It was a victory the Moose Jaw Warriors will happily take, but they aren't about to make a big deal of it.
The Warriors picked up their first win of the Western Hockey League exhibition season Tuesday at the Civic Centre, scoring six times in the third period to knock off the previously undefeated Brandon Wheat Kings 7-4.
The contest was one of the most physical the Tribe has seen this season -- with the first incident of rough stuff taking only five seconds to develop after Aaron Goldade slashed Jason Weitzel in the back of the leg off the opening faceoff -- as as such coach Len Nielsen was happy just to see his short-staffed club get through without any serious injuries.
"We don't have a lot of guys around right now, so it can be pretty tough in a physical game like we had tonight," he said. "The guys played hard and that's a credit to their determination and how much they want to win."
With no less than eight players -- Deryk Engelland (New Jersey), Steve Crampton (Pittsburgh), Brian Sutherby (Washington), Tim Barlow (Washington), Jamie Lundmark (New York), Sean O'Connor (Florida), Ben Knopp (Columbus) and Sean Connors (Montreal) -- at their respective National Hockey League training camps, the Warriors have been playing with a truncated line-up through the early part of the season.
The Tribe dressed only three lines and three sets of defencemen for their contest Tuesday.
"Plus we have guys who are playing in only their second or third Western Hockey League game, so there isn't a lot of experience there, either," Nielsen said.
"The good thing is that a lot of the younger guys are getting a lot of ice time right now and that should only help them down the road."
That experience might already be paying dividends, as the Warriors' offence against Brandon came from young and old alike.
Six different players -- veterans David Bararuk, Bobby-Chad Mitchell and Shawn Limpright along with rookies Brooks Laich, Aaron Thompson and Lee Zalasky -- had goals in the third period.
Much of that offensive burst was developed through sheer creativity, the best coming on the Warriors' sixth goal of the game with just more than a minute remaining.
The tic-tac-toe passing play saw Tomas Mojzis feed Mitchell a behind-the-back backhand pass before Mitchell did the same to a wide-open Zalasky at the side of the net.
The Warrior rookie made no mistake in finishing off the play with his first-ever Western Hockey League goal.
While that kind of playmaking is all well and good if it results in spectacular goals, Nielsen was quick to temper his enthusiasm for that kind of game.
"I don't mind creativity as long as it doesn't put the team at risk," he said. "The skill level on this team is very high and a lot of the time that can cause guys to be a little too creative.
"And sometimes when you get goals like that it's just plain luck," he added.
The fact the Warriors were able to pull off the victory was a testament to the team's already-developing versatility.
With it being the pre-season, Nielsen and his coaching staff rarely kept the same line combination together for more than a few shifts at a time, choosing instead to put players together in a variety of patterns.
"A few guys probably played on a bunch of different lines and in two or three different positions before the game was over," Nielsen said. "The play was scrambly at times because the guys are still getting used to one another and we're trying different things."
That might have played a part in the team's relatively slow start, as Jordin Tootoo scored twice for the Wheat Kings in the first period as Brandon built a 2-1 lead.
Veteran defenceman Harlan Anderson scored his first Western Hockey League goal for the Warriors in the opening frame.
There were no goals in the second period, although the Wheat Kings had plenty of chances to score courtesy of four straight Warrior penalties in the last 10 minutes.
"The penalty killing did a good job to keep us in it at the end of the second," Nielsen said. "That's what we need in a game like that."
Tribe Scalpings . . . Knopp was released by the Blue Jackets Tuesday and will be returning to the team shortly . . . next home action for the Warriors will be Saturday against Prince Albert.
