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The Regina Pats made field trips to Swift Current, Estevan, Assiniboia and Brandon before heading home to complete their WHL preseason Saturday with a 3-1 loss to the Brandon Wheat Kings on Saturday at the Brandt Centre.
“In four of the five games I thought we were solid,” said Pats general manager Alan Millar, whose team finished its Saskatchewan/Manitoba preseason tour with a 2-3 record while the Wheat Kings ended their exhibition schedule at 4-0. “We had a lot of young guys playing defence (Saturday), competing for spots on the roster. And that’s all good.
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“There were more good things in the preseason than bad. We’re seeing that we’re able to take a step.”
The Pats open their regular season Friday in Prince Albert against the Raiders, followed one night later by their home opener against Brandon. Saturday games start at 6 p.m. at the Brandt Centre.
Regina’s only goal came during a second-period power play, when Braxton Whitehead re-directed a centring pass from Cole Temple.
Whitehead has become a major hockey story after announcing Friday he has a verbal commitment to attend Arizona State University next season. Whitehead and Millar have a media conference slated for Monday morning to discuss the announced move, which could be precedent-setting because players from major junior leagues have not been allowed to play NCAA hockey. A pending lawsuit against that NCAA provision could open those doors next season.
“Whew! I’m glad I was able to tip in that goal,” said Whitehead. “(Pats goalie Kelton Pyne) played amazing, but we need to lock down in front of our net and work on our structure.
“There’s a really positive future here for the Regina Pats and this is just the start of it. You’ll really see it begin when the regular season starts.”
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The Pats were without veteran defender Corbin Vaughan and forwards Jaxsin Vaughan and Tanner Howe, who are attending NHL camps. Corbin and Jaxsin, 18-year-old twins, were invited to rookie camps by the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks respectively while Howe was a second-round draft choice by the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Brandon’s Jody Baumuller scored the game’s first goal late in the first period. The Wheat Kings didn’t score again until Nicholas Johnson and Carter Klippenstein tallied in the final half of the third period against Pyne, who faced 26 shots. Brandon’s Dylan McFadyen also made 23 saves.
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