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The Regina Pats have dropped back-to-back games at home, and now their WHL season is on the line.
Regina lost 4-2 to the Medicine Hat Tigers on Wednesday night in Game 4 at the Brandt Centre, falling behind 3-1 in their first-round best-of-seven playoff series.
Much like how he felt after the team’s 8-2 loss on Tuesday, head coach Brad Herauf said he thought the team played Medicine Hat well.
“We’re putting our heart on the line. Much like last night, we score on some of those chances, it’s a different game. It gives us some juice and gives us some motivation. I don’t want to harp too much on that because the guys on our team who had those opportunities, they feel it enough themselves. They know it themselves. We’re just going to keep on showing up, doing our best, make it as hard as possible on these guys and bringing it back here on Sunday,” Herauf said.
Pats captain Ephram McNutt also said he was happy with how the team played.
“A bit of a scoring drought at times. We can’t seem to find the back of the net but it is what it is. It happens,” McNutt said.
McNutt noted you can tell the difference right now between playing in Medicine Hat and at the Brandt Centre, where the lack of ticket sales has been a topic of discussion.
“I don’t ever want to talk negatively about our fans but it’s unfortunate for sure,” McNutt said. “It would be a lot nicer if we had a full arena and it’s kind of crazy to say, but it’s almost cooler playing in Medicine Hat at times. The crowd is loud and they are so much more into it,” McNutt said. “I never want to talk negatively on the fans but it is unfortunate to see a half-empty arena.”
The Tigers came into the playoffs as the defending WHL champions and finished the regular season with 108 points in the standings. For Regina, it came down to their final game and some help needed to clinch the seventh seed with 59 points.
But Herauf pointed out the Pats have young players like Maddox Schultz, Liam Pue and Mathis Paull playing key minutes for them in playoff contests.
“These guys are the people you’re going to come watch a championship (with),” Herauf said. “(Playoff hockey) is a learned behaviour. It’s hard playing this type of hockey. For you to show up and think you’re going to play all the way to spring and you’ll have your shorts and sandals on and it’s not going to be a mental test, you’re kidding yourself.”
The Pats came into the contest trying to knot things up between the two WHL clubs after losses in Games 1 and 3. Regina earned a 4-2 win over the Tigers in Medicine Hat in Game 2 of it.
The Tigers have been a tough outing for the Pats all season, as that Game 2 win was the only victory Regina had over them all season long.
Regina struck first in the contest at the Brandt Centre. Cohen Klassen found Zach Lansard with a nice pass that the forward finished off, beating Tigers goaltender Carter Casey.
That lead wouldn’t last too long, however, as Tigers’ forward Kade Stengrim scored his second goal in as many nights to tie things up.
With 1:10 left in the opening frame, Gavin Kor took advantage of a Pats turnover and beat goaltender Taylor Tabashniuk to give Medicine Hat the lead.
In the second period, Medicine Hat extended its lead with Liam Ruck beating Tabashniuk. Noah Davidson’s power-play goal increased the Tigers’ lead to 4-1.
“We know they are a good team and they are always going to come at us hard,” said Pats forward Keets Fawcett. “We had some glimpses of some good stuff … Give them an inch, they take a mile and score most of their chances. It’s kind of how it felt tonight.”
Ruslan Karimov scored his third goal of the playoffs before the end of the period to put Regina back within two.
With a scoreless third period, Regina lost 4-2 and will need a win in Medicine Hat to have one more game at the Brandt Centre.
“It’s just about us being in survival mode. I think we talk about us being like that in Game 2 in Medicine Hat and even Game 1 for three-quarters of the game. We keep that mentality, which needs to be our mentality — any team that is playing Medicine Hat, if you don’t think that’s your mentality, good luck,” Herauf said. “We will figure out what we have for bodies going up there on Saturday. This team has always played its best hockey when our back has been against the wall and I don’t expect anything else come Saturday.”
Having already won in Medicine Hat is also something the team can lean on ahead of the showdown.
“We know what this group is capable of. We did it there in a packed barn and I think we’re not scared to go there,” Fawcett said.
Game 5 of the game is Saturday in Medicine Hat. Puck drop is set for 6 p.m.
