Lethbridge, Alta.- Calgary Flames prospect Hunter Laing recorded his first multi-goal as a member of the Blades as Saskatoon survived a late barrage of Lethbridge offence in a 4-3 win in the February 19 edition of Wednesday Night in the Dub.
Saskatoon Captain Ben Saunderson picked up two helpers to set a new career high in single-season assists (27), while Winnipeg Jets prospect Brayden Yager and alternate captain Brayden Edwards chipped in two points each for the Hurricanes.
The important win sees the Blades leapfrog the Edmonton Oil Kings to sit sixth in the Eastern Conference standings with the 2025 WHL Playoff picture starting to take shape.
It also sets up a heated rematch between the Bridge Cities after several scraps and eight powerplays on Wednesday night.
Laing struck less than three minutes into the match by stealing the puck along the boards and walking into the slot to rifle a shot over the glove of Jackson Unger.
https://twitter.com/TheWHL/status/1892397360451309612
The towering 6-foot-6, 209-pound winger quickly doubled the lead off another turnover.
Laing deked a defender and froze the netminder, weaving around the competition to tuck the puck into a wide-open net.
The 2024 sixth-round pick of the Calgary Flames appeared to complete the natural hat truck at the end of the period, but the third goal was called back due to a high stick and the Blades would carry a 2-0 lead into the second period.
https://twitter.com/TheWHL/status/1892397753969357191
Lethbridge finally struck with a hardworking play midway through the second frame.
Captain and Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Noah Chadwick started a passing play with Kash Andresen that saw Cessford, Alta.’s Shane Smith pot his 10th goal of the season with a snipe from the point.
https://twitter.com/TheWHL/status/1892415859366183193
But the celebration at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena was short-lived as Blades standout rookie Cooper Williams whipped a shot on net with Kazden Mathies jamming away until the puck found twine on a Saskatoon powerplay.
Blades Captain Ben Saunderson picked up the secondary assist on the play as the visitors restored the two-goal lead.
Kaz likes his goals with a little jam pic.twitter.com/fwqjxbAn2B
— Saskatoon Blades (@BladesHockey) February 20, 2025
Saunderson, a 20-year-old blueliner from Carberry, Man., snagged a second helper as the Blades put up the dagger late in the third.
He combined with Rowan Calvert to get a shot on net, with Hayden Harsanyi parked on the doorstep to lift the rebound over the sprawling Lethbridge goaltender.
The 18-year-old was a key piece in a blockbuster January trade that saw Nashville Predators prospect Tanner Molendyk go from Saskatoon to Medicine Hat.
Harsanyi has paced the Blades in scoring since making his Saskatoon debut with nine goals and six assists for 15 points in 16 games.
Hayden Harsanyi doing Hayden Harsanyi things! pic.twitter.com/Q83gDufgNC
— Saskatoon Blades (@BladesHockey) February 20, 2025
But the Hurricanes wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Winnipeg Jets prospect Brayden Yager teed up alternate captain Brayden Edwards made things interesting with a powerplay blast with less than five minutes remaining in regulation.
https://twitter.com/WHLHurricanes/status/1892432086327275824
That sent the final minutes into a firestorm of activity, with Kooper Gizowski corralling a Yager rebound and pulling the Hurricanes with a single goal.
While Lethbridge ultimately didn’t find the equalizer and took a regulation loss, the action made for a wildly entertaining tilt for fans.
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Laing picked up first-star honours, while Captains Chadwick and Saunderson were named second and third star, respectively.
Ethan McCallum steered aside 29 of 32 shots for his seventh win with the Blades, while 2024 WHL Champion Jackson Unger settled for 24 stops in his 150th WHL game.
Saskatoon (29-18-3-4) now turns its attention to a trip to Red Deer to face the rival Rebels on Friday, February 1.
Lethbridge (34-19-2-1) will host the Kamloops Blazers (20-30-4-0) the same night before heading to Saskatoon for a rematch against the Blades on Tuesday, February 25.
Next up, Wednesday Night in the Dub shifts east as the upstart Brandon Wheat Kings (30-16-4-3) host the Edmonton Oil Kings (30-20-2-2) on February 26.
Brandon has points in 10 straight games to seize first place in the East Division, while the Oil Kings have seen highly-touted NHL prospects like Gracyn Sawchyn (Florida Panthers), Adam Jecho (St. Louis Blues) and Miroslav Holinka (Toronto Maple Leafs) hit a new level in 2025.
