Brandon Wheat Kings are 2016 WHL Champions
Friday May 13, 2016
The Brandon Wheat Kings hoisted the Ed Chynoweth Cup as WHL Champions for the third time in franchise history on Friday night in Seattle.
The Wheat Kings became the WHL’s 50th champion, breaking open a 4-4 game after two periods with a four-goal third on tallies from Nolan Patrick, Jayce Hawryluk and Stelio Mattheos. Brandon took Game 5 of the WHL Championship Series over the Seattle Thunderbirds by a score of 8-4.
Hawryluk recorded three goals and two assists while Nolan Patrick, Tyler Coulter and Tim McGauley also had multi-point performances.
The 17-year-old Patrick was named WHL Playoff MVP after leading the league with 13 goals, 17 assists and 30 points in 21 contests with a plus/minus rating of plus-19.
The WHL title is Brandon’s first in 20 years, following up championships in 1996 and 1979. All three championship-clinching victories have come on American soil (1979 at Portland, 1996 at Spokane). The Wheat Kings were runners-up to the Kelowna Rockets one season ago, falling in four games in the 2015 WHL Championship Series.
Brandon will represent the WHL alongside the host Red Deer Rebels at the 2016 MasterCard Memorial Cup in Red Deer, AB which is set to begin next Friday. The Wheat Kings will look for the franchise’s first MasterCard Memorial Cup title as the province of Alberta hosts the national championship for the first time in 42 years.
For schedules, stories and more information on the 2016 MasterCard Memorial Cup, please visit mastercardmemorialcup.ca.