities. When you’re not getting scoring opportunities, that’s when you’ve got to go back to the drawing board. But until you’re not getting scoring chances, which we are right now, we don’t need to overthink it. We need to bear down, keep believing in ourselves, and it’s going to fall.”
For a young team, Herauf also framed this series as part of the learning curve.
“This is about maturity right now,” he said. “These games force you to be mature. They push you mentally, physically, in ways you don’t get pushed in the regular season. To be 16, 17, 18 years old and learning these lessons, that will get us ready.”
Now, the lesson becomes urgent. The Pats head to Medicine Hat for Game 5 on Saturday, facing elimination, but not a lack of confidence.
“We’re hungry,” Fawcett said. “We want to go down swinging. We know what this group’s capable of. We did it there in a packed barn, and we’re not scared to go there.”
The challenge now is simple. The chances have to become goals. Because in this series, the Pats have been close enough to stay in every game. They just haven’t been able to seize the moment when it matters most.
