WHL Roundup: A look at Friday's games

Matt Bellerive scored the winning goal late in the third period as the Red Deer Rebels edged the host Moose Jaw Warriors 2-1 on Friday in Western Hockey League action.

Bellerive circled the Warriors' net, found a shooting lane and picked the top corner on Moose Jaw goaltender Daniel Wapple with only 10.9 seconds on the clock for the game winner.

"Going into every game, it doesn't matter if we're down 1-0, we don't panic," said Bellerive. "We just know we're going to win. We have that confidence right now."

Tyson Ness also scored for the Rebels (19-11-2), who have won nine games in a row, and Patrik Bartosak stopped 25-of-26 shots for the victory.

"We can't have that happen. Especially that late in the game," said Warriors' captain Kendall McFaull about the winning goal. "We were 10 seconds away from a point. We're always going for two, but we could have at least had a point there."

Justin Kirsch scored the lone goal for the Warriors (11-14-7), who have dropped back-to-back contests, while Daniel Wapple turned aside 32 shots in a losing cause.

"Our problem was that we were up and down. We had a good first period and then we had a good shift, then a bad shift. You can't do that against teams like this," said McFaull. "We have to find ways to score. We're not going to win many games when we only score one goal."

Neither club could score on the power play as Red Deer went 0 for 4 and Moose Jaw 0 for 3.

Elsewhere in the WHL, it was: Spokane 5, Brandon 2; Calgary 5, Edmonton 2; Kootenay 3, Prince Albert 2; Medicine Hat 8, Lethbridge 7 (SO); Kamloops 3, Prince George 0; Tri-City 3, Portland 2; Swift Current 3 Vancouver 1 and Seattle 5, Everett 1.

At Moose Jaw, Sask., Kirsch opened the scoring for the Warriors when he used his speed to get a breakaway before beating Bartosak with a backhand through the five-hole.

"We got one and we didn't get another one. It's hard to win games 1-0," said Warriors' head coach Mike Stothers. "We had some opportunities. Their goalie misplayed some rebounds and we weren't quick enough to react to those rebounds. The bottom line is that it's pretty tough to win if you only score one."

The Rebels regrouped in the intermission and Rhyse Dieno nearly scored on a breakaway three seconds into the period.

Wapple robbed Dieno twice and made a number of big saves in the second period to keep the Warriors in the game, however he could only do so much for so long.

"(Wapple) was solid for us again," said McFaull. "We owe him. That's a game we have to close out."

Red Deer tied the game early in the third period when Ness beat Moose Jaw defenceman Morgan Rielly at the Warriors' blue-line and came in on a two-on-one and scored on Wapple with a shot high to the blocker side.

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Chiefs 5 Wheat Kings 2

At Brandon, Mitch Holmberg had two goals and an assist and Garret Hughson stopped 30 shots as Spokane (22-7-1) extended its win streak to six games by downing the Wheat Kings (10-17-4), who have dropped seven in a row.

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Hitmen 5 Oil Kings 2

At Edmonton, Zane Jones scored twice in the third period, including the winner, and Chris Driedger made 34 saves as Calgary (19-6-3) downed the Oil Kings (18-7-5) for their third win in a row.

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Ice 3 Raiders 2

At Cranbrook, B.C., Mackenzie Skapski stopped 37-of-39 shots and Jaedon Descheneau had a goal and an assist as Kootenay (9-18-1) slipped past Prince Albert (20-10-2) to end a three-game winless streak.

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Tigers 8 Hurricanes 7 (SO)

At Lethbridge, Alta., Jaimen Yakubowski scored five goals for the Hurricanes (15-14-5), however it wasn't enough as Hunter Shinkaruk scored twice in regulation and the shootout winner for Medicine Hat (14-16-2).

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Blazers 3 Cougars 0

At Kamloops, B.C., Cole Cheveldave stopped all 23 shots he faced and Brendan Ranford set up two goals, including Marek Hrbas' winner, as the Blazers (23-7-3) blanked Prince George (10-15-4).

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Americans 3 Winterhawks 2

At Portland, Ore., Connor Rankin scored twice and set up one more and Luke Lee-Knight stopped 44 shots as Tri-City (18-11-2) ended the Winterhawks' (23-5-1) seven-game winning streak.

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Broncos 3 Giants 1

At Vancouver, Levi Bews had a goal and an assist while Eetu Laurikainen turned aside 28 shots as Swift Current (13-15-5) beat the Giants (8-21-0), who sit last in the WHL standings.

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Thunderbirds 5 Silvertips 1

At Everett, Wash., Brandon Glover made 33 saves, but Tyler Sandhu ruined his shutout bid with seven seconds remaining in the game as Seattle (16-13-1) defeated the Silvertips (11-20-2) for its fourth straight victory.