MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM -- The Moose Jaw Warriors string of tough losses in the early part of the Western Hockey League season continued on Saturday night in Kamloops.
Despite falling behind 4-1 midway through the game, the Warriors would rally to get back within a goal before dropping a 6-4 decision in the second game of their five-game B.C. Division swing.
Moose Jaw fell to 3-9-2-0 with their seventh-straight defeat and remain in a tie for 10th in the Eastern Conference, while Kamloops picked up their fourth straight win and improved to 6-6-1-0.
After a largely uneventful and back-and-forth period, the Warriors would open scoring with 2:58 to play in the frame. Nolan Paquette took a pass from the slot from Brayden Yager while breaking in on his wing and put a low shot home for the first goal of his WHL career.
The lead lasted all of 42 seconds.
The Blazers’ Tommy Lafreniere won a puck battle in the corner in the Warriors zone and got a pass off to Max Sullivan in the slot, and his one-timer would find the back of the net to tie the game with 2:16 remaining in the period.
It took Kamloops only 29 seconds to take their first lead in the second period. Nathan Behm got a pass from behind the net out front to John Szabo, and he’d get off a quick shot that snuck into the low right corner.
The Blazers kept coming as the period progressed, and they’d extend their lead to four with a pair of quick goals midway through the frame.
Nathan Behm scored his 12th of the season at the 7:29 mark and 42 seconds later Szabo found the puck in a scrum and scored his second of the game to make it a 4-1 Blazers lead.
That temporarily marked the end of the night for Unger, who allowed the four goals on 21 shots in a little under a period and a half.
Szabo looked to finish off his hat trick not long after, but the goal would be called back due to goaltender interference on Unger’s replacement, Josh Banini.
The Warriors scored their first power-play goal in five games on the ensuing man advantage, with Yager scoring his eighth of the season on a shot from the right side of the net.
Szabo got his hat trick for real with 11 seconds to play in the second when Behm intercepted a Banini clearing attempt and found Szabo for the backdoor pass.
The Warriors wouldn’t go away, though, and found a way to make things interesting in the third period.
Owen Berge started the comeback by going down his wing and getting a shot from the left face-off circle that beat Kamloops goaltender Dylan Ernst top shelf glove side 2:08 into the period.
Lynden Lakovic then made it a one-goal game with the goaltender pulled for the extra attacker, taking a great cross-ice feed from Yager and putting a quick shot home with 46 seconds to play.
That made for a close finish, but Emmitt Finnie scored an empty netter with 15 seconds remaining to cap scoring on the night.
Banini made four saves in 15:46 of work, but left early in the third period after appearing to injure his right leg. Unger held the fort the rest oft he way and finished with 27 stops.
Ernst had 27 saves for the Blazers.
The Warriors continue their five-game B.C. Division road swing on Tuesday when they’re in Prince George.
