By Scott Roblin

Tigers to face Edmonton Oil Kings in first round of WHL playoffs

Mar 16, 2019 | 6:34 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – A blockbuster deal at the WHL trade deadline linked the Medicine Hat Tigers and Edmonton Oil Kings for the rest of the season.

It’s only fitting that the two Central Division rivals will meet when the 2019 WHL Playoffs begin in a week’s time.

With Edmonton’s dominant 6-1 victory over the Calgary Hitmen on Saturday afternoon, they clinched the Central Division title and set up a first round meeting with the boys in black and orange.

Three games between the Tigers and Oil Kings went to overtime or a shootout this year, however the Tigers only won once against Edmonton with a 1-3-2 record in six games.

Of course, the Tigers and Oil Kings became trading partners at the trade deadline in January with Medicine Hat acquiring 18-year-old Brett Kemp in exchange for second-year winger Josh Williams.

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This will be the first playoff series between the two clubs since the 2014 Eastern Conference Final, which was won in five games by the eventual Memorial Cup champion Oil Kings.

However, the Tigers and Oil Kings did tie with identical records in 2016 and faced off in a play-in game for that year’s final wildcard spot, which Edmonton won by a 6-4 final.

The opening round series will begin on Saturday, March 23 at Rogers Place, while Game 2 will be held the following night in Edmonton as well.

Medicine Hat will host its first playoff games on Tuesday, March 26 and Wednesday, March 27 at the Canalta Centre, with both scheduled for 7:00 puck drops.

If needed, Game 5 would shift back to Edmonton on March 29, while the Tigers would host their final home game of the series on Sunday, March 31 at 6:00 for Game 6.

The series could extend into April if seven games are needed, which would be played on April 2 at Rogers Place in a winner-take-all scenario.

The Tigers wrap up their regular season on Saturday night however, as they face the Lethbridge Hurricanes at the Canalta Centre at 7:30 pm.