WHL Roundup: Rielly with four assists as the Warriors double up the Tigers

Morgan Rielly set up four of his club's goals as the Moose Jaw Warriors doubled up the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers 8-4 on Friday in Western Hockey League play.

With the victory, Moose Jaw moves to within eight points of Medicine Hat for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

"We're approaching every game like it's a playoff game and I think we're all aware that if we want to play in the playoffs this year we have to play hard every night," said Rielly. "Our goal is to make the playoffs and that's quite attainable."

Rielly, who was on the ice for the first four Warrior goals, played his best game since returning from NHL training camp with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

"I felt good, but the whole team was playing well," said Rielly. "I think it takes some time to get used to (the tempo) and to get used to your teammates again. I'm pretty comfortable right now and the team is playing great, so it's all good."

Torrin White scored twice for the Warriors (18-26-9), who have won four of their last five games, and Bryson Gore had a goal and two assists.

Colton McCarthy, Sam Fioretti and Brayden Point each had a goal and an assist for Moose Jaw while Justin Kirsch and Josh Uhrich scored a goal apiece.

"We got some contributions from maybe unexpected sources," said Warriors head coach Mike Stothers. "If we're going to be a serious threat to make the playoffs we need guys to keep stepping up."

Curtis Valk scored three times for the Tigers (25-25-3) and Elgin Pearce had a goal and two assists.

Justin Paulic made 33 saves for the win as Marek Langhamer turned away 29-of-37 shots in a losing cause.

Moose Jaw went 1 for 3 on the power play while Medicine Hat went 2 for 4.

Elsewhere in the WHL, it was: Regina 3, Brandon 2; Saskatoon 6, Calgary 0; Edmonton 3, Swift Current 0; Lethbridge 3, Red Deer 2; Kamloops 7, Spokane 4; Prince George 6, Victoria 2; Kelowna 5, Vancouver 1; Tri-City Everett and Portland 5, Seattle 3.

At Moose Jaw, Sask., Uhrich opened the scoring for Moose Jaw at 14:31 of the first period.

Valk responded for the Tigers with two goals in the first five minutes of the second period, however the Warriors scored three straight goals to take a 4-2 lead.

McCarthy scored 1:09 after Valk, Kirsch scored with the man advantage at 11:13 and Point was next at 14:36.

Valk made it 4-3 with his third goal of the night, but Gore added another for Moose Jaw at 18:36 to give his club a two-goal lead after 40 minutes of play.

Fioretti made it 6-3 early in the third period before Pearce replied for the Tigers.

White added two more goals for Moose Jaw midway through the third, including one while shorthanded.

---

Pats 3 Wheat Kings 2

At Regina, Lane Scheidl scored twice and assisted on one more and Morgan Klimchuk had a goal and an assist as the Pats (19-27-6) knocked off Brandon (18-31-4) to snap an eight-game winless streak.

---

Blades 6 Hitmen 0

At Saskatoon, Andrey Makarov stopped 42 shots and Brenden Walker and Nathan Burns each scored twice as the Blades (26-21-3) blanked Calgary (33-15-4) for their third win in a row.

---

Oil Kings 3 Broncos 0

At Edmonton, Laurent Brossoit stopped 23 shots and Curtis Lazar scored two goals as the Oil Kings (37-11-5) extended their win streak to seven games by shutting out Swift Current (25-22-5).

---

Hurricanes 3 Rebels 2

At Lethbridge, Alta., Russell Maxwell scored the winning goal at 17:19 of the third period and Ty Rimmer stopped 31-of-33 shots as the Hurricanes (24-22-8) defeated Red Deer (27-21-6), who lost in regulation for the first time in four outings.

---

Blazers 7 Chiefs 4

At Kamloops, B.C., Kale Kessy had two goals and three assists, Tim Bozon scored twice and chipped in with two assists and Colin Smith had a goal and four assists as the Blazers (34-15-5) defeated Spokane (30-19-2).

---

Cougars 6 Royals 2

At Prince George, B.C., Chase Witala recorded his first WHL hat trick and Dallas Ehrhardt had a goal and two assists as the Cougars (16-30-6) beat Victoria (27-19-4), which is winless in three contests.

---

Rockets 5 Giants 1

At Vancouver, Colton Sissons scored twice and Tyrell Goulbourne and Tyson Baillie each had a goal and an assist as Kelowna (39-10-4) downed the Giants (13-39-0) for its 16th win in its last 18 games.

---

Americans 2 Silvertips 1 (SO)

At Everett, Wash., Malte Stromwall scored in regulation and then again in the shootout while Luke Lee-Knight made 21 saves as Tri-City (30-19-3) edged the Silvertips (21-28-4), who have dropped three games in a row.

---

Winterhawks 5 Thunderbirds 3

At Kent, Wash., Ty Rattie scored once and set up three more and Nicolas Petan and Brendan Leipsic each had a goal and two assists as Portland (42-7-3) defeated Seattle (19-29-4) for its fifth win in its last six games.