Tigers sweep weekend with 3-2 win Saturday at Edmonton
By James Tubb on December 9, 2023.
Three unanswered goals were all the Medicine Hat Tigers needed for a win Saturday. The Tigers rattled off three goals in the second period and held on for a 3-2 win at Edmonton over the Oil Kings, sweeping their weekend home-and-home series. Medicine Hat beat Edmonton 8-2 Friday at Co-op Place. Zach Zahara stood tall in net with 30 saves for his seventh win in seven appearances this season. He stopped a Oil King penalty shot and kept the Tigers in the game late. Edmonton opened the scoring, recording the only marker of the first period 41 seconds after puck drop. Gavin Hodnett snuck in behind the Tigers’ defenders and scored on a breakaway with the first shot of the game. The Tigers had a power play opportunity in the middle of the frame but couldn’t get anything past starter Kolby Hay as Edmonton led the first in shots 16-15 and on the scoreboard 1-0. The Tigers answered back early in the second. Andrew Basha created a turnover at the Oil Kings blue line and patiently waited before sliding the puck across the slot to Cayden Lindstrom who one-timed the puck into the net to make it a 1-1 game. Lindstrom’s team leading 24th of the year came 13 seconds into the middle stanza. Medicine Hat grabbed the lead 4:30 later. Josh Van Mulligen fired a puck on net from the point that found twine. Oasiz Wiesblatt and Hayden Harsanyi had the assists on Van Mulligen’s second of the season. The Tigers added to their lead later in the frame. Tomas Mrsic had the puck above the circles in the Edmonton end and threaded a shot through a screen that snuck through Hay for his fourth goal on the year. Reid Andresen and Harsanyi had the assists on Mrsic’s goal to put the tigers up 3-1 with 3:47 left in the second. Mrsic’s line with Wiesblatt and Harsanyi had a big weekend for the Tigers, with a combined four goals and 12 assists in their two contests against the Oil Kings. Edmonton made a push in the third period, drawing within a goal early. After being turned aside multiple times, Woodward struck with an inclose goal to make it a 3-2 game with 13:17 left in the game. Medicine Hat held onto their lead, holding the Oil Kings to five shots in the third and maintaining the 3-2 advantage for the win. Across the ice from Zahara, Hay made 41 saves. The Tigers (19-8-2) head into their final week of action before the holiday break. They head down Highway 3 to face off against the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Wednesday. 12-11
