Moose Jaw Warriors (31-15-6-1) at Brandon Wheat Kings (25-20-4-2)



Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017

Game 10: 6 p.m. (Central) – LIVE SCORING

Game 586: ~7:30 p.m. (Central) – LIVE SCORING

Westman Place – Brandon, MB

WHLLive.com

Wednesday night, the Brandon Wheat Kings and Moose Jaw Warriors will finally finish the 10th game on the Western Hockey League’s 2016-17 schedule.

In case you don’t remember, way back on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016, the Warriors were in Brandon to take on the Wheat Kings for the second game of a home-and-home series to open the 2016-17 campaign.

But with 5:37 remaining in the second period and the Warriors leading by a score of 2-1, officials suspended the game after a thick fog settled over the ice at Westman Place, creating unsafe playing conditions for the players.

Now, more than four months later, the Wheat Kings and Warriors will re-engage in order to complete that suspended contest, before carrying into a second bout. With the East Division race featuring five teams vying for playoff positioning, the points available Wednesday evening are vital for both the Wheat Kings and Warriors.

With that in mind, here’s a rundown of exactly how the evening will proceed:

Following a full pre-game warmup, the Sept. 24 makeup game will begin at 6 p.m. (Central) with a faceoff at centre ice, 5:37 remaining on the clock in the second period and a 2-1 Warriors lead on the scoreboard. Following the conclusion of the second period, teams will be given a two-minute break before switching ends and playing out the third period of play.

Should the game end in regulation, teams will be given a 45-minute intermission before the regularly-scheduled game gets underway at approximately 7:30 p.m. (Central). Should the rescheduled game require overtime or a shootout, teams will be given a 25-minute intermission prior to the commencement of the regularly-scheduled game at approximately 7:30 p.m. (Central).

There will be no flood between the rescheduled game and the regularly-scheduled contested, unless more than two minutes of overtime is played. Teams will be given a five-minute warmup prior to the start of the regularly-scheduled game.

Outside of the itinerary for the night, there are a few other details of importance:

Both teams may dress any 20 players for the rescheduled game. The same applies for the regularly-scheduled contest that will follow.

The same four officials will be used for both games Wednesday evening, with referees Fraser Lawrence and Jeff Ingram being joined by linesmen Kelsey Mahoney and Darrell Surminski.

The Sept. 24 game originally had Lawrence and Kyle Scrivens officiating with Mahoney and Tarrington Wyonzek on the lines.

In the case a disciplinary matter requires attention during the rescheduled game, a prompt decision will be made as to how it will be applied, if necessary, prior to the regularly-scheduled game.

Okay, now that we’ve got all those fun details out of the way, how about getting you back up to speed as to where that suspended contest was at prior to the fog rolling in.

Brayden Watts had opened the scoring for the Warriors 11:23 into the first period before Stelio Mattheos tied things up 31 seconds into the second period.

The last occurrence in the game prior to its suspension was a goal from Nikita Popugaev, putting the Warriors ahead 2-1 at the time.

Between the pipes, Brody Willms started the game and had made 22 saves on 23 shots in the Warriors crease, while Jordan Papirny had made 22 saves on 24 shots in the Wheat Kings crease.

I already know what you’re thinking – Watts, Popugaev and Papirny have been traded since Sept. 24.

Watts was shipped from Moose Jaw to Vancouver in a deal that brought 20-year-old Thomas Foster to the Warriors. Popugaev was flipped from Moose Jaw to Prince George in a transaction that saw Yan Khomenko and Justin Almeida join the Warriors.

Meanwhile, Papirny was moved from Brandon to Swift Current with Travis Child heading to the Wheat Kings.

While Papirny was the goaltender of record for the Wheat Kings at the time the game was suspended, whomever starts tonight for Brandon will become the goaltender of record – be that Child or Logan Thompson – regardless of the outcome.

Papirny will still be credited with the statistics he accrued in the original game – shots, saves, goals against, etc. That same rule applies for skaters registering points, penalty minutes and such in the first attempted outing – Popugaev and Watts will still be credited with the goals they scored prior to being dealt later in the season.

Fans hoping to watch the game(s) via WHL Live will have the opportunity to watch both simply by purchasing a ticket to the regularly-scheduled Feb. 8 contest. This will provide access to the duration of the rescheduled game as well as the regularly-scheduled festivities.