Rebels 2
Hitmen 1
It was a special night for the Red Deer Rebels and their new head coach.
After a hectic 24 hours, the Red Deer Rebels got a much-needed 2-1 win over the Calgary Hitmen on Saturday night at the Peavey Mart Centrium.
The Rebels parted ways with former head coach Derrick Walser and hired interim head coach Dave Struch for the remainder of the season.
The new bench boss seemed to have sparked the Rebels who scored with 30 seconds to go in the third period to win the game.
Struch said that the effort put forth looked a lot like the Rebels of old.
“This team here for me, 17 years coaching in the WHL, it’s always been a really hard team to play against. I think teams in the WHL try to emulate that,” he said.
“It was really fun to see these guys do that here tonight. It was really hard hockey and the guys in the room were hard to play against. We’ve got a lot of hard work ahead of us but they did a great job for us.”
Struch explained it was a full team effort and players were engaged on the bench, on the ice, and in the dressing room.
“Engaging isn’t just physically, it’s mentally more than anything else. We had a bit of a depleted lineup today and we’ve got some young guys in there so fatigue’s going to come in… For them to play that way, I know you can use it. It is Red Deer Rebels hockey.”
The Rebels took the lead just over the midway point of the first period. Forward Jhett Larson fired in a shot from the slot for his 14th tally of the season.
After a scoreless second period, the Hitmen found the equalizer nearly seven minutes into the final frame scored by Oliver Tulk.
But the Rebels scored with 30 seconds left in the game to secure the victory. Forward Talon Brigley fired in a one-timer after he received a pass down low from defenceman Jace Weir.
Brigley explained he was trying to get to the net after Weir fed him there a few times over the last couple of games.
“It was good to capitalize on that. It was a great pass from Weir but it was really nice to see that one go in,” he said.
When asked about his first impressions of his new coach Brigley said Struch is energetic.
“He brought us a lot of energy,” he said. “It’s been a pretty wild 24 hours for our group but he kept it even keel in the room. He just told us to go play our game. Switched a couple of things up but everyone was pretty prepared.”
The Red Deer Rebels are now just two points behind the Swift Current Broncos for fourth in the Eastern Conference with seven games left. Next week they’ll play the Hitmen two more times beginning on Friday in Calgary followed by a rematch on Saturday in Red Deer at 7 p.m.
Taking over a team late in the season certainly can’t be an easy situation for a coach but Struch said he’s loved it so far.
“I get energy from it. I like working and developing young hockey players. I like developing young people and I get the opportunity to do it again. It’s a special night.”
