Tigers lose to Calgary in OT, drop seventh straight

By James Tubb on November 14, 2021.

The Tigers picked up a point Sunday afternoon on the road, but also registered their seventh loss in a row.

Medicine Hat dropped a third period lead and lost in overtime 4-3 to the Hitmen less than 24 hours after losing to Calgary Saturday night. The Tabbies now sit in last place of the eastern conference with a record of 4-7-3-1.

For the seventh straight game the Tigers surrendered the first goal of the night as Calgary’s Zac Funk scored only 3:29 into the contest to put the Hitmen ahead.

Calgary was outshooting the Tigers 13-0 halfway through the frame as the Hitmen, who were playing their third game in three days, had all the momentum. Medicine Hat mounted some offence and had six shots in the period, but would not score as they ended the frame on the power play.

Medicine Hat capitalized quick on the man advantage in the second period as Ashton Ferster tipped in a Corson Hopwo pass to tie the game up at 1-1. Lukas Svejkovsky picked up the second assist on the goal only 31 seconds into the frame.

The Hitmen took another penalty sending the Tigers back on the power play and they made Calgary pay. Svejkovsky fired a shot past Calgary net minder Ethan Buenaventura, who started his first WHL game Sunday, to put the Tigers ahead early in the period.

Calgary would capitalize on a power play less than a minute later to tie the game up at 2-2. Grayden Siepmann scored on the man advantage, his second of the year.

There was no blood lost in the second period as multiple scrums ensued and gloves were dropped twice between the provincial rivals. Tigers import defenseman Gleb Ivanov and forward Owen MacNeil both got into separate fights as the Hitmen and Tigers were on the second game of a home and home series.

Medicine Hat spent a majority of the second frame on the penalty kill as three Tabbies took 10 minutes worth of penalties. Hopwo had a roughing minor, Rhett Parsons picked up six minutes of penalties from a late hit and a scrum and defenseman Bogdans Hodass got himself a hooking penalty.

The Tigers were able to kill off all 10 minutes of penalties in large part to Garin Bjorklund remaining steady between the pipes in his second straight start for the orange and black. The second period would end in a 2-2 tie with Medicine Hat starting the third on the power play.

The Tigers would not score on that advantage but would capitalize on a 5 on 3 power play halfway through the period to give themselves a 3-2 lead. The goal was Hopwo’s sixth of the year as the Tigers three goals all came on the man advantage.

Over half a period later, the Hitmen’s Sean Tschigerl would knock in a puck loose in-front of Bjorklund to tie the game up at 3-3. The clock wound down on the third as Calgary outshot the Tigers 42-29 and the game headed to overtime.

Riley Fiddler-Schultz scored on Calgary’s 12th power play of the game to secure the win for the Hitmen in overtime. There were 17 penalties between the Hitmen and Tigers over the three and a half periods as it was a game decided by special teams.

Calgary’s net minder Buenaventura stopped 28 of the 31 shots he faced as the 17-year-old picked up his first WHL win in his first start. Across the ice, Bjorklund stopped 43 of the 47 shots he faced after also starting in Saturday night’s loss to the Hitmen.

Medicine Hat’s next game is Friday when they hit the road for Lethbridge before hosting the Winnipeg Ice at Co-op Place on Saturday.