PHOTO BY SCOTT VANKOUGHNETT
BRANDON, Man. — You couldn’t wipe the smile off Jacob De Serres’ face if you tried.
The Brandon Wheat Kings goalie shone in helping his team win their first game of the tournament, stopping all 31 shots he faced in a 4-0 win over the Moncton Wildcats.
De Serres was a part of some controversy surrounding game one against the Windsor Spitfires, as he was replaced by Andrew Hayes as the team’s starting goalie.
Hayes struggled, and was pulled after allowing five goals in the first period of Friday night’s game. De Serres came in in relief, and allowed four goals en route to a 9-3 loss.
He recovered, and Wheat Kings forward Shayne Wiebe had nothing but praise for the 20-year old goalie from Calgary, AB.
“He was outstanding tonight,” he said. “I’m glad to see him back on his pace. It’s good for him to get back in the tournament.”
Not only did De Serres get back in the tournament, but the win ensures Brandon at least a tie-breaker game Thursday.
The focus after this game however was taking the positives out of the win and preparing for a WHL playoff rematch against the team that eliminated them, the Calgary Hitmen.
“It was a great all around effort by everyone,” said Wiebe. We played a solid defensive game and it’s what we needed to get back in the tournament. “We’re quite excited but we have to move on after tonight to the next game against Calgary.”
The Wildcats came in having lost a heart breaker to the Hitmen Saturday afternoon. They started well, but couldn’t sustain pressure and lost control of the game.
Even with games less than 24 hours apart however, the team didn’t blame the quick turnaround on their loss.
“It’s just like the playoffs. For the last eight weeks you’re going every second night,” forward Randy Cameron said. “You just have to look past these two games we lost and get ready for the next one.”
That next game turns out to be against the Windsor Spitfires – an absolute must win.
They don’t have to look very far for inspiration however, as the Spitfires came back from an 0-2 hole last year.
“They ended up winning the tournament,” said Cameron. “We have to take the positive out of that and there’s a lot of work ahead. It’s a huge mountain to climb but hopefully we can.”
Finnish forward Tony Rajala scored twice for the host Wheat Kings, while Brayden Schenn and Brent Raedeke rounded out the scoring.
Wildcats’ goalie Nicola Riopel stopped 34 of 38 shots he faced in the loss.
Tomorrow’s action sees the defending champion Spitfires up against the WHL champion Hitmen.
Stars of the game – 1) Tony Rajala, 2) Jacob De Serres, 3) Shayne Wiebe
Click Here to watch the post game
Topics: Andrew Hayes, Brandon, Brandon Wheat Kings, Calgary Hitmen, Jacob De Serres, Manitoba, Moncton Wildcats, Nicola Riopel, Randy Cameron, Shayne Wiebe, Windsor Spitfires
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