The stats may not jump off the page for Joel Hofer, but he has been every bit as impressive as any other goaltender in the WHL this season.

Hofer made 46 saves tonight for his first shutout of the season as the Swift Current Broncos topped Regina 1-0. He stopped 89 of the 93 shots he faced in two games this weekend as he continues to lead the WHL in shots faced and saves.

"It feels pretty good," Hofer said. "The guys played pretty good in front of me. The young guys stepped up big. There was a lot of blocked shots and made my night pretty easy."



Hofer's 4.02 goals against average and 0.904 save percentage won't place him at the top of those categories for WHL goaltenders, but given the number and quality of the chances he faces on a regular basis they are just as impressive as any of the leaders.

For his part the St. Louis Blues draft pick has enjoyed all the work.

"I like it. It's better than sitting on the bench," Hofer said. "I'm just trying to go game by game and give it my all every game."

Carter Chorney scored the lone goal of the game on a first period power play and the Broncos hung on the rest of the way to snap a four game losing streak.

"It was huge for the team and huge for the boys, the fans and everyone," Chorney said. "(Hofer) is the core of our team. He comes in every night no matter what and he's lights out."



Swift Current really faced an uphill battle tonight after two key forwards exited the game in the first period. Both Tanner Nagel and Ben King left the game early and did not return. That forced a shorthanded young group to play big minutes in defending their lead.

"We were working hard as a unit," said Broncos assistant coach Scott Dutertre. "There was a couple other factors with Ben King and Tanner Nagel going out in the second shift. It was just a good character win."



Their goal came midway through the first period on a power play that had to quickly adjust without two key parts of it. Billy Sowa took one of those spots and made a nice play to set up Ethan O'Rourke's tip that went through the crease. Chorney then jumped on that and notched his 10th goal of the season.

"Our power play had some different looks to it tonight with those guys gone," Dutertre said. "Brandin (Cote) did a good job making some adjustments in throwing a couple different guys in there. It was nice to see the guys doing a good job with their on ice awareness."

Chorney now has four points in six games since the Christmas break and is enjoying more responsibility since joining the Broncos.

"I've been kind of challenged by the coaches to take on a bigger role than I had in Spokane," Chorney said. "I feel like I've handled it pretty well and I'm ready to move forward with it."



Down to only nine healthy forwards late in the game the Broncos were feeling the pressure and still managed to get some big shot blocks while limiting second chances.

"We were starting to get gassed by the end," Dutertre said. "I thought we did a good job of just keeping our composure and staying the course."

Max Paddock made 23 saves in the Regina goal to keep his team close.

Swift Current went 1 for 5 on the power play, while holding Regina to 0 for 3. The Broncos have only allowed two power play goals in six games since Christmas.

That was their second win in five tries against the Pats. The two teams will play one final time on Wednesday, March 13th.

The Broncos were again without Joona Kiviniemi who is still sick. They are expecting a boost from the addition of rookie Kye Buchanan this week who has signed with the team and should be available by the time they host Red Deer on Wednesday.