MOOSE JAW -- The Moose Jaw Warriors got off to exactly the start they were hoping for against the Red Deer Rebels Tuesday night, but the rest of the Western Hockey League contest didn’t quite go their way.
After roaring out to a 4-1 lead late in the first period, the Warriors would see Red Deer score five straight goals and go on to drop a 6-4 decision at the newly christened Temple Gardens Centre.
The loss snapped Moose Jaw’s four-game point streak, which included wins in their last three games. The Warriors now have a 14-42-5-2 record and remain 11th in the Eastern Conference while Red Deer improves to 25-30-5-2 to stay alive in the hunt for the eighth and final playoff spot.
Warriors forward Riley Thorpe played a big part in Moose Jaw building their early lead, beginning with the opening goal of the game. The 17-year-old outraced a Red Deer defender to go in on a short breakaway before tucking the puck around netminder Peyton Shore to make it 1-0 at the 5:11 mark of the first.
Former Warriors defenceman Keaton Dowhaniuk tied the game only 1:24 later, but the remainder of the first period saw Moose Jaw build their edge with three straight goals.
Ethan Hughes scored his seventh of the season with 9:16 gone in the period, Thorpe scored his sixth at the 15:33 mark and Krzysztof Macias netted his 17th with 1:02 to play, giving the Warriors their 4-1 lead.
Unfortunately for the home squad, that was the last bit of good news on the night.
Kalan Lind started the comeback when got one back for Red Deer with 43 seconds to play in the first, making it a two goal game.
Ollie Josephson then made it 4-3 with 3:31 gone in the second, and Lind would score his second of the game with 3:37 remaining in the frame to tie things up heading into the third.
There, Josephson scored what would stand as the game-winning goal with 8:24 remaining in the contest, setting up a tense finish -- especially when Red Deer took a penalty with 2:19 to play in the game, giving Moose Jaw a chance to tie things up.
The Warriors would have a couple cracks at it, but Josephson would finish off his first hat trick of the season and a five-point game with an empty-netter with 1:01 remaining.
Thorpe had his best game as a Warrior with three points, Hughes finished with a goal and assist and Connor Schmidt added a pair of helpers.
Lind also had a five-point outing for Red Deer with three assists to go along with his two goals.
Matthew Hutchison stopped 43 shots in the Moose Jaw net, Shore rebounded from the tough start and ended up with 22 saves total.
The Warriors are back in action Friday when they travel to Brandon to face the Wheat Kings in the first game of a weekend home-and-home. The teams return to Moose Jaw Saturday, with puck drop at 7 p.m. at Temple Gardens Centre.
