Wings Defeat Terriers 1-0 in Home Opener

YORKTON, SK: Blake Betson scored 3:44 into overtime, and Goaltender Dazza Mitchell stopped all 20 shots he faced as the visiting Weyburn Red Wings defeated the Yorkton Terriers on home ice.

Early in the first period, Terriers Captain Clay Sleeva sent the Terriers faithful into a frenzy when he blew up Red Wings forward Max Anderson behind the net. The physicality continued as Max’s twin brother Nolan caught Terriers Forward Cooper Algajer with his head down in the neutral zone.

The Terriers had a pair of powerplays in the first period and sustained good zone time in both but could not solve Red Wings goaltender Dazza Mitchell, who was starting for the second consecutive night. Caleb Allen, who too played last night in Weyburn, was sharp in goal for Yorkton with 11 stops of his own. The Red Wings outshot the Terriers 11-7 in the opening frame.

The Wings picked up the pressure in the middle frame thanks to the Terriers getting in penalty trouble. First, it was Quintin Unreiner taking a cross-checking penalty. Then Sleeva got a little too aggressive forechecking, got his stick caught in Henderson’s glove, and got a hooking penalty, sending the Red Wings to a lengthy 5 on 3 advantage. They called a timeout before the powerplay, and that didn’t help, as the Terriers were able to kill the entirety of the kill thanks to three huge stops by Allen, keeping it scoreless.

The best chance for the Terriers in the middle frame came on a powerplay off the stick of veteran forward Cade Kennedy as he let go a shot that was labelled for the net. However, Mitchell was able to lunge and make a right pad save as we headed into the final twenty minutes, still searching for our first goal of the game. The Red Wings outshot the Terriers 13-5 in the second period.

The third period was a slow developing pace as both teams failed to generate much offence. The Terriers thought they had the game’s first goal when Tate Schofer raised his hands prematurely, but the puck hit the right post and stayed out, keeping the game scoreless. Moments later, Terriers Defenceman Tyson Perkins sprung Dylan Ruptash on a breakaway, and he made a deke to the backhand but could not get it by the outstretched Mitchell. The Terriers outshot the Wings 9-7 in the final frame, and for the second consecutive night, these two teams needed extra time to solve an outcome.

In the extra frame, Cade Kennedy had a solo dash but failed to beat Mitchell short side. Then, 3:44 into overtime, the Wings took advantage of a turnover in the neutral zone, and Blake Betson and Jerome Maharaj dashed in on a 2-on-0. Betson kept in and snapped the game-winner past Allen low glove, spoiling the Terriers home opener and giving the visitors a 1-0 overtime win. Caleb Allen stopped 34 of 35, while Dazza Mitchell stopped all 20 he faced to pick up his first shutout of the season.

With the loss, the Terriers fall to 1-0-1 on the year and will be back in action next Thursday when the Battleford North Stars visit Westland Insurance Arena. Puck drop is at 7:00 PM.