NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat Tigers rookie Gavin McKenna celebrates his first period goal in a 6-2 win Saturday over the Prince Albert Raiders at Co-op Place.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
Two weeks away from their Holiday break and the halfway point of the season, the Medicine Hat Tigers sit in first place of the Central division – a position that surprised head coach Willie Desjardins.
Saturday’s 6-2 win over the Prince Albert Raiders gives the Tigers a record of 17-8-2, good for 36 points, six ahead of the second-place Lethbridge Hurricanes.
When asked about being first in the Central, Desjardins was surprised his team was there because, he says, he hasn’t looked at the standings yet this year. He was happy to learn the placement but says there’s a lot of work to be done if they want to maintain a playoff spot, let alone be atop the standings.
“Any team we play in our division can beat us on any given night, that’s how close it is,” Desjardins said. “And even if we play good we can still lose, it’s not automatic.
“We have to get way better if we’re going to be successful. You have some high-end teams out there; Red Deer is starting to play good, Saskatoon has made some trades, Moose Jaw is really talented, Swift Current is a good team, Lethbridge is good team. I can go right through the division and it’s a tough division.
“We just have to keep working, and I value every win, I realize every night we play that we might not get a win – it’s that tight. So when we do win, it’s exciting and it’s big for our group.”
The Tigers are 6-3-1 against Central division opponents and 4-2-1 against East division opponents. They are coming off a 1-3 week with a 5-3 loss to the Swift Current Broncos on Nov. 29, and a 7-3 defeat at the hands of the Calgary Hitmen on Dec. 1. Desjardins says those losses were nights they didn’t get the start they needed, or weren’t ready for Calgary’s defence.
“Lots of times you lose because other teams play great,” Desjardins said.
The team heads into a two-game week, with a home-and-home series against the Edmonton Oil Kings, hosting them Friday before heading to Edmonton on Saturday. Desjardins says preparation for the weekend matchup will see a return to the hard work that instils good habits so it pays off in close games against good teams.
“If you defend a long time in your own zone, then you dump it and then you’re changing when you put it deep, and then you don’t get a forecheck, you’re back in your own zone again,” Desjardins said. “It kind of builds a little bit, and your habits are important because if a guy has time in this league, they’re going to make a good play.
“If you can skate hard through the neutral zone and get tight on the guy, either coming in on the forecheck or coming back to your own zone, you give yourself more of a chance. So for us, a lot of it is just getting those habits of working hard.”
Desjardins has seen improvement throughout the lineup from a year ago when the Tigers were outside a playoff spot before New Year’s, before climbing their way into the eighth and final seed on the last day of the season. He says the young players have taken a step and look to take another still as the calendar prepares to flip.
“You look at (Cayden) Lindstrom, you look at (Andrew) Basha, there’s big, big improvements for those guys,” Desjardins said. “(Hunter) St. Martin, (Shane) Smith, even (Gavin) McKenna has improved a ton and you might not think that with him but he’s a way better player now. So wherever you go through with our younger players, it’s been big, (Tomas) Mrsic is better, it’s a good group.
“Our goaltending changed, too. We have our young goaltenders who are playing great for us. We have lots of different parts of our game and the exciting thing is with young guys, we’re still going to keep improving, it’s not like we’ve reached our peak. There’s lots of good things to look forward to, (Josh) Van Mulligan has played better, I think we just have to keep working at it.
“We want to be a good team, we want to win playoff rounds and that won’t be easy. So we have lots of work ahead of us.”
Teddy Bear numbers
The Tigers added up the number of bears and winter gear tossed onto the ice at Saturday’s Medicine Hat News Teddy Bear Toss game.
This year, the Tigers collected 2,144 Bears and 1,409 toques, mitts and socks for four local charities this Holiday Season. The items will be split between the Medicine Hat Health Foundation, the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter, the Santa Claus Fund and the Salvation Army. The Tigers will visit the Medicine Hat hospital today to distribute bears to the pediatric ward.
Langkow signs with Edmonton
The Oil Kings added a familiar face to their roster.
Edmonton announced the signing of former Medicine Hat Tigers net minder Beckett Langkow on Tuesday. The 20-year-old Vegreville product compiled a record of 32-38-8-2 in 83 games as a Tiger, sporting a 3.53 goals-against average and .881 save percentage.
He started this season with the AJHL’s Spruce Grove Saints going 3-5-0 with a 3.12 GAA and an .892 SVP in eight starts.
