Saskatoon Blades forward Brandon Lisowsky has found a proper rhythm for when it comes to scoring big goals in overtime: Find some space, rip it blocker side, send the fans home happy, repeat.
It’s a formula he once again perfected on Wednesday night in a 4-3 OT win over the visiting Calgary Hitmen.
Lisowsky was fed a between-the-legs pass from Fraser Minten off a Calgary turnover to snipe his career-best 40th goal of the season 1:05 into the extra frame.
Wednesday’s goal marked the third time this season that Lisowsky had stepped up as overtime hero, with his most recent example coming less than two weeks ago on a penalty shot against the Edmonton Oil Kings at SaskTel Centre.
While the Blades have brought the fireworks in the late stages of the regular season winning six of their last seven games, their overall consistency has dipped in recent days.
First was allowing six unanswered goals by the Moose Jaw Warriors on Saturday night in a crushing 6-3 loss, before struggling to contain the Hitmen in the first period especially with a myriad of turnovers and lost battles along the boards.
“There was a segment of that game where we probably had 25 shots to a couple,” said Blades head coach Brennan Sonne.
“There was a time in that game where it was like, ‘OK, here are the Blades,’ and then there are other times where it’s like casual almost. We have it in that room, but we need to be consistently desperate.”
The Blades have already locked in their spot atop the Eastern Conference with first place and home ice advantage throughout playoffs until at least the Western Hockey League championship series, if they make it that far.
Despite knowing where they’d finish for over a week, Sonne said that doesn’t mean the learning process has come to a halt for his team.
“It’s not like any team is a finished product going into playoffs,” said Sonne. “The things that happen in the regular season or the mistakes made, they happen in the playoffs too. So while we want to ramp up, we also want to continue to improve.”
With the single point they earned against the Blades, Calgary’s dwindling playoff chances remained alive as they trail the Prince Albert Raiders by four points in the standings.
The Hitmen will need to win their final two games to have a shot at forcing a tie-breaker game, while the Raiders can clinch this weekend by earning a single point in either of their two remaining games.
Both of those games will be against Saskatoon in a home-and-home series to close out the regular season, with the Blades likely getting a preview of their pending first round series against Prince Albert.
“There’s a really good chance that we play them in the first round,” said Blades forward Easton Armstrong. “It’s definitely big to get some momentum going into the first round, these next two games. I think we got to come with 100 per cent for 60 minutes.”
While the final standings are still yet to be determined, captain Trevor Wong said a two-game sneak peek at the Raiders could be beneficial, similar to the situation they found themselves in with Connor Bedard and the Regina Pats one year ago.
Holding a 48-13-2-3 record, Saskatoon’s dominant regular season will come to a close against their most bitter rivals before kicking off a playoff run the franchise and city have been eagerly waiting for.
The Blades acknowledge there’s still work to do to get to their best for Game 1 next week, however they’re optimistic that last boost will come this weekend versus Prince Albert.
Friday’s series opener will see the Blades pay a visit to the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert, before returning to Saskatoon on Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. for both teams’ regular season finale.
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