Winnipeg ICE veteran Connor McClennon led the way offensively on Friday night, as the Medicine Hat Tigers dropped their ninth straight decision 6-2 on home ice (Photo courtesy Randy Feere / Medicine Hat Tigers)

By Scott Roblin

WHL Friday

Nine consecutive losses for Tigers after being frozen out by ICE

Feb 25, 2022 | 10:46 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The slumbering giant that is the Winnipeg ICE’s power play woke up in the second period and never looked back, as the Medicine Hat Tigers’ losing streak extended to nine games Friday.

Bolstered by three goals in just over a six-minute span in the second period, the ICE posted another six-goal performance on Medicine Hat as the Tigers fell 6-2 on home ice.

Medicine Hat’s opening 10 minutes were some of their best hockey of the week, keeping the lethal Winnipeg attack to the outside and killing off two penalties in the process.

With under five minutes remaining in the first period, ICE winger Chase Wheatcroft picked up his own rebound and batted it out of the ice following a beautiful stop by Garin Bjorklund for the 1-0 lead.

Connor McClennon followed that up with a wild scramble in front of the Tigers net, just getting a backhand shot to squeak through Bjorklund across the line to double Winnipeg’s lead at the first intermission.

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On their third power play of the night early in the second, it was a Zach Benson shot that slowed up and found the back of the net 1:40 into the period to make it a 3-0 ICE advantage.

Conor Geekie and Benson added back-to-back goals in the ensuing minutes, with Benson’s second coming on the man advantage, to take full control of the game up five goals.

Medicine Hat blueliner Bogdans Hodass caught a bounce his way midway through the second to get the Tigers on the board though, banking a puck from centre ice off the glass which carried into the empty Winnipeg cage with Daniel Hauser expecting to play the puck behind the net.

Starting play in the third trailing by a 5-1 count, the Tigers pulled closer with a hardworking play by Teague Patton to find Oasiz Wiesblatt at the side of the net for the tap-in to cut the deficit to three.

Any hope of a Tigers comeback was snuffed out in the game’s final four minutes however, with the ICE adding their third power play goal of the evening off a Mikey Milne rebound to see Winnipeg skate away as victors.

Two nights after registering a 40-save showing, Bjorklund made 30 stops in the loss for Medicine Hat on Friday while Hauser stopped 15 of 17 in the Winnipeg net.

Still looking for their first win in the month of February, the Tigers will get their last chance to do so on Saturday night in Lethbridge searching for their first win of the year against the Hurricanes.