Medicine Hat Tigers' goaltender Ethan McCallum watches a puck fly over the net in the first period of a 4-1 win Saturday night at Co-op Place over the Everett Silvertips.--NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
Ethan McCallum’s start Saturday night was just what the doctor ordered for the Medicine Hat Tigers.
McCallum needed a bounce-back from his first WHL start and the Tigers needed a rebound effort from two straight home losses.
The 17-year-old had not appeared in a game since his WHL debut on Oct. 4 when he allowed three goals on 14 shots in the first period before being pulled in a 4-2 loss at Regina against the Pats. That was the game the Tigers’ bus did not arrive at the rink until 20 minutes before warmups due to a breakdown.
A month to the day from that start, McCallum looked to make his mark on a team carrying three goaltenders, and did so with a 29-save performance for his first WHL win, a 4-1 victory over the Everett Silvertips. The win not only instilled even more confidence in the young goaltender, it pulled the Tigers out of a two-game slide.
The Brandon product said he was still in a shock after the game but kept in the moment during the start.
“You have to repeat to yourself, ‘got to love to win, got to love to grind,’ and that’s what the boys tonight,” McCallum said. “Everyone loved it, every second of each period, every guy wanted to give 100 per cent.”
He felt dialled in from puck drop and while feeling some nerves in his legs early, says he was fully locked in after Everett scored their only goal.
His performance was good enough to earn him the WHL’s rookie of the week honour.
Head coach Willie Desjardins described his performance as outstanding and recalled a moment in the last week that stood out about McCallum.
“About two or three games ago, we’re filming the game and he’s up in the stands right in front of the camera and he doesn’t know that, but every time we score he’s jumping up and cheering, really cheering for the guys,” Desjardins said. “Sometimes when you’re not getting a chance, it’s easy to kind of hope things might go bad so you get a chance to do it. But he wasn’t, he was the exact opposite.
“Sometimes the hockey gods see those things and they appreciate guys who are great teammates, and he was outstanding, he was cheering for us. Tonight he did his part and more.”
McCallum’s performance only makes things tougher for Desjardins and the Tigers who are still making a choice on who will back up starter Evan May, choosing between McCallum and 18-year-old Zach Zahara who has also excelled in his opportunities.
For McCallum, getting a full-game opportunity to showcase what he can do, it builds confidence but he says it’s not a choice he can make so all he can do is his best.
“I’ve already had that confidence from the beginning. I knew I had a tough start in Regina but it didn’t really get in my head at all,” McCallum said. “I knew I would get a second chance eventually and I had to prove myself there and I got it tonight. Just for the guys to come in front of was good.
“But overall with the situation, I’m not too worried. I just try to do my own thing. It’s out of my control, so there’s no reason for me to be worrying about it.”
Saturday’s game also marked a first for forward Hayden Harsanyi, who scored his first WHL goal a night after registering his first point. The 16-year-old forward was mauled by his line mates after the goal, further cementing a bond he’s felt this season.
“The brotherhood we have here, everyone’s supporting each other,” Harsanyi said. “They’ve helped me a lot, it’s been a bit frustrating for sure, but they’ve helped me through. Just great teammates, great guys, I love the boys.”
Andrew Basha scored shorthanded to open the scoring Saturday with Bogdans Hodass and Hunter St. Martin also getting on the board.
The Tigers matched Saturday night’s win with another victory Sunday, travelling to Edmonton to beat the Oil Kings 5-1. That victory gave them five of a possible six points on the three-game weekend after falling 3-2 in overtime Friday against the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
Tyler MacKenzie scored in the first period Sunday to give him points in six straight games. Hodass, Cayden Lindstrom, Reid Andresen and Oasiz Wiesblatt all found the back of the net, and May made 30 saves for his seventh win on the year.
Sunday’s game put the Tigers past the quarter mark of the 2023-24 season, with an 11-5-2 record, good enough for a first-place tie of the league and first place in the Eastern conference.
Wiesblatt, after a two-assist performance Saturday, said the Tigers have to stick with their game and keep building together toward the ultimate goal of adding another banner to the Co-op Place rafters.
“We’re a family, we want to hang a banner this year, that’s our goal,” Wiesblatt said. “We want to show we can get a banner this year and we just have to work every day to get one per cent better. If we have those bad games, just stick with it and stay as a family.
“Families work out the right things. So we just have to stick together and really believe the structure will help us.”
