By Jeff D'Andrea

Warriors rain on Raiders’ teddy bear parade

Dec 9, 2016 | 9:19 PM

The Moose Jaw Warriors spoiled the fun for the Prince Albert Raiders during the Teddy Bear Toss night Friday at the Art Hauser Centre.

The Raiders lost 7-3 to the Warriors, dropping their head-to-head record against the Tribe to 1-2.

The Raiders have now lost their last three games, and 12 of their last 13.

Despite losing by four goals, the Raiders did outshoot the Warriors 44-32 but Zach Sawchenko was hot making 41 saves. Ian Scott surrendered the seven goals on 32 shots.

“We generated some chances, but they scored on theirs. It’s unfortunate,” Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid said. “I didn’t like our first period very much, but it just seemed like they scored on their chances. It’s difficult. It gets you down and gets you on your heels a little bit.”

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After facing a 3-0 deficit after the opening period, Austin Glover scored the Teddy Bear Toss goal 32 seconds into the sandwich stanza. With the goal, Glover extended his point streak to four games (three goals and three assists).

That was followed up three minutes later by captain Tim Vanstone to get back in the game at 3-2. The last time Vanstone had a point was back on Nov. 4 when he had a goal and an assist in a 6-0 win over the Kootenay Ice.

The Warriors were able to close out the game from there, scoring four of the next five goals. That was kickstarted from a Tanner Jeannot goal on a controversial power play.

Warriors forward Josh Thrower, who previously hit Simon Stransky high in the first period, hit Raiders captain Tim Vanstone on the blindside and into the boards. Cavin Leth stepped in to fight him, but the Raiders got the extra penalty as Thrower was not penalized for the initial hit. Leth got an unsportsmanlike penalty on the play. 

“We were told at the beginning of the year that any dangerous hit, whether it’s clean or not and they guy goes into the wall in a dangerous position, it’s a penalty,” Habscheid said. “Based on that, that’s a penalty.”

Jayden Halbgewachs, Noah Gregor and Tanner Jeannot all had two goals each for the Warriors. Brett Howden made it 7-3 late in the third.

Halbgewachs has been a Raider killer in the season series so far this year. He now has five goals and an assist in three games this year against the Raiders.

“They’ve got two lines that can match against any two lines in the league. They’re going to get their chances, we have to limit their chances,” Habscheid said. “If they do get chances, we have to make some chances. It’s always as a team. We stay as a team.”

Spencer Moe scored the first goal of his young WHL career, rifling in a goal right off the faceoff and made it a 5-3 game with nine minutes left. Cole Fonstad won the draw cleanly right on Moe’s tape, who shelfed it past a sprawling Sawchenko.

“He’s quick. He could have had a few more goals before this, but this was his first one,” Habscheid said. “It always helps those young guys to get that. You can tell, they’re skilled guys. They make things happen, they’re good with the puck, they’re quick, they’re smart and they’re our future.”

Rematch

Both teams will tangle on Saturday in Moose Jaw to complete the home-and-home series.

The Raiders will return to the Art Hauser Centre on Tuesday to take on the Edmonton Oil Kings to start a ‘four games in five nights’ scenario. They’re on the road Wednesday in Moose and Friday in Swift Current before closing out their first half of the year with a game against the Broncos at the Hauser on Saturday.

jdandrea@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @jeff_dandrea