Sunday afternoon at the Saddledome: The Rebels came out firing, grabbing an early 1-0 lead midway through the first when Tyson Yaremko tipped one home to stun the crowd. But the Calgary Hitmen, playing their sixth annual Every Child Matters Game, flipped the script with their lethal power play—tops in the whole WHL at over 33%. They answered in the second with Hunter Aura’s man-advantage tally at 10:05 to knot it up, then stole the show late in the third when Andrei Molgachev wired home another PPG with just 5:32 left for the 2-1 dagger. Rebels netminder Matthew Kondro was a beast between the pipes, turning aside 38 of 40 shots in a heartbreaking effort, while Hitmen goalie Aiden Hesse earned first star with 31 saves. Special teams told the tale—Calgary went 2-for-3 on the power play and killed off all three Red Deer chances perfectly. The loss drops them to 21-31-2-2, but we’re still clinging to that eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot, just one point clear of the chasing Moose Jaw Warriors and three back of Regina.
Tough one to swallow after three straight defeats, but the Rebels get a quick breather before hosting the Edmonton Oil Kings Friday at 7 p.m. and the Swift Current Broncos Saturday at 6—time to flip the page and get back in the win column right here at home.
Tyson Yaremko makes it 1-0 for the Rebels at (;36 of the first period. The assists on the goal went to Landon MacSwain and Matej Mikes.–Midway through the opening frame, the Red Deer Rebels struck first. Tyson Yaremko redirected the puck past Calgary Hitmen netminder, Aiden Hesse, to give Red Deer the early edge.
Shots on goal in the first period were 15-7 for the Rebels.
Kamloops, BC native Hunter Aura ties the game for the Hitmen at 10:05 of the second period while on the Power Play. The assists on the goal went to Kale Dach and Calder Hamilton.–Hunter Aura stepped into a powerplay opportunity and wired a shot from the top of the circle past Matthew Kondro to even the score.
Shots in the second period were 15-14 for the Hitmen
Andrei Molgachev gives the Hitmen the lead on the Power Play at 14:28 of the third period. The assists on the goal went to former Regina Pat Julien Maze and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native Caine Wilke–Andrei Molgachev capitalized on the man advantage, finishing a backdoor feed from Julien Maze to put the Hitmen in front for good.
Shots on goal in the third period were 18-3 for the Hitmen. The Hitmen outshot the Rebels 40-32 in the game
For the Hitmen Aidan Hesse made 31 saves on the 32 shots that he faced for the win. For the Rebels Matthew Kondro stopped 38 out of the 40 shots that he faced.
Three Stars of the game were 1) Aidan Hesse 2) Andrei Molgachev 3) Matthew Kondro
Attendance in Calgary was 5906
Rebels next game is Friday February 27th in Red Deer against the Edmonton Oil Kings
